Through the eleventh century, the influence of Arabic was felt not only on vocabulary: Arabic also had a direct impact on the semantics of the Latin vernacular that developed in Spain. In La Historia del Español, Professors Nadeau and Barlow write that it’s possible that the Arabic ...
Spanish:probably a Castilianized or Americanized form of Sousa, or (less likely) from sosa 'seaweed'. Where does Rodriguez come from? The name Rodriguez comes from an interesting origin as it comes froma Germanic origin from the Visigoths who invaded Spain in the 400s and left a name. The...
When Europe adopted the German standard, in the 20th century, the US, along with a few other countries, did not. They don't. Most Americans can't spell metric, let alone use it; unless it's when buying a 2 liter bottle of Coke. The Coke system of liquid measures...
There’s a phenomenon in some unrelated Asian languages that often strikes Europeans as ugly: the tendency to nasalize and extend certain (usually final) syllables, sometimes apparently with the implication of teasing / disbelief / derision, but also just as an informality marker. This is very c...
Why the British Pronounce “Z” as “Zed” The Origin of the Word “Soccer” Why Some Countries Drive on the Right and Some Countries Drive on the Left Bonus Facts: Eeyore’s name is based off the British Cockney dialect version of the phrase “hee-haw”. The guy who did the voice ...