Random Language Facts

    41 facts tagged with Language Facts

    'Go', is the shortest complete sentence in the English language.
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    Before WWI, German Was the Second Most Widely Spoken Language in the United States
    Before it was repressed during World War I, German was the second most widely spoken language in the United States and many local governments, schools, and newspapers operated in German.
    11
    The word "gorilla" comes from a Greek word that means "a tribe of hairy women".
    12
    The Danish word for condom is 'svangerskabsforebyggendemiddel'.
    89
    Switching letters is called spoonerism. For example, saying "jag of Flapan", instead of "flag of Japan".
    2
    When Washoe, the first chimp to use sign language, was told that her caretaker's baby had died, she signed "CRY."
    20
    The six official languages of the United Nations are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish.
    31
    In Turkish, the bird we call a Turkey is called "Hindi" ("from India"). In India, it's called "Peru." In Arabic, the bird is called "Greek chicken"; in Greek it's called "French chicken"; and in French it's called "Indian chicken." The bird is indigenous to none of these places.
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