Splash Biography

You've probably heard people claim that a variety of languages are the most difficult to learn - it might be Chinese, or Arabic, or perhaps even English. But what makes a language difficult to learn, and for whom? In this course, we'll learn about the kinds of linguistic diversity that exist in the world, and how they make some languages easier (or harder) to learn for different people!

If everybody already speaks at least one language, what's the point of studying language at all? It turns out that languages have a rich history and fascinating relationships that you might not realize, if you only speak one or two. In this class, we'll learn just how different languages can be, and how they came to be that way. We'll also touch on some common misconceptions, such as what linguists do, and the difference between a language and a dialect. We'll be discussing many different languages, but don't worry—you only need to know English!