Languages around the world organize their lexicons, or vocabularies, in a myriad of different ways. This book is a celebration of global linguistic diversity, bringing together fascinating cases from a wide range of languages to explore how and why this lexical variation occurs. Each of the thirty-six short chapters shows how different culturally-specific words, relating to a range of phenomena such as kinship, colour, space, time, objects, smells, and animals, vary across languages and geographical locations. It also explains the mechanisms of development in vocabularies, showing why this variation occurs, and how languages and cultures interact, to deepen the reader's understanding of one of the most important aspects of linguistics. Assuming little to no prior knowledge of linguistics, and introducing concepts in an accessible way, this book is an entertaining, informative read for anyone who wants to learn more about the incredible variation and diversity of the human lexicon.

An engaging celebration of global linguistic diversity, with plenty of fascinating cases of cross-linguistic variation in each chapter.

About the Author
Danko Sipka is Professor of Slavic Languages and Applied Linguistics at Arizona State University. His research interests include lexicography, lexicology, morphology, and computational linguistics. His publications encompass over 150 papers and reviews as well as thirty books.

Reviews
'... an engaging travelogue of words and cultural practices ... Recommended.' E. L. Battistella, Choice
'... Sipka adopts a playful tone and sprinkles the text with puns, wry comments, and humorous illustrations ... [He] has achieved his goal and more: a book for both general readers and linguistics instructors.' Donald R. Riccomini, Society for Technical Communication



Book Information
ISBN 9781108795012
Author Danko Sipka
Format Paperback
Page Count 272
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 400g
Dimensions(mm) 228mm * 154mm * 15mm