Watching a discussion (https://lgbtqia.space/@alice/114741495804033479) about the usage of the word "guy" and I have pointed out that language change can be... rapid nowadays.
So this got me curious:

https://www.shaav.com/professional/linguistics/guys.html

New eggcorn spotted in the wild: "sure up" instead of "shore up"

Shopping websites translating item titles and descriptions automatically could be a new vector of language change as I now see "booster" (a small pack of trading card games) translated into Polish as "dopalacz" (that I have only ever seen used with the meaning "designer drug"). I'm curious if people will catch on.

Spotted in a #CaptainAmerica story in #TalesofSuspense c1966: "he dived" rather than "he dove" to describe the actions of #RedSkull. As far as their use in literature, the latter only became more common in the 1980s (https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=he+dived%2Che+dove&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=en-US-2019&smoothing=3). As someone born in the 1980s, "dived" does sound really strange.

Excellent song by #WillHaven, Finest Our, but the title's play on words only works for those who pronounce "our" as [aʊəɹ] rather than [aɹ]. I use the latter even in stressed positions, which my students tell me is weird now, but this album was recorded over 20 years ago, at which time I assume this was not as weird.

https://tidal.com/browse/track/5522648?u

The realisation that language change is real is really struck home when one looks up what the word "silly" used to mean.

Spotted a (exaggerated?) representation of the #Southernvowelshift in a #HauntofFear issue c1950s: "can't" as [keɪnt] rather than [kænt].

A brief history (and critique) of English spelling reform that I once wrote for @HistoryToday:
https://www.historytoday.com/brief-history-english-spelling-reform

Supplementary notes on the history of English spelling reform:
https://stancarey.wordpress.com/2016/02/08/the-history-of-english-spelling-reform/

"Every" was originally a compound of two words in Old English: æfre (ever) + ælc (each), the former added for emphasis. You'll find "euerich" and the like in Chaucer.

A thing about language that a lot of people don't know is that you can dislike a usage intensely – a pronunciation, a piece of grammar, etc. – without presuming to reject it on behalf of all people, in all places, for all time

Merriam-Webster has started a slang dictionary, if you've been wondering what on earth "skibidi", "cheugy", or "high-key" means:
https://www.merriam-webster.com/slang

TIL that #Kenner, #Louisiana was originally called Cannes Brûlées, meaning burnt sugarcane. The French pronunciation is /kan bɾyle/ whereas Kenner is /kɛn əɹ/. It's hard to say what happened to the adjective as it was anglicized, but the sugarcane was preserved pretty well in there.

(Got this from the list of #colonial censuses in Zitomersky (1974) that has one for "Cannes Bruslees" in 1722.)

Strange to not have any #Labov quotes to share that I find poignant despite being the giant of #sociolinguistics and despite how much of his work I've read. He always struck me as a workhorse with a lot of interesting method ideas but not someone terribly concerned with #socialtheory where one's writing might become more touching. His legacy and influence will undoubtedly persist for a very long time still.

#StanLee decided to #rhyme "Don" with "One" in this #Avengers issue from 1967. It seems like quite a stretch, but maybe this says something about how close these vowels were for him at that time.

Fascinating study on linguistic shifts in Southern #Ukraine after Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022:

- Many rejected the 'language of the aggressor.'
- Ukrainian usage surged in public spaces.
- Bilingualism (Ukrainian-Russian) is now seen negatively.
- Family language habits changed less due to tradition.

Read more: https://doi.org/10.12797/LV.19.2024.38.21

"In our behalf" spotted in a #Marvel #comic from the 1960s. This construction -- rather than ON our behalf -- appears to have been the norm before that time, which surprised me, personally (https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=in+our+behalf%2Con+our+behalf&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=en-US-2019&smoothing=3).

Etymology hidden in plain sight: "naughty" originally meant poor, as in "naught-y" = having nought.

Later it meant morally bad or wicked. This then weakened to the familiar "disobedient" sense in the 17thC.

Milch cow gives it away of course... but from an 1851 Canadian census. I was mildly curious how many people (who didn't speak german) knew the English word as well. It is of course "Milk" as in "Milk cows". I rather doubt it would be used on any census today.

Out of curiosity, how many of you fine folks would know the word "milch" and what it means. (edit I should have added it's still an English word! but yes if you know german you'd know it as it is the same word. ;) ) (Please no spoilers and no cheating by looking it up until after you have thought about it at least!)