Language Families of the World

De: John McWhorter, The Great Courses

Narrado por: John McWhorter

Language, in its seemingly infinite varieties, tells us who we are and where we come from. Many linguists believe that all of the world’s languages - over 7,000 currently - emerged from a single prehistoric source. While experts have not yet been able to reproduce this proto-language, most of the world’s current languages can be traced to various language families that have branched and divided, spreading across the globe with migrating humans and evolving over time.

The ability to communicate with the spoken word is so prevelant that we have yet to discover a civilization that does not speak. The fitful preservation of human remains throughout history has made tracing the ultimate origin of sophisticated human cultures difficult, but it is assumed that language is at least 300,000 years old. With so much time comes immense change - including the development of the written word. There’s no doubt that over centuries, numerous languages have been born, thrived, and died. So how did we get here, and how do we trace the many language branches back to the root?

In Language Families of the World, Professor John McWhorter of Columbia University takes you back through time and around the world, following the linguistic trails left by generations of humans that lead back to the beginnings of language. Utilizing historical theories and cutting-edge research, these 34 astonishing lectures will introduce you to the major language families of the world and their many offspring, including a variety of languages that are no longer spoken but provide vital links between past and present.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

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Excellent- Fun and Educational

Excellent audiobook. The author/narrator has a great ability to break concepts into small, digestible chunks. His great sense of humor is engaging and gives life to the content.

After listening to three of John McWhorter's books and hearing him mention he is from Philadelphia, I decided to google him. According to Wikapedia, we went to the same high school ~30 years apart. Coincidences are amazing.

fascinating and entertaining

I found the the material interesting and the presentation was fun and engaging. I chose the course on a whim. The material could have been very dry, but it was presented in a way that kept my attention. There is a lot of material and I would have benefited from being able to look at a map. But, I listened while driving so that wasn't an option. I found my curiosity piqued and plan to seek out other materials on linguistics.

Informative & interesting; fairly annoying lecturer

This professor is extremely knowledgeable and smart, and the topic is fascinating. However, he goes off on a million tangents, makes a number of bad/questionable jokes, and generally makes the whole thing a bit too much about himself for my taste. If you don’t mind that— it was worth it to me, in the end— give this audio course a try.

A great course

This is a highly enjoyable course, great narrator and a very interesting topic. Learned a lot.

Worth a listen

Very easy to listen to and entertaining. I'll definitely be checking out more of Dr McWhorter's work

Fantastic and spellbinding

This was a wonderful journey through the world and its amazing diversity of languages! Highly recommend to anyone interested in this topic.

Most Enjoyable

Excellent! an interesting, relaxed and many times humorous presentation. It was obvious John loves his work. Looking for another Great Courses from him. Well done.

Excellent

I'm an obsessive lover of languages and i already knew most of the material, but i thoroughly enjoyed this. It touches on all the language families of the world and actually gives a thorough look at African languages rather than glossing over them. It at least touches on pretty much all of the unusual and fascinating languages and things that make them unique. I dislike his sense of humor, but he really knows his subject and is great at delivering it in a comprehensible way while still including grest detail. If you are interested in languages then you will enjoy this for sure.

6 Stars

I just cannot write a review of this incredible book and it's fantastically funny author/narrator that will include all of the great points. All I can say is that I've now listened to it twice and it will be go-to book for falling asleep - but I mean that in the best way possible. McWhorter jams so much information into sentences that you really have to pay attention, plus he is so very amusing and has a really dry whit, but trying to concentrate while trying to sleep is a good way to fall asleep. When one is not trying to sleep nothing he talks about would do that. He is clever, never boring, always amazing and every so knowledgable. Just give it a try, I'm sure you will love it and him as much as I now do.

McWhorter is a treasure

McWhorter is a wealth of learning and wit. Impossible to not enjoy anything/everything he does.