Ever tried selling a car called “Corpse by Fisher” in Flanders? Or marketing a soda that “brings ancestors back from the grave” in Taiwan? These stories show us that words are very important in global ...

The contents of this article are a pragmatic, simplified, and adapted version of John Austin’s (1962) work on speech act theory (SAT), first presented at Oxford University between 1951 and 1954 and at ...

In the aftermath of the recent U.S. military strikes on Iran, one truth stands out above all: language is not just a means of communication—it is the lens through which we interpret, react to, and ...

Language shapes community—it builds inclusion, fosters belonging, and creates a sense of safety. Around the world, there are more than 7,000 living languages. While English is the most widely spoken ...

The First Amendment protects most words and forms of speech from government interference. What’s not protected are threats, incitement to violence, defamation, obscenity, fighting words and child ...