A Language I Love Is...

A show about language, linguistics and people who love both!

A Language I Love Is... (ALILI) broadcasts linguistic joy and shares expert insights into the languages of the world. It's a simple formula: one host, one guest, one language, and three key questions:

1) What is your story and connection to this language?

2) What do you love about this language?

3) What is something you want the audience to know about this language?

Through informative interviews and casual conversations, ALILI fulfills its mission: to share the linguistic love with all.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last refreshed: August 17th, 2025 at 2:40 PM ⓘ

Follow this podcast in the Metacast mobile app to refresh it and see new episodes.

Follow on

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

RSS

Podcasts are better in Metacast mobile app

Don't just listen to podcasts. Learn from them with transcripts, summaries, and chapters for every episode. Skim, search, and bookmark insights. Learn more

Episodes

Medieval Latin and Charles Roe

For the eighth episode of A Language I Love Is... , Charles Roe joins me to introduce into the linguistic world of Latin in the Middle Ages. Charles offers a great example of how a particular language is often not defined linguistically, and demonstrates how Latin after Rome was anything but a dead language. Host: Danny Bate Guest: Dr. Charles Roe Music: Bossa Nova by William_King Artwork: William Marler Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Oct 08, 2023•40 min•Season 1Ep. 8

Estonian and Johanna Laakso

Episode 7 of ALILI... is a journey into the Uralic language family, specifically via one of its famous European members: Estonian! Prof. Johanna Laakso joins me to share her long-held love for a language very similar to her native Finnish, yet interestingly different in lots of ways, thanks to the specific ingredients that have gone into the Estonian of today. Host: Danny Bate Guest: Prof. Johanna Laakso Music: Bossa Nova by William_King Artwork: William Marler Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pri...

Sep 24, 2023•39 min•Season 1Ep. 7

Old English and Stephen Hopkins

Time for the 6th episode of ALILI... and for Dr Stephen Hopkins to wind back the clock on the language you are currently reading – we're heading back to Old English! Stephen is a real pro, and this interview with him is both an engaging and entertaining introduction to the earliest days of English. Stephen's brilliant Twitter site: https://twitter.com/phil_lol_ogist Host: Danny Bate Guest: Dr. Stephen Hopkins Music: Bossa Nova by William_King Artwork: William Marler Hosted on Acast. See acast.co...

Sep 17, 2023•39 min•Season 1Ep. 6

Ossetian and Sāmapriẏa Basu

Here's Episode 5 of A Language I Love Is... and for this episode, Dr Sāmapriẏa Basu guides us into the Caucasus, the "mountain of tongues", a region rich in languages and language families. Our way in is via the modern language of Ossetian, an Indo-European relative marooned by history from the rest of its family. Sāmapriẏa's wonderful Twitter site: ⁠https://twitter.com/avzaagzonunaada⁠ Host: Danny Bate Guest: Dr. Sāmapriẏa Basu Music: Bossa Nova by William_King Artwork: William Marler Hosted on...

Sep 10, 2023•39 min•Season 1Ep. 5

Sanskrit and Krishnan Ram-Prasad

Episode 4 of ALILI is here and its task is to introduce the linguistic cosmos that is the Sanskrit language. Dr Krishnan Ram-Prasad joins me to run through the basics of Sanskrit, from its prehistoric origins to its prestigious status in India today. Krishnan expertly offers a wealth of information, all presented with the palpable enthusiasm of a true fan. Find Krishnan's website and work here: https://krishnanjramprasad.co.uk Host: Danny Bate Guest: Dr. Krishnan Ram-Prasad Music: Bossa Nova by ...

Sep 03, 2023•39 min•Season 1Ep. 4

Old Saxon and George Walkden

Episode 3 of ALILI is a deep dive into the Germanic languages, expertly navigated by George Walkden, who shares a wealth of information about this language family through his love for one particular member: Old Saxon. Having introduced the language, its few (but fun) sources and himself, George uses the example of Old Saxon to make some great points about the connections between language, politics and the accidents of history. Host: Danny Bate Guest: Prof. George Walkden Music: Bossa Nova by Wil...

Aug 27, 2023•32 min•Season 1Ep. 3

Akkadian and Iris Kamil

Episode 2 of ALILI and it's time to head back to ancient Mesopotamia and hear all about Akkadian, an influential lingua franca of the ancient world. Old it may be, but Akkadian still has much to tell us about its many cousin languages still spoken to this day. Akkadian expert Iris Kamil both introduces and shares a little of her boundless enthusiasm for the language and its surprisingly relatable sources. Host: Danny Bate Guest: Iris Kamil Music: Bossa Nova by William_King Artwork: William Marle...

Aug 22, 2023•31 min•Season 1Ep. 2

Scots and Sarah van Eyndhoven

Here's Episode 1, in which my friend Sarah van Eyndhoven kindly offers both her time and expertise to join me to talk about the Scots language. This language of the Lowlands of Scotland has a long history, reaching back into early medieval times, and also a complicated history with its southern cousin, English. Sarah is on hand to untangle all this history, as well as offering her thoughts on the future of the language. The episode ends with a fun fact from me about a superb Scots sound. Host: D...

Aug 19, 2023•26 min•Season 1Ep. 1

A Language I Love Is... – Introduction

Hello there! This is my introduction to a new podcast all about language, linguistics and loving both. In this initial episode, I set out the premise and format of the whole idea, which I've been thinking over for a couple of years now. Watch this space for the episodes proper, very soon! Music: Bossa Nova by William_King Artwork: William Marler Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Aug 19, 2023•4 min

← Prev

For the best experience, listen in Metacast app for iOS or Android