“How are you?” “Oh, fine – and you?” “Yeah, not bad. Nice day today, isn’t it?” “Yes, it was a bit chilly this morning, but now the sun’s come out…” [Continue until the lift arrives, or until the end of time.] Small talk is usually not conveying much vital information, nor is it especially interesting. But beneath that comfort blanket of tedium lies a valuable social function. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/smalltalk . Chitchat with me at http://twitter.com/allusion...
Jun 25, 2016•14 min
This week seems like a good one to listen again to last year’s episode Pride, about how the word came to be chosen for LGBTQ Pride. Activist and publisher Craig Schoonmaker tells the story. There are full show notes and links to additional material at http://theallusionist.org/pride-rerun . Find me at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy Policy...
Jun 13, 2016•15 min
Got a company or a product or a website you need to name? Well, be wary of the potential pitfalls: trademark disputes; pronounceability; being mistaken for a dead body… Name developer Nancy Friedman explains how she helps companies find the right names, and why so many currently end in ‘-ify’. Plus: The Allusionist’s origin story, with Roman Mars. Read Nancy’s excellent blog about naming and trends in the language of commerce at http://nancyfriedman.typepad.com . There’s more about this episode ...
May 29, 2016•20 min
‘Classics’ started off meaning Latin and Greek works, then works that smacked of similar, and now – what, exactly? Books that are full of bonnets and dust? Author Kevin Smokler and bookseller Jonathan Main unpick what constitutes a classic, old or new. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/biglit . Announce your favourite classics at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio....
May 17, 2016•16 min
Open up a dictionary, and you’ll find the history of human behaviour, the key to your own psychological state, and a lot of fun words about cats. Dictionary.com’s Renae Hurlbutt and Jane Solomon lead the way. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/word-of-the-day . Visit me at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy Policy at...
May 01, 2016•14 min
‘Continent’, as in a land mass, is much more complicated semantically than the bodily function control sense of ‘continent’. Plus: more ‘please’, and how ‘thank you’ is not necessarily an expression of gratitude. TL;DR: trust nothing. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/continental . Visit me at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 17, 2016•15 min
There’s an ocean between Britain and the USA, but an even wider division between each country’s use of a particular word: ‘please’. Linguists Lynne Murphy and Rachele De Felice explain how one nation’s obsequiousness is another nation’s obnoxiousness. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/please . Please greet me at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio.com/listener for p...
Apr 01, 2016•16 min
Around the world, there are several places called Soho, getting their names from an acronym/portmanteau-ish composite of local streets or neighbouring areas. But not the original Soho in London. In fact, London’s place names are an etymological hotchpotch: landmarks present and long gone; 1,000-year-old vanity projects; and Cockfosters. This is a companion piece to the 99% Invisible episode ‘The Soho Effect’: http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/the-soho-effect . There’s more about this episode...
Mar 18, 2016•13 min
Breaking up is hard to do, and it’s hard to put into appropriate words. Comedian Rosie Wilby seeks a better term for ‘ex’, and family law barrister Nick Allen runs through the vocabulary of divorce. NOTE: this episode is not full of bawdy talk, but there are adult themes and a couple of category B swearwords. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/post-love . Don’t go breaking my heart: say hi at twitter.com/allusionistshow and facebook.com/allusionistshow. Support the show...
Mar 05, 2016•18 min
The 2016 US election isn’t going away anytime soon, so let’s seek refuge in etymology. Consider the linguistically appropriate age of a senator, and whether Congress should get sexy. And we revisit the UK Election Lexicon – http://theallusionist.com/electionlexicon – for the origin of words like ‘campaign’, ‘ballot’, ‘democracy’, ‘poll’, ‘debate’ and ‘argue’. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/us-electionlexicon . Tweet @allusionistshow, and convene at facebook.com/allu...
Feb 17, 2016•18 min
You’re looking for your perfect partner, but dating sites keep matching you with duds. So what do you do? Conduct an elaborate linguistic experiment, of course! At least, that was futurist Amy Webb’s response to the situation. But did it work? For full show notes and links, visit http://theallusionist.org/wltm-ii . Hear WLTM part I at http://theallusionist.org/wltm-i . Say hello at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/a...
Feb 06, 2016•21 min
Your online dating profile is the latest spin on a 300-year-old tradition of advertising yourself in order to find a spouse, a sexual partner, or someone to take care of your pigs. Francesca Beauman, author of Shapely Ankle Preferr’d: A History of the Lonely Hearts Ad , digs into lonely hearts ads to see how British society and desires have evolved over the past three centuries. For full show notes and links, visit http://theallusionist.org/wltm-i . Say hello at http://twitter.com/allusionistsho...
Jan 28, 2016•21 min
For the last episode of 2015, here’s a melange of etymologies requested by listeners, and anecdotes there wasn’t room for in the show earlier this year. We’ve got Klingon! Acid trips! The plural of ‘octopus’! An unwitting cameo from Cliff Richard! Warning: this episode contains references to drugs, sex and genitals, plus some mild swears (category B/C). Find out more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/bonus2015 , and say hello at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://faceboo...
Dec 23, 2015•16 min
CONTENT WARNING: Be wary of listening to this episode around young children, as there may be life spoilers. Historian Greg Jenner traces the origins of that mythical beardy man who turns up in December with gifts. Helen Zaltzman also ensures her permanent removal from everybody’s Christmas card lists. Read more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/christmas Say hello at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/al...
Dec 02, 2015•15 min
There’s a language which is said to be the smallest language in the world. It has around 123 words, five vowels, nine consonants, and apparently you can become fluent in it with around 30 hours’ study. It was invented by linguist Sonja Lang in 2001, and it’s called Toki Pona. And Nate DiMeo, from the Memory Palace, decided we should learn it together. Find the Memory Palace at http://thememorypalace.us/ . Read more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/tokipona and say hello at http://...
Nov 19, 2015•19 min
It’s cathartic; it’s a useful historical record; and it might help you behave better on public transport. Neil Katcher and Dave Nadelberg from Mortified discuss the art and practice of keeping a diary. Find the Mortified podcast, stage shows, documentary, TV series and books at http://getmortified.com . Read more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/diaries . Say hello at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/...
Nov 04, 2015•18 min
Phoebe Judge and Lauren Spohrer from the podcast Criminal stop by to talk about the linguistic challenges of crime reporting. They also share their episode ‘Pants on Fire’, about lying. It’s an extremely useful handbook if you fancy becoming either a human polygraph, or an excellent liar. Find Criminal at http://thisiscriminal.com . Read more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/criminallusionist . Say hello at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow...
Oct 29, 2015•23 min
La la la, dum di di dum, a wop bop a loo bop a wop bom bom – why are songs riddled with non-words masquerading as words? Hrishikesh Hirway from Song Exploder and songwriter Tony Hazzard explain. Read more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/vocables . Say hello at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow , and find Song Exploder at http://songexploder.net . Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy infor...
Oct 21, 2015•12 min
Naming something after yourself: a grand display of egomania, or the humble willingness to be overshadowed by your own product? Stationery expert James Ward tells the tale of the people who begat the eponymous ballpoint pens Bic and Biro, because, according to 99% Invisible’s Roman Mars, “When it comes to word origins, an eponym is the shortest bet you’re going to get a good story out of it.” Read more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/ballpoint . Say hello at http://twitter.com/al...
Oct 14, 2015•19 min
Why do we all sound like idiots when we talk to babies? Don’t be embarrassed, we’re helping them acquire language. Child psychologist Ben Jeffes explains. There is more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/baby-talk . Say hello at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice a...
Oct 07, 2015•11 min
“Talking about music is like dancing about architecture” is a problematic statement: not just because nobody can agree on who came up with it, but because dancing about architecture doesn’t seem particularly far-fetched. Talking about dance, however – that’s really difficult. How do you put a wordless form of communication into words? Audio describer Alice Sanders and choreographer Steven Hoggett take the issue for a twirl. There is more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/dance . Sa...
Sep 24, 2015•14 min
The messiness of English is the price of its success. It is the most widely spoken language in the world, geographically, being an official language in 88 different countries, and there are countless different versions of it all over the world. With so many speakers in so many places, it would be impossible to establish a single ‘correct’ form of English; and, as became evident in Fix part I, to try to do so is a losing game. In Europe, a new strain of English is emerging. It’s not spoken very w...
Sep 09, 2015•14 min
The English language is a mess. And if you don’t like it, what are you going to do about it – fix it? Good luck with that. In the early 18th century, a movement of grammarians and authors wanted to set up an official authority to regulate English, like French had in the Academie Francaise. But is trying to fix a language a good move? Linguists Liv Walsh and Thomas Godard weigh up the evidence. There is more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/fix-i . Say hello at http://twitter.com/a...
Aug 28, 2015•19 min
Words are all over the place. So how do you turn them into fun games? Here to show the way is Leslie Scott, founder of Oxford Games and inventor of more than forty games – including word games such as Ex Libris, Anagram and Flummoxed, and the non-word game Jenga. There is more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/word-play . Tell me about the word games you’ve invented at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusionistshow . Support the show: http://patreon.com/...
Aug 12, 2015•14 min
‘Step-‘, as in stepparents or stepchildren, originated in grief. Family structures have evolved, but are stepmothers now so tainted by fairytale associations with the word ‘wicked’ that we need new terminology? Lore’s Aaron Mahnke stops by to describe the lovelessness, literary tropes and life expectancy around ‘step-‘. There is more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/step . Share your feelings about steprelations at http://twitter.com/allusionistshow and http://facebook.com/allusio...
Jul 29, 2015•19 min
Sometimes words can become your worst enemy. Clinical psychologist Jane Gregory tells how to defuse their power. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/behave . This episode concerns mental health, and the discussion nudges some topics which may not be comfortable for everybody. Stay in touch! Tweet @allusionistshow, and convene at facebook.com/allusionistshow. Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy ...
Jun 30, 2015•15 min
Emoji allow communication without words. Could emoji be the universal language of the 21st century? Matt Gray and Tom Scott, founders of the emoji-only messaging platform emoj.li, talk through the pitfalls; and History Today’s Dr Kate Wiles finds the 500- and 5,000-year-old precedents for emoji. CONTENT WARNING: this episode contains one category B swear word, plus reference to penises growing on trees. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/emoji , including a fine selecti...
Jun 17, 2015•17 min
“The poison is shame. The antidote is pride.” It’s June; the President of the USA has officially designated it LGBT Pride Month, and there’ll be Pride events around the world. But how did the word ‘pride’ came to be the banner word for demonstrations and celebrations of LGBT rights and culture? There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/pride . Tweet @allusionistshow, and convene at facebook.com/allusionistshow. This episode was produced by me and Eleanor McDowall of Falling Tr...
Jun 03, 2015•14 min
What does brunch have to do with Lewis Carroll? Fall down the rabbit hole of brunch semantics with Dan Pashman of the Sporkful podcast http://sporkful.com . There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/brunch . Tweet @allusionistshow, and convene at facebook.com/allusionistshow. Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/pri...
May 20, 2015•13 min
On the eve of the 2015 General Election in the UK, take a jaunt through the etymology of election-related words. Find out why casting a vote should be more like basketball, and why polling is hairy. There’s more about this episode at http://theallusionist.org/electionlexicon . Tweet @allusionistshow, and convene at facebook.com/allusionistshow. Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionist See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and...
May 05, 2015•9 min
