Further notes on the ever-changing English language

Here are a few interesting and/or amusing items I've been collecting that relate to English. First, the good news that the redundant and usually pretentious word "whom" is dying out. Unfortunately, as with most changes in language, this is probably going to take a few more decades. Meanwhile, new forms and usages are developing through slang and social media. One writer recently described how the punctuation mark "slash" has become a word people use in conversation. Another defended "texting" against critics who say it's dumbing down the language. Another discussed the origins of emoticons, offering the (to me) surprising news that not only is the "smiley-face" older than I thought, but there were suggestions already back in the 19th century for developing some way of punctuating text to express subtle emotions and effects, particularly irony. And here we have the news that "Like," the button one uses to respond to posts on Facebook and some other sites, was originally going to be called "Awesome." This writer, contrary to the one linked to above, does think that there's some kind of dumbing-down at work here.

Finally, words you can’t use legally use to name a child in New Zealand. (Contrast this with these jokes from the American comedian Louis CK, who imagines some names that Americans might give their kids because there's no such legal restriction.) And for those of you who like to sing along to pop/rock tunes in English, here's the invaluable Aarchive of Misheard Song Lyrics. Get it right! :-)