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Day: July 13, 2017
Why do people think I’m a snob because I always speak in standard English?
This is Tony Mulqueen’s answer. I’m just being a little more abstract. There is a popular misconception that the primary purpose of language is to communicate. Language is a social phenomenon, practiced by social beings. And one of its primary functions is to demonstrate allegiance to the groups the speaker belongs to. If you speak […]
Why do Greeks break plates when dancing?
See: Konstantinos Konstantinides’ answer to Why do Greeks break plates? As pointed out in Valya Doncheva’s answer to Why do Greeks break plates when dancing?, there are old folk antecedents to the practice—and indeed, similar practices are not uncommon among people who get drunk in general, as witnessed with any rock group that ever trashed […]
Which is correct, “Describe who you are” or “Describe whom you are”?
I am going to refine Justin Franco‘s reasoning, while agreeing with his answer. Justin says that it’s “describe who you are”, because We wouldn’t answer “Who are you?” with “You are him.” We’d answer it with “You are he.” Oh really? the ruppes: Jesus, You are Him You are him by Margo You are him, […]
Where do the distinctive Greek names for chemical elements come from?
http://www.ptable.com/?lang=el My thanks to Konstantinos Konstantinides, Joseph Boyle, and Jorvon M. Carter, who have answered most of this; this answer is based on their work. My agenda, more cynically, was “which country did Greek copy, and where did it decide to do its own thing.” Languages did decide to do their own thing occasionally; the […]