The Great Eskimo Vocabulary Hoax and Other Irreverent Essays on the Study of Language (Paperback)

by Geoffrey K. Pullum (Author) "The essays collected in this book were first published in the journal Natural Language and Linguistic Theory between 1983 and 1989 in a section bearing..." (more)
Key Phrases: methodological moaners, libeled person, citation etiquette, New York, United States, Noam Chomsky (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
The 23 entertaining essays collected here originally appeared as columns in a linguistics journal between 1983 and 1989. Slight revisions have been made, and introductory and explanatory notes added. Although some of the material here is a sometimes gossipy, sometimes technical insider's view of the linguistics profession, most of it is a highly interesting and enlightening discussion of a subject that is largely a mystery to most people. However, it is also "perhaps the only subject that regularly gets research funding from agencies in the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences," and therefore has cross-disciplinary pertinence. The title essay refers to Whorf's (according to the author, incorrect) work on the Eskimo lexicon. For public as well as academic libraries.
- Leon H. Brody, U.S. Office of Personnel Management Lib., Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description
How reliable are all those stories about the number of Eskimo words for snow? How can lamps, flags, and parrots be libelous? These and many other odd questions are typical topics in this collection of essays that present and occasionally zany, often wry, but always fascinating look at language and the people who study it.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 246 pages
• Publisher: University Of Chicago Press; 1 edition (July 9, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0226685349
• ISBN-13: 978-0226685342
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #681,116 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amusing essays on language, May 29, 2000

By	Robert Helmerichs (Minneapolis, MN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The author wrote a column for _Natural Language and Linguistic Theory_ for six years; this book collects them, with new prefaces to each essay. The tone is light, often frivolous, sometimes bitchy, occasionally educational, and always entertaining. The title essay demolishes the idea that Eskimos have many words for snow (there are two), and traces the myth's origin. Others contain a dialogue between Noam Chomsky (the linguist) and Spock (the Vulcan); a discussion of perverse punctuation (which many newsgroup writers would do well to read); a searing but hilarious attack on the English First people ("Here Come the Linguistic Fascists"); and "Some Lists of Things About Books" (my favorite: "Four Extraordinarily Ignorant Claims About Language in Books by Linguists"; all four come from the same book). Some of the humor is too linguistics-insider to be easily deciphered, but for the most part this is a highly amusing bunch of little articles from somebody who clearly loves language, and is fortunately willing to share his love with us.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars one of the funniest 'academic' books i've read, May 28, 2001

By	James R. Sheldon (UC Santa Cruz, CA, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I had this professor for my introduction to UNIX course at UC Santa Cruz. After the class, I noticed this book in the bookstore, and immediately purchased a copy.

I loved the Chomsky vs. the Vulcan thing :)

The linguistic concepts were a bit beyond me, but i loved the article about how linguistic journals correct (incorrectly) the grammar *of linguists*. And the English First article really shows the idiocity and lack of lingustic understanding among the general public. I'm starting to wonder if every academic discipline is misunderstood by the faceless "general public" ... and if so how I can reconcile this with my professed belief in the "inherent worth and dignity of every person."

Anyways, other interested pieces included a fictious piece where each division on campus is vying for the linguistics department to be moved under their jurisdiction, the eskimo vocabulary hoax piece of course, and just the overall tone and stuff. I highly recommend this if you like linguistics, or even if you don't like linguistics but like academic books with a sense of humor ;)

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funny and devastating look into the culture of linguistics, September 26, 2003

By	Jef Raskin (Pacifica, CA USA) - See all my reviews

You do not need to be a linguist to enjoy this funny, barbed, and acerbic look at the practice and culture of linquistics. If you are interested in studying linguistics, this is not a bad place to start. If you are a linguist, you will alternately wince and cheer at Pullum's observations.

And if you want to know whether one of the Eskimo languages has more words for snow than, say, English, here's the definitive and surprising answer.