Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Language forms the backbone of communal existence. It doesn't take long to discover this if you've ever traveled to a place where ...

Corrections & clarifications: An earlier version of this story contained inaccurate or incomplete facts about the history of language. Language is an essential part of human communication, allowing ...

Japanese is a language isolate, spoken by 121 million people in Japanese archipelago. There are small Japanese communities in American Samoa, Hawaii, North and South ...

Language forms the backbone of communal existence. It doesn't take long to discover this if you've ever traveled to a place where you don't speak the language. "Where is the nearest bathroom?", "How ...

Joshua Holzer does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond ...