And who in time knows whither we may vent
The treasure of our tongue? To what strange shores
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And who in time knows whither we may vent
The treasure of our tongue? To what strange shores
This gain of our best glory shall be sent,
T' enrich unknowing nations with our stores?
What worlds in th' yet unformed Occident
May come refin'd with th' accents that are ours?

It's no coincidence that in no known language does the phrase "As pretty as an airport" appear

It's no coincidence that in no known language does the phrase "As pretty as an airport" appear

Language is a city to the building of which every human being
brought a stone.
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Language is a city to the building of which every human being
brought a stone.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson,

Language is a form of human reason, which has its internal logic of which man knows nothing.

Language is a form of human reason, which has its internal logic of which man knows nothing.

The most important things are the hardest to say, because words diminish them

The most important things are the hardest to say, because words diminish them

Spoken language is merely a series of squeaks.

Spoken language is merely a series of squeaks.

All true language is incomprehensible, like the chatter of a beggar's teeth.

All true language is incomprehensible, like the chatter of a beggar's teeth.

Great Britain and the United States are nations separated by a
common language.

Great Britain and the United States are nations separated by a
common language.

Our native language is like a second skin, so much a part of us we resist the idea that it read more

Our native language is like a second skin, so much a part of us we resist the idea that it is constantly changing, constantly being renewed.