Delicacies of English Language History

1.
Spell It Out: The Curious, Enthralling and Extraordinary Story of English Spelling
Spell It Out: The Curious, Enthralling and Extraordinary Story of English Spelling 3.95 avg rating — 883 ratings
2.
A History of the English Language
A History of the English Language 3.89 avg rating — 892 ratings
3.
Vulgar Tongues
Vulgar Tongues 3.11 avg rating — 140 ratings
4.
Forgotten English: A Merry Guide to Antiquated Words, Packed with History, Fun Facts, Literary Excerpts, and Charming Drawings
Forgotten English: A Merry Guide to Antiquated Words, Packed with History, Fun Facts, Literary Excerpts, and Charming Drawings 3.70 avg rating — 213 ratings
5.
Words on the Move: Why English Won't—and Can't—Sit Still
Words on the Move: Why English Won't—and Can't—Sit Still 4.14 avg rating — 1,919 ratings
6.
The Stories of English
The Stories of English 4.04 avg rating — 1,422 ratings
6.
The Story of English
The Story of English 4.09 avg rating — 2,388 ratings
8.
Making a Point: The Pernickety Story of English Punctuation
Making a Point: The Pernickety Story of English Punctuation 3.95 avg rating — 290 ratings
9.
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary 3.84 avg rating — 120,609 ratings
10.
Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue: The Untold History of English
Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue: The Untold History of English 3.83 avg rating — 7,108 ratings
11.
The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary
The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary 3.99 avg rating — 5,211 ratings
12.
Will's Words: How William Shakespeare Changed the Way You Talk
Will's Words: How William Shakespeare Changed the Way You Talk 4.21 avg rating — 424 ratings
13.
The Welsh Language: A History
The Welsh Language: A History 3.98 avg rating — 139 ratings
14.
The Life of Guy: Guy Fawkes, the Gunpowder Plot, and the Unlikely History of an Indispensable Word
The Life of Guy: Guy Fawkes, the Gunpowder Plot, and the Unlikely History of an Indispensable Word 3.50 avg rating — 46 ratings
15.
The Story of English: Companion to the PBS TV Series
The Story of English: Companion to the PBS TV Series 4.09 avg rating — 2,388 ratings
16.
The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary
The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary 3.99 avg rating — 5,211 ratings
16.
The Word Detective: Searching for the Meaning of It All at the Oxford English Dictionary
The Word Detective: Searching for the Meaning of It All at the Oxford English Dictionary 3.84 avg rating — 468 ratings
18.
Righting the Mother Tongue: From Olde English to Email, the Tangled Story of English Spelling
Righting the Mother Tongue: From Olde English to Email, the Tangled Story of English Spelling 3.62 avg rating — 301 ratings
19.
Mother Tongue: The Story of the English Language
Mother Tongue: The Story of the English Language 3.91 avg rating — 43,561 ratings
20.
Accidence Will Happen: A Recovering Pedant's Guide to English Language and Style
Accidence Will Happen: A Recovering Pedant's Guide to English Language and Style 3.66 avg rating — 189 ratings
21.
Happy Valley: The Story of the English in Kenya
Happy Valley: The Story of the English in Kenya 3.99 avg rating — 663 ratings
21.
Lexicon: American Style 2: Exercising Our English Language, Our 'Flexicon'
Lexicon: American Style 2: Exercising Our English Language, Our 'Flexicon' 4.75 avg rating — 4 ratings
23.
Spoken Soul: The Story of Black English
Spoken Soul: The Story of Black English 3.93 avg rating — 174 ratings
23.
You've Got Ketchup on Your Muumuu: An A--to--Z Guide to English Words from Around the World
You've Got Ketchup on Your Muumuu: An A--to--Z Guide to English Words from Around the World really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 6 ratings
25.
The Story of English: How an Obscure Dialect Became the World's Most-Spoken Language
The Story of English: How an Obscure Dialect Became the World's Most-Spoken Language 3.53 avg rating — 236 ratings
25.
Let's Talk: How English Conversation Works
Let's Talk: How English Conversation Works 3.57 avg rating — 77 ratings
27.
The Rude Story of English
The Rude Story of English 3.37 avg rating — 93 ratings
27.
The American Language
The American Language 4.12 avg rating — 545 ratings
29.
The Story of English: How the English Language Conquered the World
The Story of English: How the English Language Conquered the World 3.77 avg rating — 149 ratings
29.
Because Internet: Understanding the New Rules of Language
Because Internet: Understanding the New Rules of Language 4.05 avg rating — 12,270 ratings
31.
Every Word Is a Bird We Teach to Sing: Encounters with the Mysteries and Meanings of Language
Every Word Is a Bird We Teach to Sing: Encounters with the Mysteries and Meanings of Language 3.86 avg rating — 772 ratings
32.
The Story of English in India
The Story of English in India really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 27 ratings
32.
What the F: What Swearing Reveals About Our Language, Our Brains, and Ourselves
What the F: What Swearing Reveals About Our Language, Our Brains, and Ourselves 3.75 avg rating — 1,746 ratings
34.
The Story of English in 100 Words
The Story of English in 100 Words 3.92 avg rating — 2,508 ratings
34.
Going Nucular: Language, Politics and Culture in Confrontational Times
Going Nucular: Language, Politics and Culture in Confrontational Times 3.85 avg rating — 230 ratings
36.
Making Sense: The Glamorous Story of English Grammar
Making Sense: The Glamorous Story of English Grammar 4.02 avg rating — 364 ratings
36.
The Message in the Bottle: How Queer Man Is, How Queer Language Is, and What One Has to Do with the Other
The Message in the Bottle: How Queer Man Is, How Queer Language Is, and What One Has to Do with the Other 4.04 avg rating — 577 ratings
38.
Sounds Appealing: The Passionate Story of English Pronunciation
Sounds Appealing: The Passionate Story of English Pronunciation 3.86 avg rating — 104 ratings
38.
Real Country: Music and Language in Working-Class Culture
Real Country: Music and Language in Working-Class Culture 3.68 avg rating — 98 ratings
40.
You Say Potato: The Story of English Accents
You Say Potato: The Story of English Accents 3.88 avg rating — 629 ratings
40.
The Way We Talk Now
The Way We Talk Now 3.52 avg rating — 198 ratings
42.
Speaking Our Language: The Story of Australian English
Speaking Our Language: The Story of Australian English 3.76 avg rating — 17 ratings
42.
Spinglish: The Definitive Dictionary of Deliberately Deceptive Language
Spinglish: The Definitive Dictionary of Deliberately Deceptive Language 3.91 avg rating — 69 ratings
44.
The Story of Australian English
The Story of Australian English 3.55 avg rating — 38 ratings
44.
Swearing Is Good for You: The Amazing Science of Bad Language
Swearing Is Good for You: The Amazing Science of Bad Language 3.48 avg rating — 2,011 ratings
46.
A World Without "Whom": The Essential Guide to Language in the BuzzFeed Age
A World Without "Whom": The Essential Guide to Language in the BuzzFeed Age 3.72 avg rating — 488 ratings
47.
Language is power: the story of standard English and its enemies
Language is power: the story of standard English and its enemies 3.17 avg rating — 6 ratings
47.
Language, Thought, and Reality: Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee Whorf
Language, Thought, and Reality: Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee Whorf 3.96 avg rating — 353 ratings
49.
In a Manner of Speaking: The Story of Spoken English
In a Manner of Speaking: The Story of Spoken English 3.75 avg rating — 16 ratings
49.
The Language of the Blues: From Alcorub to Zuzu
The Language of the Blues: From Alcorub to Zuzu 3.88 avg rating — 49 ratings
51.
The Adventure of English: The Biography of a Language
The Adventure of English: The Biography of a Language 3.94 avg rating — 5,091 ratings
51.
Race, Language, and Culture
Race, Language, and Culture 3.95 avg rating — 133 ratings
53.
Origins of the Specious: Myths and Misconceptions of the English Language
Origins of the Specious: Myths and Misconceptions of the English Language 3.81 avg rating — 619 ratings
53.
How to Swear: An Illustrated Guide
How to Swear: An Illustrated Guide 3.82 avg rating — 277 ratings
55.
The Prodigal Tongue: The Love-Hate Relationship Between American and British English
The Prodigal Tongue: The Love-Hate Relationship Between American and British English 3.93 avg rating — 1,210 ratings
55.
Holy Sh*t: A Brief History of Swearing
Holy Sh*t: A Brief History of Swearing 3.87 avg rating — 2,277 ratings
57.
The Lexicographer's Dilemma: The Evolution of "Proper" English, from Shakespeare to South Park
The Lexicographer's Dilemma: The Evolution of "Proper" English, from Shakespeare to South Park 4.05 avg rating — 672 ratings
57.
I Love it When You Talk Retro: Hoochie Coochie, Double Whammy, Drop a Dime, and the Forgotten Origins of American Speech
I Love it When You Talk Retro: Hoochie Coochie, Double Whammy, Drop a Dime, and the Forgotten Origins of American Speech 3.47 avg rating — 285 ratings
59.
Talking Back, Talking Black: Truths About America's Lingua Franca
Talking Back, Talking Black: Truths About America's Lingua Franca 4.15 avg rating — 1,182 ratings
59.
How Not to Write: The Essential Misrules of Grammar
How Not to Write: The Essential Misrules of Grammar 3.77 avg rating — 173 ratings
61.
A Little Book of Language
A Little Book of Language 3.75 avg rating — 2,269 ratings
62.
The Architecture of Language
The Architecture of Language 3.42 avg rating — 260 ratings
62.
ElderSpeak: A Thesaurus or Compendium of Words Related to Old Age
ElderSpeak: A Thesaurus or Compendium of Words Related to Old Age 3.50 avg rating — 2 ratings
64.
The Architecture of Language
The Architecture of Language 3.62 avg rating — 26 ratings
64.
They Have a Word for It: A Lighthearted Lexicon of Untranslatable Words & Phrases
They Have a Word for It: A Lighthearted Lexicon of Untranslatable Words & Phrases 3.86 avg rating — 317 ratings
66.
Accidence Will Happen
Accidence Will Happen 3.66 avg rating — 189 ratings
66.
The Story of And: The Little Word That Changed the World
The Story of And: The Little Word That Changed the World 3.49 avg rating — 61 ratings
68.
Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins
Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins 4.23 avg rating — 39 ratings
68.
Anti-Racism (Words of Change series): Powerful Voices, Inspiring Ideas
Anti-Racism (Words of Change series): Powerful Voices, Inspiring Ideas 4.28 avg rating — 103 ratings
70.
Oxford School Dictionary of Word Origins
Oxford School Dictionary of Word Origins
by: John Ayto
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 15 ratings
70.
Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies
Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies 4.33 avg rating — 639 ratings
72.
Is That a Fish in Your Ear? Translation and the Meaning of Everything
Is That a Fish in Your Ear? Translation and the Meaning of Everything 3.77 avg rating — 2,759 ratings
73.
Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen
Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen 3.61 avg rating — 6,470 ratings
74.
Spell It Out: The Singular Story of English Spelling
Spell It Out: The Singular Story of English Spelling 3.95 avg rating — 883 ratings
75.
Word On The Street: Debunking The Myth Of A Pure Standard English
Word On The Street: Debunking The Myth Of A Pure Standard English 3.90 avg rating — 243 ratings