Why did Papua New Guinea develop so many distinct, isolated languages?
Chapter 1

The brain's linguistic hard drive

Chapter 2

Earth's natural multilingual hotspots

Chapter 3

History's mind-boggling hyperpolyglots

Chapter 4

The toolkit of the language masters

YOUR GOAL

Master of Secrets of the world's ultimate polyglots

Ch 2 · Earth's natural multilingual hotspots
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duolingo Linguistic Hotspots

Deep in the valleys where hundreds of voices rise, Eight hundred languages under the island skies.

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With only 9 million people, Papua New Guinea has 12% of the world's languages.

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Vanuatu's island-hopping vocabulary

duolingo A colorful map displays Vanuatu's islands labeled with their local and national languages.

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India's effortless daily language switching

duolingo Precise labels on glass and chrome paths show daily language switching in India.

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Fun Fact

Vanuatu's density: This tiny nation has the world's highest linguistic density, averaging only two thousand speakers per indigenous language.

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Gossip

Which multilingual country to visit?

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Quiz

What is Tsotsitaal, spoken in urban South African cities like Johannesburg?

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Quiz

Which country is home to over 840 distinct languages, the highest number of any single nation?

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Quiz

What is the national creole language spoken across the islands of Vanuatu?

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Quiz

Which small Pacific island nation has the world's highest density of languages per capita?

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Quiz

How many official languages are recognized by the constitution of South Africa?

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Quiz

What is the name of India's educational policy that encourages students to learn three languages?

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Quiz

Why did Papua New Guinea develop so many distinct, isolated languages?

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Quiz

In Mumbai, India, which three languages would a resident most commonly switch between daily?

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