[Vision2020] Moscow July/August Record Lows Freezing or Below...But Snow?

[Don Coombs]

Ted Moffett wrote:
> I recall that Arctic peoples have dozens of words for different kinds of 
> frozen precipitation--
>  

Ted not only recalled, but cited a number of the words.
  Another view is presented in Geoffrey K. Pullum's
"The Great Eskimo Vocabulary Hoax (and other irreverent
essays on the study of language)" (University of
Chicago Press, 1991).

Pullum suggests that at least in West Greenland there
are only two basic terms, one for "snow in the air" and
one for "snow on the ground."

Pullum is (or was) a professor of linguistics and dean
of grad studies at U. Cal Santa Cruz, and for years
wrote a regular column in "Natural Language and
Linguistic Theory." The book is a collection of his
columns.

He makes the point that the story about the many
words for snow makes so much sense that it will go on
forever, whether true or not.

Ted's citations suggest that at least in some cold
white lands, they do have many words.

Don Coombs