“Do you say ‘pop’ or ‘soda’ or ‘soft drink’? Do you know what a ‘Michigan left’ is? Did you know ‘Yooper’ is now in some standard dictionaries? Come hear about what is happening to English in Michigan and share the changes you’re hearing in the language.”

Presenter Anne Curzan, dean of LSA at University of Michigan is a trained linguist and studies the history of the English language. She describes herself as a fount of random linguistic information about how English got to be the way it is—information she shares every Sunday on the show “That’s What They Say” on Michigan Public Radio. She has also dedicated one major strand of her career to helping students and the broader public understand linguistic diversity as part of cultural diversity, and language change as a natural part of living languages.

Dr. Curzan has received university awards for outstanding research and undergraduate teaching, including the Henry Russel Award and the John Dewey Award. She is an Arthur F. Thurnau Professor and the Geneva Smitherman Collegiate Professor of English Language and Literature, Linguistics, and Education.

Preregistration is required via the OLLI website or phone. A link to access the presentation will be e-mailed to you approximately one week prior to the event.