Algospeak

"Incisive and funny, this is a page turner from start to finish. Algospeak is a must read for anyone seeking to understand how we communicate today." - Taylor Lorenz, author of Extremely Online
"A glorious romp through the myriad of ways video-powered social media is changing how we speak. - Sophia Smith Galer, journalist and author
"Algospeak takes our understanding of online communication to a new level." - David Crystal, author of How Language Works
"Your chance to decode the linguistic mysteries of TikTok with one of the internet's most astute linguistic creators." - Sarah Ogilvie, author of The Dictionary People
"Packed with fascinating facts, of-the-moment observations and a sparkling voice, Algospeak is a gift to any word nerd." - Amanda Montell, author of The Age of Magical Overthinking and Cultish
From the rise of leetspeak and words such as "unalive" to the trend of adding "-core" to different influencer aesthetics, the internet has ushered in an unprecedented linguistic upheaval. We're entering an entirely new era of etymology, heralded by the invisible forces driving social media algorithms. And with over 7 billion internet users uploading over 2.5 quintillion bytes of media every day, the sheer volume of potential new words is astounding.
In Algospeak, online etymologist Adam Aleksic shines a light on the roots of words that we don't realise have come from unexpected places - from incel culture, from the innovation of users trying to get around content moderation algorithms, from the marketing speak that has invaded our personal lives. New slang emerges and goes viral overnight. Accents are shaped or erased on YouTube. Grammatical rules, loopholes, and patterns surface and transform our interactions, social norms and habits.
An energetic, astonishing journey into language and the internet, Algospeak reveals the bigger social story of how language shapes us, just as much as we shape it.

Adam Aleksic, known as @etymologynerd online, is a Harvard linguist and online etymologist, specialising in the intersection between language and social media. With almost 2 million followers across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and now Substack, Adam creates content and does his own original research into language and how it's changing. He's lectured at Georgetown, Stanford and UPenn and is a regular contributor to the Washington Post. He currently lives in Mexico City.