The History of English Podcast by John McWhorter
Hacker ApprovedShares rank 4 of 7 history podcasts by recommenders
Listeners recommend it for clear, deep explanations of where English comes from. Some say it starts slowly and gets better after a few episodes.
Listeners recommend it for clear, deep explanations of where English comes from. Some say it starts slowly and gets better after a few episodes.
12 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 12
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 12 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Recommended to people interested in English
“I thoroughly recommend this podcast if you are interested in where the English language comes from”
Comment from 28 Apr 2026 in “Talkie: a 13B vintage language model from 1930” “I've listened since the beginning. I'd recommend it.”
Comment from 27 Feb 2026 in “Reading English from 1000 Ad” “I'd highly recommend the History of English podcast”
Comment from 9 Apr 2026 in “Wit, unker, Git: The lost medieval pronouns of English intimacy” Favorite podcast, comfort listening
“its consistency, clarity, and depth has made it my favorite podcast”
Comment from 22 Feb 2026 in “How far back in time can you understand English?” “This has become my comfort podcast when I just want to decompress.”
Comment from 22 Feb 2026 in “How far back in time can you understand English?” “That is my favorite podcast of all time!”
Comment from 20 Sep 2026 in “English: A vs. An” Enjoyable, with hours of episodes
“I’m surprised how much I’m enjoying it. And I can’t believe I have 195 episodes left.”
Comment from 9 Apr 2026 in “Wit, unker, Git: The lost medieval pronouns of English intimacy” “it really does pick up and has been hours of joy”
Comment from 22 Feb 2026 in “How far back in time can you understand English?”
Other history podcasts people recommend
The four most recommended other history podcasts, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall of Civilizations podcast | 20 | 1 | 95% | 7 | — | Approved |
| The Rest Is History podcast | 14 | 1 | 93% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Hardcore History by Dan Carlin | 13 | 1 | 93% | 7 | — | Approved |
| The History of English Podcast by John McWhorterThis page | 12 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | Approved |
| Revolutions Podcast by Mike Duncan | 12 | 0 | 100% | 6 | — | Approved |
What people said
All 13 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“That is my favorite podcast of all time!”
“This fun fact brought to you by The History of English Podcast.”
“In the second series, there is a weather report in Frisian that vaguely sounds like English.”
“I thoroughly recommend this podcast if you are interested in where the English language comes from”
“I'd highly recommend the History of English podcast”
“I’m surprised how much I’m enjoying it. And I can’t believe I have 195 episodes left.”
“I've listened since the beginning. I'd recommend it.”
“gets much better once he gets into the groove of things and I'd definitely recommend sticking with it”
“it's already seeming promising and I know I'm going to continue with it”
“its consistency, clarity, and depth has made it my favorite podcast”
“This has become my comfort podcast when I just want to decompress.”
“it really does pick up and has been hours of joy”
“I still found it fascinating”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.