Let’s not make a mountain out of a molehill, or a hen out of a feather, as the Swedes say, but it does feel like puns hatch in abundance around Easter. What eggs us on to this linguistic laying, and what’s the yolk of the joke? Why are eggs such an irresistible target for wordplay? We had a chat about language humour with Ines Nikšić, polyglot, language nerd and lecturer in Swedish at the University of Skövde.
Ines Nikšić
The moment the Easter decorations and coloured eggs come out, the puns start flying. Even the most linguistically reserved suddenly turn into verbal virtuosos. According to Ines Nikšić, the egg’s popularity among punsters is no coincidence.
"It’s a short, punchy word with a clear sound that resembles many other syllables in the language. It slips easily into other words, like eggstra, eggcellent or eggzactly. These kinds of wordplays rely on what we linguists call morphological play, where sound similarities surprise the listener and spark humour," says Ines Nikšić.
The eggsistence of puns goes way back
Playing with language is far from a modern fad. Puns have been found in Sumerian texts from Mesopotamia dating back 4,000 years. They were featured in ancient theatre as satire and entertainment. And none other than Shakespeare turned them into high art.
He delighted in the double meanings of words and refined the pun into something both nobles and commoners could enjoy.
"Take this line from Romeo and Juliet, 'Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man.’ It’s dark humour based on the double meaning of grave, both serious and literally dead, in a grave. It’s a pun where tragedy meets wit, a perfect example of how Shakespeare mixed sorrow and humour to move and amuse his audience."
Puns bring people together
So why do puns flourish during festive seasons like Easter and Christmas? Ines Nikšić believes it has a lot to do with the celebratory, relaxed atmosphere.
"Holidays break up the rules of everyday life. We become more playful, including in our language. Eggs, bunnies, trees and Santa figures are culturally charged symbols that lend themselves perfectly to wordplay."
Language play also serves a deeper purpose: connection. A good pun builds on shared references and invites people to laugh together. Holidays amplify this social role of language to create bonds, ease communication, and share culture. Puns, in this way, reinforce a sense of belonging.
English: an eggsemplary language for puns
Nikšić believes that language play is something we’ve always done. It’s a cognitive pleasure. We enjoy spotting double meanings or figuring out unexpected interpretations. It's mental gymnastics with a giggle. Swedish, with its flexibility and rich sounds, lends itself well to puns and has a strong tradition of them. But how do other languages measure up?
Puns thrive in languages full of homonyms and homophones, words that sound the same or are spelled the same but mean different things.
"You find plenty of those in English, French and Spanish, for instance. And in our multilingual world, hybrid puns that mix languages, like Swenglish, are becoming more common. When languages meet, new doors open for humour.
Puns: not just for laughs
But puns aren’t just for amusement. Nikšić uses them in her teaching, too. Puns require a keen linguistic sense and make excellent tools for language learning and second-language acquisition.
"They boost creativity, expand vocabulary, sharpen the ability to deal with ambiguity, and deepen cultural understanding. While they can be challenging for beginners, their humour and emotional appeal make learning both more engaging and more effective."
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