The Beauty of Language: Is it Intrinsic?

A study conducted by researchers from Lund University and the Russian Academy of Sciences found that a language's beauty is not intrinsic, but rather exists in the ear of the listener. The study recruited 820 participants from different language backgrounds to listen to 50 spoken recordings from 228 languages and rate them on a scale ranging from "not at all" to "very much." The researchers found that familiarity with a language had a strong effect on how it was rated, but controlling for familiarity, most languages scored within 2% to 3% of each other in pleasantness. The study also found that nontonal languages were slightly preferred, and a "breathy female voice" was rated as much more pleasant.