LanguageTrainers.com, 6 Oct. 2014
Languages are dying and with them we lose diverse cultures and traditions. What kills indigenous languages? Why should we care?
The Reality of Language Loss
It’s long been known to scientists that of the estimated 7,000 languages spoken on the planet, presently at least half will go extinct by the turn of the 21st century. UNESCO projects that more than 3,000 languages will soon disappear as the last persons speaking them die.
Inter-cultural conflicts, imperial attitudes, and oppression all play critical parts in the language loss story. However, scholars have discovered that economic growth plays a major role as well.
Quite expectedly, most endangered languages are spoken by the communities that depend on natural ecosystems which are shrinking in size, such as those in the rain forests. As industrialization and economic aspirations gain momentum, primitive cultures are pushed into the background. Read more...