Endangered and Minority Languages
ENDANGERED AND MINORITY LANGUAGES
Language is one of the most important choices that allows humans to develop their rights as a primary mark of identity. The violation of this right is widespread in countries where the government doesn‟t allow the citizens to express their ethnic identity. Language constitutes an area of potential conflict in Europe, Africa and Asia, in countries where language rights are subject to ethnic discrimination and where recognition of their identities is demanded from the state. According to Ethnologue, 473 languages are currently close to extinction. In the Americas alone, 182 are endangered by the end of the century. 1These figures should make all humans think about the reasons that threaten them and how these languages are treated. To analyze the role that languages play in our society we should consider questions such as „How do languages die out and why?‟ or „In which ways does globalization influence the marginalization of minority languages?‟ We have a lot of information about saving endangered animals and we‟re inclined to not buy certain types of clothes made of animal skin, but what about the issue of dying languages? Is there any concern about them? Language is the part of us that make us humans and unique individuals in the world and it allows us to express our identity. Language has been used to pass knowledge from generation to generation, to express the variety of the customs and literature of our different territories.
Analyzing this topic should make us think about the origin of this marginalization and what reasons have been responsible for this exclusion. Globalization has affected economics, media and therefore language. As a result, the
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www.ourlanguages.net.au
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view of culture around the world is changing and the desire to have an integrated world culture reduces the number of languages that humans speak. A common language has become more important and it‟s being introduced in commerce,
Language is one of the most important choices that allows humans to develop their rights as a primary mark of identity. The violation of this right is widespread in countries where the government doesn‟t allow the citizens to express their ethnic identity. Language constitutes an area of potential conflict in Europe, Africa and Asia, in countries where language rights are subject to ethnic discrimination and where recognition of their identities is demanded from the state. According to Ethnologue, 473 languages are currently close to extinction. In the Americas alone, 182 are endangered by the end of the century. 1These figures should make all humans think about the reasons that threaten them and how these languages are treated. To analyze the role that languages play in our society we should consider questions such as „How do languages die out and why?‟ or „In which ways does globalization influence the marginalization of minority languages?‟ We have a lot of information about saving endangered animals and we‟re inclined to not buy certain types of clothes made of animal skin, but what about the issue of dying languages? Is there any concern about them? Language is the part of us that make us humans and unique individuals in the world and it allows us to express our identity. Language has been used to pass knowledge from generation to generation, to express the variety of the customs and literature of our different territories.
Analyzing this topic should make us think about the origin of this marginalization and what reasons have been responsible for this exclusion. Globalization has affected economics, media and therefore language. As a result, the
1
www.ourlanguages.net.au
1
view of culture around the world is changing and the desire to have an integrated world culture reduces the number of languages that humans speak. A common language has become more important and it‟s being introduced in commerce,
References: Charter of the United Nations, http://www.un.org/aboutun/charter/index.html Document of the Copenhagen Meeting of the Conference on the Human. Dimension of the CSCE, http://www.osce.org/docs/english/1990–1999/ hd/cope90e.htm European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/EN/WhatYouWant.asp?NT_148 and CM_1 and DF_10/02/03 B. F. Grimes, 2000, Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Dallas: SIL International European Convention on Human Rights, http://www.un.org/aboutun/charter/index.html Hogan-Brun, Gabrielle and Wolff, Steffan. Minority Languages in Europe. Palgrave Macmillan, (2010) C.Jones, Mary. Language Obsolescence and Revitalization. Oxford University Press, (1998) 7