Folium: Listen to Endangered Indigenous Languages From Around the World via Google Earth
Folium: Listen to Endangered Indigenous Languages From Around the World via Google Earth
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Connect
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English is the universal language of…everything, right? : If you are a native English speaker, have you ever considered the possibility of the English language going extinct? Probably not, because English is the most spoken language in the world!
English has been proclaimed as the language of business and, to take it a step further, the world’s new “lingua franca”. “Common” is essentially the same as English if you transpose D&D over our reality. Needless to say, at the moment, English isn’t going anywhere. But many languages are.
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Sometimes, we need some perspective!
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So, they’re going where now?
Extinct…
According to Michele Debczak, “… at least half of all languages spoken around the world are on track to disappear by the end of this century.” Currently, only 23 languages account for what is spoken by more than half of the world’s population (approximately 3.8 billion people). But over 7,000 languages exist. 7,000+.
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“Language is more than a means of communication. It is also an expression of identity – telling us something about a person’s sense of who they are. The San Francisco poet Josiah Luis Alderete, who writes in Spanglish, calls it the “language of resistance”, a way for Hispanic Americans to hold on to – and express pride in – their heritage, even if they were born and brought up in the US.” – BBCNews
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Efforts to increase awareness of the world’s numerous and widely unknown languages, particularly those we are not exposed to such as indigenous languages, are being made by companies like Google. The Celebrating Indigenous Languages Project by Google Earth has made that rare exposure opportunity possible with the website linked below. This program offers a unique cultural experience, allowing viewers a brief glimpse of languages they may never knew existed through click and play videos.
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(Indigenous Languages Around the World via UNDESA DISD)
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Can everyone enjoy these videos? : Actually, mostly, yes. The primary video, as well as several of the individually marked videos, are captioned which can accommodate Deaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals.
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There’s more than just a few…!
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Google can’t do it alone. : This program promotes 50 endangered languages however, there are around 3,000 classified as endangered. Projects such as that of Google Earth cannot prevent the disappearance of all of them. Thankfully, the UN declared 2019 as the International Year of Indigenous Languages.
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Even so, is that really enough? : More programs need funding for on-the-ground research. Federal committees should be formed to disperse across the globe, gathering data and priceless information on dying cultures.
Hold on. But why? : Why should anything be done about the growing endangerment and extinction of languages? Why get all up in arms over languages that have nothing to do with you or your culture?
Why is it important to preserve languages, especially those as obscure as indigenous languages? : Most people don’t speak, read, or write them or need them to communicate in other countries. Some languages have no written form at all. Here are some thoughts from TEDx Presenter, Mandana Seyfeddinipur.
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(Endangered Languages: Why It Matters | Mandana Seyfeddinipur)
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While we’re asking why… : Why are languages disappearing at all? Why don’t future generations of the dying languages maintain it, as you maintain your first language? There is a phenomenon called “language shift” and it, along with other “why’s” related to the importance of language, are thoroughly discussed by linguist Mandana Seyfeddinipur
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Connection doesn’t have to mean assimilation or elimination!
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What do you think? Do you feel that discovering new languages and cultures is just as important as scientific discoveries? How do you feel indigenous languages, or any language, benefits you, your community, your country, or society overall?
Renee Burns
LEAF Contributor
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Explore
- MentalFloss: New Google Earth Feature Lets Users Listen to Endangered Indigenous Languages…
- BBCNews: Can English Remain the World’s Favourite Language?
- Ethnologue: What is the Most Spoken Language?
- Ethnologue: How Many Languages Are There In The World?
- YouTube/UNDESA DISD: Indigenous Languages Around the World
- YouTube/Endangered Languages: Why It Matters – Mandana Seyfeddinipur
