Nearly 50 percent of languages spoken all over the world today are “endangered” and face the threat of extinction. India is among the top with 197 indigenous languages in peril of extinction.
UNESCO( UN Organization in charge of Education, Sciences, Culture and Communication and Information) is to celebrate the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022-2032) on Dec. 13.
Globally of the 7,000 living languages, 3,000 are considered ‘endangered’.
The Indian situation is no good with having almost the highest number of endangered languages in the world.
Of the 197 endangered languages in India, the government runs a scheme to protect and preserve 117 of them in the first phase.
India where hundreds of languages were being spoken earlier is today finding a situation where a number of languages are disappearing primarily because the number of speakers speaking that language is dwindling rapidly.
A language below 10,000 persons speaking it, is considered endangered.
Many of the languages which are either extinct or on the verge of extinction or endangered are the tribal languages and the languages spoken by nomadic of different states.
One of the sad facts is that with the loss of a language is the permanent loss of an entire culture and way of life and thinking.
According to an estimate, India may have lost 220 languages since 1961.
The 2011 census showed India with more than 19,500 languages or dialects spoken as mother tongues. Interestingly only 121 languages are spoken by 10,000 or more people. That means thousands of languages were being spoken by less than 10,000 people bringing all of them in the bracket of endangered languages.
UNESCO provides a classification system in its ‘Atlas of Endangered languages’ as: (a) Vulnerable – most children speak the language, but it may be restricted to certain domains (e.g., home); (b) Definitely endangered – children no longer learn the language as a ‘mother tongue’ in the home; (c) Severely endangered – language is spoken by grandparents and older generations; while the parent generation may understand it, they do not speak it to children or among themselves; (d) Critically endangered – the youngest speakers are grandparents and older, and they speak the language partially and infrequently; (e) Extinct – there are no speakers left.
In India, the languages of Great Andamanese tribals from Andaman are critically endangered by UNESCO.
The Tibetan language Balti is vulnerable, the Asuri language of Asuri tribe in Jharkhand is severely endangered.
Many languages are not able to survive due to the cultural onslaught of the majority community. Many languages lost due to colonialism where alien language and culture was enforced on the natives. As the rulers took over the mother tongue was looked down upon.
The loss of the ruling government’s patronage also helped in a language dying out.
The English language got a boost in many parts of the world due to the spread of globalization and it became the link language or means of communication for many.
The West particularly US and UK helped in creating a common global culture led by the English language denigrating all other local languages and cultures in different parts of the world. Many languages just could not compete with English which would virtually be used everywhere.
Language is the basis to preserve the culture and identity of a group and all the individuals members.
India’s Scheme for Protection and Preservation of Endangered Languages wants to provide a grammar, dictionary and ethnolinguistic sketch for 117 languages that have 10,000 or fewer speakers. In the long term, it aspires to cover around 500 languages in the future.
The centre is currently working on around 44 languages from the North-East such as Atong, Bawm, Koireng.
The situation is alarming, according to UNESCO( UN Organization in charge of Education, Sciences, Culture and Communication and Information), which says that the world has more than 6,700 languages spoken around the world.
Extinction of languages will be a big blow for the cultural diversity and “jeopardize” the centuries-old knowledge and know-how that could be decisive in humanity’s efforts to solve the challenges of this century, including climate change and biodiversity loss, UNESCO feels.
The idea of the Decade basically is to pay attention to the critical loss of indigenous languages and the urgent need to preserve, revitalize and celebrate them.
The Decade will emphasize on the “critical” situation of Indigenous languages around the world, create awareness and mobilize stakeholders for immediate safeguarding actions.
UNESCO feels that “Language is what makes us human. When peoples’ freedom to use their language is not guaranteed, this limits their freedom of thought, of opinion and expression, as well as their access to rights and public services.”
Therefore UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay says during this decade we “must accelerate the mobilization of the international community to safeguard Indigenous languages in the long term,”
The event to celebrate the Decade will bring together more than 700 delegates from UNESCO’s 193 Member States, including Ministers responsible for language policies at national level, Indigenous leaders, heads of national language development agencies, language institutes and academic organizations, and public.
The UNESCO New Delhi office, in collaboration with the Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA) had earlier in the year come out with a report on “Tribal and Indigenous Languages of India” in an effort towards the identification and documentation of India’s tribal and lesser known languages.
Director UNESCO in India, Eric Falt had said at the release of the report, “When we lose a language, a community loses its unique vision- its history and culture, we lose the local perspectives and stories. It is tragic that, with loss of their mother tongue, people find themselves unable to speak their first language. It is an irreplaceable loss.”
| Posted by Neha Khan | 
