Did you know....

[Needssome]

That every 2 weeks a person dies who is the last of their people to speak its language?

I heard an anthropologist talking about this on tv a while ago (on Vicky Gabereau for all you Canadians - even though I can't stand her) and I was shocked. It's incredible to realize that the beautiful words that once meant something to a great deal of people, now mean nothing to everyone.

 

[Weird Harold]

That every 2 weeks a person dies who is the last of their people to speak its language?

I heard an anthropologist talking about this on tv a while ago ...

Very sad if true, but the cynic in me says this is a ploy to gain funding for a pet project. -- there really aren't that many languages left in the world now, unless you count regional dialects of major languages. American and English could be considered separate languages, but they aren't -- not really -- they're different dialects of the same language.

 

[Needssome]

Re: Re: Did you know....

Very sad if true, but the cynic in me says this is a ploy to gain funding for a pet project. -- there really aren't that many languages left in the world now, unless you count regional dialects of major languages. American and English could be considered separate languages, but they aren't -- not really -- they're different dialects of the same language.

I have no idea whether or not he was just looking for money. He had written a book. He was talking about for example the First Nations people of Canada. Each of the different tribes has their own language and many of them are in danger of being extinct. Many of the First Nation's people are trying to rekindle an interest in their young people to learn the language of their ancestors. For example, since many of the children from the local reserve went to my high school my school offered Ojibway as a subject.

 

[IrishWolfhound]

Language...

is a thread to our past. Often dominant cultures (Anglo-Saxon in many cases) intentionally tried to eradicate the use of a language. This was done with the Native Americans, and both the gaelic speaking Scots and Irish. Preserving a language keeps that identity alive.

But its not the duty of one culture to preserve another. Either the members of that culture preserve it, or it dies a natural death.

 

[Needssome]

The biggest problem with this has been globalization as more and more cultures are dying premature deaths. Many of the people of the world are being forced to abandon their cultural identities and we are losing cultures that may not seem important in order so we can have cheap labour and buy as much as possible.

 

[PumpkinSmasher]

So of I understand, there is someone on this Earth right now who has no one to talk to and is waiting to die. How sad to speak and no one under stands.

 

[kotori]

Re: Re: Did you know....

American and English could be considered separate languages, but they aren't -- not really -- they're different dialects of the same language.

Try telling that to George Bernard Shaw.

 

[IrishWolfhound]

The biggest problem with this has been globalization as more and more cultures are dying premature deaths. Many of the people of the world are being forced to abandon their cultural identities and we are losing cultures that may not seem important in order so we can have cheap labour and buy as much as possible.

I guess I'm a sort of cultural darwinist. If the culture is not strong enough to survive on its own, perhaps its time it moved on. I don' hear anyone lamenting the loss of the hitite language.

 

[Needssome]

I agree, sometimes a culture just dies on its own but what many people are arguing is that with globalization we're all becoming aculturated and eventually we'll lose the wonderful things that made us distinct. We'll lose knowledge that only certain cultures have and that might be dangerous.

 

[Weird Harold]

I agree, sometimes a culture just dies on its own but what many people are arguing is that with globalization we're all becoming aculturated and eventually we'll lose the wonderful things that made us distinct. We'll lose knowledge that only certain cultures have and that might be dangerous.

[Devil's Advocate Mode]
And losing the things that make us distinct is bad, because...?

Many of the world's ills throughout history and into today's news is a direct result of cultures clashing -- the Crusades, Imperialism, 9/11, violence in the Middle East, Ethnic Cleansing, etc, ad nauseum, are all justified by cultural differences.

[/Devil's Advocate Mode]

Why must the good things that cultures know be tied to the language? Linguistic nuances can be translated into the dominant language and abslutely necessary words can be "borrowed" into the dominant language as has been done throughout history.

 

[IrishWolfhound]

Well said, Harold.

 

[Needssome]

True, true. But a lot of the problems that caused 9/11 was due to not respecting another culture. I don't want everyone to be just like me, nor do I want every culture to be the same. Language is a large part of a culture. You can learn about a culture by studying it's language. Learning why some of the words are derived from another language or culture. A great deal of the globalization stems from the fact that a lot of countries are becoming Americanized, which despite what some people might think that can be more dangerous than anything else. Obesity rates are skyrocketing, North American countries are polluting and destroying the environment of other countries. What can I say, I myself love learning new languages and experiencing a culture different from my own. Cultures that know how to make medicines from plants that are becoming extinct as the rain forests are destroyed. Sometimes what we're losing is a lot more than we're gaining.