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The Futures of Language
September 26th, 2007
Every 14 days a language disappears. The Living Tongues Institute estimates that by 2100 more than 7,000 languages spoken on Earth will become extinct. When a language dies,the history of a culture vanishes - collective knowledge about traditions, ecosystems, religious beliefs.?
National Geographic’s Enduring Voices Project is identifying language “hot spots” - places where languages are in danger of becoming extinct, with the goal of documenting and preserving them. Central Siberia, the Northwest Pacific Plateau, Northern Australia and Siberia are among the areas that have the highest threat of language extinction.
In addition to identifying endangered languages, the project is embarking on a series of expeditions in part to determine how linguistic diversity is linked to biodiversity. According to the project: “Indigenous groups that have interacted closely with the natural world for thousands of years often have profound insights into local lands, plants, animals, and ecosystems-many still undocumented by science. Studying indigenous languages therefore benefits environmental understanding and conservation efforts.”
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