United Nations has declared year 2008 as the international year of languages but it is also the international year of ‘Sanitation’, ‘Reef’, ‘Planet Earth’ and ‘Potato’. So in the year 2008 languages have competition from reefs, sanitation, planet earth and of course from potatoes? Most of us would agree that we do not need to celebrate something like international year of languages when we have many other productive things to look after. Thanks to environmentalist and Green House effect Coral reefs and our mother earth has become a sort of apples of eyes for both government and non-governmental agencies. On the other hand ‘sanitation’ is something related directly to us through diseases, social norms etc. But languages are like dirt bags we want to leave behind keeping only the ones which survive us.
Languages are not treated as a natural resource by almost all of us. They are not like uranium which will drive an elected government into hysteria (as in India recently). So we will not bat an eyelid when more than 50 per cent of the approximately 7,000 languages spoken in the world are likely to die out within a few generations, and 96 per cent of these languages are spoken by a mere 4 per cent of the world’s population. Only a few hundred languages have genuinely been given pride of place in education systems and the public domain, and less than a hundred are used in the digital world (source UNESCO 2008).
In India, situation is slightly better than many other places in the world due to its diverse and large population. But India is also home to various endangered languages on the verge of extinction or about to take the death ride. Take a look at the following table:
Languages with Less than 100,000 Speakers in India (Census of India, 2001) |
|||
Name of Language |
No. of Speakers |
Name of Language |
No. of Speakers |
Adi |
97,012 |
Kishtwari |
33,429 |
Adi Gallong/ Gallong |
61,887 |
Koch |
28,578 |
Adi Miniyong/ Miniyong |
17,274 |
Koda/Kora |
36,528 |
Anal |
21,420 |
Kodu |
45,428 |
Angami |
49,685 |
Kol |
12,720 |
Apatani |
28,422 |
Kom |
14,673 |
Balti |
20,051 |
Koraku |
27,942 |
Bangni |
18,842 |
Kudubi/ Kudumbi |
10,192 |
Baori |
27,242 |
Kuki |
47,856 |
Bhadrawahi |
66,918 |
Kuruba/ Kurumba |
14,613 |
Bharmauri/ Gaddi |
66,246 |
Labani |
22,162 |
Bhoi Khasi |
14,882 |
Lahauli |
20,138 |
Bhotia |
68,800 |
Lahnda |
92,234 |
Bhumij |
30,719 |
Lakher |
34,751 |
Bishnupriya |
72,899 |
Lalung |
27,072 |
Chakhesang |
11,415 |
Laria |
67,697 |
Chakru/Chokri |
83,560 |
Lepcha |
50,629 |
Chang |
62,408 |
Liangmei |
34,077 |
Churahi |
61,199 |
Limbu |
28,127 |
Deori |
27,960 |
Malwani |
46,851 |
Dhurwa |
45,310 |
Maram |
37,340 |
Dorli |
37,731 |
Maria |
88,984 |
Gadaba |
26,082 |
Maring |
22,326 |
Gangte |
14,394 |
Mawchi |
99,474 |
Garasia |
51,183 |
Mishmi |
17,283 |
Gujari |
48,747 |
Mogh |
30,559 |
Gujrao/Gujrau |
43,414 |
Monpa |
51,035 |
Haijong/Hajong |
63,188 |
Mura |
14,204 |
Halam |
14,316 |
Muria |
16,620 |
Hmar |
83,404 |
Muwasi |
29,288 |
Jatapu |
39,319 |
Nicobarese |
28,784 |
Juang |
23,708 |
Nocte |
27,749 |
Kabui |
29,175 |
Paite |
64,065 |
Kaikadi |
23,694 |
Pangwali |
16,285 |
Kalari |
26,797 |
Paradhi |
49,290 |
Khairari |
11,937 |
Pawi |
24,965 |
Khandeshi |
17,413 |
Pochury |
16,728 |
Khezha |
39,436 |
Proja |
92,774 |
Khiemnungan |
37,755 |
Rai |
10,446 |
Kinnauri |
64,817 |
Rajbangsi |
82,570 |
|
|
Reang |
76,450 |
|
|
Relli |
21,965 |
|
|
Rengma |
61,345 |
|
|
Rongmei |
61,197 |
|
|
Sangtam |
84,171 |
|
|
Sherpa |
18,342 |
|
|
Shina |
34,251 |
|
|
Simte |
10,225 |
|
|
Siraji |
87,179 |
|
|
Sirmauri |
31,144 |
|
|
Sondwari |
59,221 |
|
|
Tadavi |
99,348 |
|
|
Tagin |
38,244 |
|
|
Tamang |
17,494 |
|
|
Tangsa |
12,604 |
|
|
Tikhir |
16,828 |
|
|
Vaiphei |
39,673 |
|
|
Wancho |
49,072 |
|
|
War |
25,886 |
|
|
Yerava |
19,643 |
|
|
Yerukala/ Yerukula |
69,533 |
|
|
Yimchungre |
72,030 |
|
|
Zanskari |
11,443 |
|
|
Zeliang |
61,547 |
|
|
Zemi |
34,102 |
|
|
Zou |
20,857 |
Apart from these languages, there are many for which no separate data has been enumerated by Census of India, 2001.
In fact the language data for this census (2001) was collected on the basis of a model suggested by G A Grierson’s Linguistic Survey of India conducted between 1886 and 1927. Since then no new pan-Indian linguistic survey has been conducted yet. Does this speak the tale of our apathy to languages in general?
By the end of this century many of the languages cited above might not see the dawn of the new century. One could argue that India would be better place to live without these many languages. But when languages fade, so does the world’s rich tapestry of cultural diversity. Opportunities, traditions, memory, unique modes of thinking and expression – valuable resources for ensuring a better future – are also lost.
Languages are souls of our society which keep us alive across the centuries. And when we lose them we lose the whole world view which gives us the existence. You have to ask an elderly Angami how he feels when he hears his grand children faltering in speaking Angami language. He or she would certainly tell you, that they have lost their tongues. This is true for any of the languages threatened by increasing menace of homogenization through globalization and politics of language.
We have to realize that without these languages we could not have survived many winters, floods, storms and droughts which threatened our existence on planet earth since time immortal. Languages and bio-diversity are related. And this unique relationship has kept us alive in all bad times in human history.
This international year of languages gives us the opportunity that we realize that languages are valuable human and natural resources and we have to do more than conducting pompous seminars and workshops to deal with the issue of language endangerment and conservation. We need to educate people that languages should be conserved by all means beginning with a real time linguistic survey of India. It is time that we realize multilingualism is the way to blessed life. And destruction of tower of Babel was a boon in disguise (to read the Bible story click on the link below).
FYI, I posted a link to this entry on a list of blogs that mention the International Year of Languages.
Hi,
I reached your blog while I was browsing through blogs tagged with Nagaland. Am so excited to see this blog, language is something very few people blog about. And my sister is also a linguist from JNU so that adds to the excitement.
I am the managing editor of Mutiny.In, India’s thought terminus (www.mutiny.in). I would request you to join mutiny and give your valuable contribution. On Mutiny we write on anything that is related to India and looking at your blog you’d be an asset 🙂
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