Ethnic languages facing extinction (fwd)

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Ethnic languages facing extinction

Web posted at: 3/14/2007 3:12:53
Source ::: The Peninsula
http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=Local_News&subsection=Qatar+News&month=March2007&file=Local_News2007031431253.xml

[photo inset - Vigdis Finnbogadittir.]

doha  Nearly half of the languages in the world are facing extinction
under the invasion of dominant cultures and languages, according to
Vigdis Finnbogadittir, former president of Iceland, who is currently
Unesco's Goodwill Ambassador for languages.

Finnbogadittir is in Doha attending the Unesco regional conference on
literacy being held at the Four Seasons.

She took over the role of Unesco ambassador in 1998, after serving as
president of Iceland for 16 years continuously for four consecutive
terms.

Talking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the conference yesterday,
she said globalisation, new technologies and the changing lifestyles
have posed a major threat to a number of ethnic languages across the
world. Many of these languages have either vanished or are on the verge
of extinction.

The most endangered languages are those used by indigenous communities
in South America and some in Asian and African countries, she said.
English and Spanish are the two dominant languages threatening the
existence of several native languages in South America.

Indigenous communities across the world have been deprived of their
culture and languages as they are being assimilated into the dominant
cultures and lifestyles. "Globalisation has accelerated this process,
while poverty and illiteracy have further contributed to it," she
added.

"Earlier, people were living in isolated communities. Globalisation has
changed the scenario and made societies vulnerable to outside pressure.
The cultural and linguistic diversity of the world are at risk," said
Finnbogadittir.

Reviving the lost languages is nearly impossible but spreading literacy
and creating awareness can help in preserving the existing languages.
"We are very much worried about the loss of bio-diversity and we should
now wake up to protect the cultural diversity," she stressed.

In a reference to the Arabic language, she said, the language is more
stable compared to many other languages. "A Moroccan or Mauritanian
speaking Arabic can be understood by a Qatari, which means that the
language is vibrant and stable," she said.

Yesterday, she chaired a session titled `Mother-Child Literacy and
Inter-generational Learning," at the conference.