Endangered Languages
- Student 1 :
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How many languages/are there/in the world?
- Linguist :
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There are about 7,000.
But about 40% of them/are endangered languages.
One of them is Arta/in the Philippines.
Arta people live/on Luzon Island.
There are only about 15 people/who speak the language fluently.
- S1 :
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Could you tell me more/about Arta?
- L :
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Traditionally,/Arta people are hunters.
So,/they have several words/which express types of hunting.
For example,/the word “bugay ”/means to go hunting/with hunting dogs.
The word “purab ”/means to go hunting/without dogs.
- S1 :
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That’s interesting.
- L :
- Language is tightly connected/with people’s lifestyles.
- L :
- We have some endangered languages/in Japan. One of them/is the Ainu language. There are at least 13,000 Ainu people/in Japan,/but only a few of them/are fluent Ainu speakers.
- S2 :
- Yes. I’ve heard of the Ainu word “iyomante ,”/but I don’t know the meaning.
- L :
- “Iyomante ” is a ceremony/to send the soul of a bear/to heaven. Ainu people catch a young bear/which they raise/as a god. After two years,/they share the meat/as a gift for humans/and pray to nature.
- S2 :
- So,/the word includes a lot of things.
- L :
- That’s right. Even a single word/can express complex cultural traditions. In their own language,/Ainu people can fully express the values/in their culture.
- S3 :
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Why do we have so many endangered languages?
- L :
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First,/there are economic reasons.
For example,/to get a good job,/speakers of a minority language/often need to speak a major language/like English.
- S3 :
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I see.
Are there any other reasons?
- L :
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There are political and social reasons,/too.
For example,/when Japanese is the official language,/speakers of a minority language/need to use Japanese/in many places/such as public offices and schools.
- S3 :
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Can we do something/to save endangered languages?
- L :
- Yes. New Zealand shows us/what we can do. In the country,/the Maori language is taught/at school. Now,/more people are learning the language. So,/it’s possible/to increase the number of speakers. We can save endangered languages,/and promote cultural diversity/as well.