In a reverse Tower of Babel, mankind is consolidating its languages with globalism. Our species speaks over 7,000 languages right now, but those are quickly being reduced to 20 or fewer. Below is an article on some of the most endangered languages. I was kind of surprised to find that Rapa Nui (the Easter Island language) was not already extinct. If you look up my Irish history post on St. Patrick’s Day, you will find my ancestral language of Gaelic is nearly snuffed out on purpose by the Brits.
Irish Gaelic, Rapa Nui And More Endangered Languages From Around The World
by Libby Zay (RSS feed) on Jun 7th 2013 at 1:00PM
There are nearly 7,000 languages spoken throughout the world today, the majority of which are predicted to become extinct by the end of this century. Half the world’s population speaks the top 20 world languages – with Mandarin, Spanish and English leading the charge, in that order – and most linguists point to globalization as the main cause for the rapid pace languages are falling off the map.
The problem is, when a language dies so does much of the knowledge and traditions that were passed won using it. So when Mental Floss used data from the Alliance for Linguistic Diversity to post a list of several at-risk languages, we here at Gadling were saddened by the disappearing native tongues and decided to use data from the Alliance for Linguistic Diversityto highlight some in our own list.
Irish Gaelic: Despite the fact that the government requires Irish students to learn this language and it currently has an estimated 40,000 native speakers, it is still classified as vulnerable.
Rapa Nui: The mother tongue of Chile’s famous Easter Island has fewer than 4,000 native speakers, and is quickly being taken over by Spanish.
Seneca: Only approximately 100 people in three Native American reservation communities in the United States speak this language, with the youngest speaker in his 50s.
Kariyarra: Although there are many people who have a passive understanding of this aboriginal language, only two fluent Kariyarra speakers are left in Western Australia.
Francoprovençal: There are only about 130,000 native speakers of this language, mostly in secluded towns in east-central France, western Switzerland and the Italian Aosta Valley.
Yagan: This indigenous language of Chile purportedly has only one remaining native speaker. Others are familiar with the language, but it will likely disappear soon.
Patuá: Derived from Malay, Sinhalese, Cantonese and Portuguese, less than 50 people in Macau, China and their diaspora speak this language. It is now the object of folkloric interest amongst those who still speak it.
Michael Bradley - Time Traveler 