The future of languages is grim.
In India, which has one of world’s richest linguistic cultures, about 300 languages have gone extinct and 100 more are endangered, while the world over, about half of the 6,000 languages currently in existence could disappear in the next 50 years.
But if the subsuming of smaller languages by more widely spoken ones is part of the natural process of cross-cultural exchange and the opening up of boundaries, why should there be an effort to preserve them?
Well, among other things, the phasing out of a language will also sound the death knell of the art and culture associated with it, including movies and books. Each language also has its unique history, worldview and is associated with a body of knowledge.
This episode of The Intersection speaks to linguists about the importance of preserving our dying languages and the efforts being made in this regard.
This is the latest episode of The Intersection, a fortnightly podcast on Audiomatic. For more such podcasts, visit audiomatic.in.