The Impact of Language Policy on Endangered Languages (original) (raw)

Attitudes to Endangered Languages: Identities and Policies

2013

Attitudes to endangered languages is the result of more than ten years of research into language endangerment based on fieldwork on Britain's periphery-the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. Although the title and subtitle suggest a broad treatment, the book is not in fact a general overview of or theoretical approach to the topic. Its focus is on three separate case studies, which are discussed in the second part of the book. The book starts with a comprehensive introduction to the field of study in Ch. 1; Ch. 2 then gives the sociocultural and political background of the islands studied, and Ch. 3 is devoted to the study of language attitudes and ideologies. After these three introductory chapters, the book shifts its focus to language endangerment and revitalization efforts on the Isle of Man, Guernsey, and Jersey. Ch. 4 discusses language practices, Ch. 5 language attitudes and language ideologies, and Ch. 6 language planning and policy. Chs. 4 to 6 are thus an application of Spolsky's (e.g. 2004) well-known and useful tripartite division of language policy. Investigating how practices, beliefs, and management of languages interact constitutes an important heuristic means to understand trajectories of languages and their speakers in the dynamic setting of changing language ecologies. The sociopolitical setting of the three case studies deserves attention. All three islands feature their own distinct languages and enjoy far-reaching autonomy, being self-governed dependencies of the British Crown. In Guernsey and Jersey, the Oïl languages Jèrriais and Guernesiais, respectively, are spoken. On the Isle of Man, the Celtic language Manx is spoken. The level of endangerment differs between the three cases. Jèrriais and Guernesiais are considered severely endangered today, whereas Manx is considered critically endangered after having been dormant (or 'extinct') for three decades (Moseley 2010). There are a number of important lessons to be learned from Ch. 2, most notably from the discussion of small islands and 'imagined communities'(41-42). This is largely uncharted territory in language endangerment studies, and the discussion of a number of factors impacting on language vitality, such as war, evacuation, and repatriation on some of the islands, is also very instructive. The fact that all three languages are endangered despite the political autonomy of the three islands is not fully discussed. I would have liked to know more details about how negative views of the indigenous languages have entered these islands, how they were spread and reproduced, and by whom, when, and why. Ch. 3 is dedicated to the study of language ideology and language attitudes. It focuses by and large on what publications on language endangerment have to say. In particular, expanding the approach of language ideology for the study of language endangerment would have been desirable. The study of language ideology engages not only in ideas about language structure and use, but also in the background from which ideology emerges in the first place, and the processes concerning how ideology is normalized and spread as being 'commonsensical'. In fact, the entire book could have benefited from including more consideration from neighboring disciplines such as sociology or political science. Chs. 4 to 6 constitute the core of the book. They relate Sallabank's fieldwork results to other cases of language endangerment. Her discussions of language shift and language revitalization refer mainly to the theoretical work done by Fishman (1991, 2001). In these chapters, S demonstrates detailed knowledge of her field of study, gained though numerous visits, during which she conducted surveys and interviews and also learned to speak Guernesiais fluently. Her observations of and participation in these language ecologies enable her to give detailed accounts of language use, ideology, and management. There are too many insights to cover in a brief review, but the following examples can be listed: phatic communication plays an important role in grassroots language revitalization efforts (85); among some speakers, fear of language change appears to be greater than that of language extinction (137); language loss (loss of proficiency) in speakers deepens over the course of language shift (96)-loss is not just between generations but is within individual speakers as well; there is playful language use of endangered languages, which places 964 LANGUAGE, VOLUME 91, NUMBER 4 (2015)

F Nuessel J Sallabank Attitudes to Endangered Languages Identities and Policies-2015

Language Problems and Language Planning. Vol.39, N0. 2. Pp. 212-215., 2015

Julia Sallabank cites Grenoble and Whaley (2006) who offer a distinct definition of language revitalization and language maintenance, namely, "Whereas the goal of revitalization is to increase the relative number of speakers of a language and extend the domains where it is employed, maintenance serves to protect current levels and domains of used." Sallabank also notes that many authors use language policy and language planning indiscriminately. However, she states that: In this book, I will use policy to indicate decisions, positions and principles (often ideologically motivated) regarding language, its nature and role; these may not necessarily be consciously formulated, but are nonetheless policy for that. I will use planning to indicate actions or measures to implement policies, especially measures to support languages (often at grass-roots level) or which are intended to influence language practices. (pp. 25-26) The focus of this book is to examine small islands on the periphery of Britain (Guernsey, Jersey, and the Isle of Man), which are semi-autonomous polities and not part of the European Union. She points out the language planning occurs at three levels: Macro-, meso-, and micro- levels.

The Effects of Institutional Support of Endangered Languages on Language Ideologies

The Pegasus Review: University of Central Florida Undergraduate Research Journal, 2019

Endangered languages are those that are spoken by a very small percentage of the population and are at risk of disappearing with all the knowledge and diversity they contain. Endangered languages often become endangered because the speakers and the society perceive the language as low status or of little use, and a positive change in perception of the language could aid in revitalizing the language. Institutions such as governments, businesses, and universities have recently begun supporting endangered languages in several areas, and this support could greatly affect language ideologies, perceptions of and attitudes about the language. In this research project, I intend to explore the effects on how an endangered language is viewed by both speakers and non-speakers when it is supported by linguistically dominant institutions such as business and higher education. This research was conducted in various areas of Scotland and Ireland and consists of survey data, ethnographic interviews, and participant observation. Specifically, this research aims to answer the following research questions: 1. What is the relationship between institutional support and language ideologies? 2. How do different forms of institutional support affect language ideologies? Institutional support of endangered languages could provide these languages with validity and recognition as a language, as well as offer economic and status advantages to speakers, creating positive attitudes about speaking and learning the languages. This positive change in the way these languages are perceived could be a crucial step in revitalizing endangered languages and preserving the linguistic diversity of the world.

Endangered Languages: A Survey Through Sociological Perspectives by David Minor

The last speakers of probably half of the world's languages are alive today. As they grow old and die, their voices will fall silent. Their children and grandchildren -by overwhelming majority -will either choose not to learn or will be deprived of the opportunity to learn the ancestral languages. Most of the world's languages have never been written down anywhere or scientifically described. We do not even know what exactly we stand to lose -for science, for humanity, for posterity -when languages die. An immense edifice of human knowledge, painstakingly assembled over millennia by countless minds is eroding, vanishing into oblivion.

Endangered Languages: Some Concerns

Economic & Political Weekly, 2009

Identity-Based: Language is not simply a tool for communication but is a central and defining feature of identity as all hu-man thoughts are conceptualised through a language and all human values are pro-nounced and perceived through it. It fol-lows that since language is a ...

Revitalize or not? Minority Communities and Endangered Languages in a Globalizing World.

According to the statistics regarding the endangerment of languages, a very high percent of the languages of the world are in danger of extinction. Some estimations state that approximately 90% of the 6,000-7,000 languages spoken today will be extinct in 100 years if the processes of language change and language loss continue at the present pace. According to others, this rate is around 50%. This raises the question of language revitalization and of reversing language shift. My paper aims to present the newest trends in language revitalization theory and practices with a special regard to globalization and linguistic human rights from the sociolinguistic and ecolinguistic perspective. The paper also aims to give an overview of the Expanded Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale which provides a more detailed description of the level of endangerment of the particular languages.

REVISITING LANGUAGE ENDANGERMENT AND RELATED MATTERS

The paper offers a critique of some of the main ideas behind the endangered languages project, restricting the scope of the discussion to India. It supports exhaustive documentation and archiving of seriously endangered language but is sceptical about the viability of the effort to revive such a language. However, considering the fact that language revival has not been unheard of, it outlines a viable programme of action as to how an endangered language can be revitalized. The paper suggests that the project of the modernization of a safe language and that of the preservation of an endangered language should not be viewed as unrelated projects, as they are being viewed now and that they must instead be seen as the two parts of the larger project of the empowerment of languages, be they endangered or safe.