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Science Friday > Archives > 2002 >
March
> March 8, 2002:
Hour Two: Endangered Languages
You hear about endangered species all the time -- but when was the
last time you thought about languages being endangered? On the other
hand, when was the last time you heard someone speaking Woria, or Yevanic,
or Areeba?
| The decline of these and other languages around the
world is closely connected to the issue of globalization. In this
hour of Science Friday, we'll talk about the issue of endangered
languages, hear some of them in action, and find out why some researchers
are working to understand and preserve these dying tongues. |
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Some linguists predict that by the end of this century half of the
languages now spoken in the world will be extinct. How is a culture
shaped by its language? Does it really matter if we all speak the same
language one day?
Call in with your comments and questions at 1-800-989-8255, and share
your opinions online in our Listeners' Lounge
(registration
required).
Guests:
Steven Bird
Adjunct Associate Professor of Linguistics and Computer Science
Associate Director and Senior Researcher, Linguistic
Data Consortium
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Jerold Edmondson
Professor, Linguistics
University of Texas, Arlington
Arlington, Texas
Lawrence Kaplan
Director, Alaska Native Language
Center
Professor, Linguistics
University of Alaska, Fairbanks
Fairbanks, Alaska
Books/Articles Discussed:
Related Links:
Language samples
from Cameroon and Ivory Coast (courtesy Steven Bird, University
of Pennsylvania)
Language samples
from Vietnam (courtesy Jerry Edmondson, University of Texas at Arlington)
Native Word of
the Day (from KNBA-Anchorage)
IñupiaQ
Phrasebook (courtesy Jim Kerr, University of Alaska)
Alaskool:
Alaska Native Languages
Endangered Language
Fund
Foundation for Endangered Languages
Virtual Library:
Linguistics
International
mother language day celebrated for the first time
Ethnologue: Languages of the World
(including the 'Nearly
Extinct' page)
- This segment produced by: Annette Heist
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