Last year (2019) was the International Year of Indigenous Languages:
“In 2016, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution proclaiming 2019 as the International Year of Indigenous Languages, based on a recommendation by the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. At the time, the Forum said that 40 per cent of the estimated 6,700 languages spoken around the world were in danger of disappearing. The fact that most of these are indigenous languages puts the cultures and knowledge systems to which they belong at risk.
In addition, indigenous peoples are often isolated both politically and socially in the countries they live in, by the geographical location of their communities, their separate histories, cultures, languages and traditions. And yet, they are not only leaders in protecting the environment, but their languages represent complex systems of knowledge and communication and should be recognized as a strategic national resource for development, peace building and reconciliation.
They also foster and promote unique local cultures, customs and values which have endured for thousands of years. Indigenous languages add to the rich tapestry of global cultural diversity. Without them, the world would be a poorer place.” (SOURCE)
In his essay “Death by Monoculture,” Stephen Pax Leonard stresses the threats facing minority languages and cultures around the world as a result of consumerism and globalization. Leonard focuses specifically on the dual role played by technology: on the one hand, certain forms of technology are contributing to the disappearance of minority languages; on the other hand, he suggests that the Internet and digital media have the potential to preserve linguistic diversity.
I would like you to explore the official website for the International Year of Indigenous Languages HERE and scroll through the variety of infographics HERE to learn more about this initiative.
Then, I would like you to watch the 7-minute-long video below, which comes from a documentary series called “Language Matters,” produced by PBS (the Public Broadcasting System):
Once you have watched the video above, respond to the following questions in the “Leave a Reply” box at the end of this post before class time on Thursday, 3/5:
Both Leonard and the video above discuss technology’s impact on linguistic diversity. What role do you believe technology plays in the extinction and/or preservation of minority languages and cultures? And, overall, do you feel that you have a duty as a global citizen to fight to protect minority/indigenous languages? If so, why, and how will you do this? If not, why not?
*Note: Refer to the “Blog Response Guidelines” posted on BB > Assignments > Glob. HW Assignments.
The Global University (Spring 2020) 
I believe that technology plays both roles in terms of extinction or preservation of minority languages. Leonard makes a great point in his essay, technology might lead to the extinction of minority languages because some languages might not be in those technology. However, in my opinion, I think he lacks the other point of view. Technology could help minority languages to prosper, since most people have access to the internet nowaday, people can spread their minority language so more people can learn about it; they can also upload their languages on the internet so it could be preserved for a much longer time. Overall, I feel that I have a duty as a global citizen to fight to protect minority languages, because languages is one of the most important things humanity have. The language I speak is also part of my identity, it’s my duty to protect it. The simplest way to do this is to teach the younger generation about minority languages, minority parents can teach their kids about their language and it would pass on.
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I believe that technology plays in the preservation role of minority languages and cultures. Because just like what Joshua Bell says in the video, technology is helping to preserve minority languages. In my opinion, it is definitely correct. Just imagine, if we don’t have internet, how can we access to the minority language? It is nearly impossible for us to listen or understand the minority language without the Internet. However, thanks to technology, we can easily get access to the minority language songs, conversations and so on. Also, the minority language can be preserved in the Internet forever. Overall, I feel that I have a duty as a global citizen to fight to protect minority and indigenous languages. Because languages represent how people think and also represent where people from. Through understanding or learning the minority language, we foreigners can know how minority people live, and this is a very interesting experience. If we lose minority languages, then the world will lose the culture behind it, and this is pathetic to all human beings. I will preserve minority languages in different ways. I will invoke people to pay their attention on preserving minority languages on the internet. Also, I will let my friends and families to notice this problem, as a result, they will also spread the idea to their friends and families.
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From my perspective, I think technology has both good and bad effects on minority languages. However, I believe that the perservation role outweights the extinction role. It’s understandable that technology can push one language to be thrive. The simplest example is computer science. Since English-speaking countries first invented computer, computer language are all in English. Therefore, all the cs learners at least can understand a little English. And what Leanard argues about the technology is true. Lots of video games, softwares only support some languages, while those minority languages are definitely not involved. However, thank to the technology, humans have faster and broader access to resources and ability to spread resources. For those scholars of minority languages and ingenious people, they can take the advantage of internt to grasp attention from mass public for their languages. Last year, I tried to learn Norwegian. The most ironic thing was that I could find a book in my city library. But the software, Duolingo, has the course for Norwegian, which was the way I learned. And the fun fact was that the number of people who learn Norwegian was greater than Norway’s population, according to Duolingo. Just like Boroditsky argues about, languages are more than words. They contain a different way of thinking or, based on Leonard, they have poets and rhythm. Of course, we need to perseve languages by getting more attention from the public, trying to encourage people around us to give enough respect to those indigenous languages. Even though the trend of globalization is hard to change, like you cannot force a game company to add a language only spoken by hundreds of people, we should let those minority languages speakers know that we are welcome their languages, not letting them feel embarrassed.
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In my opinion, technology helps protect minority languages as Joshua Bell’s statement in the video. Since we are available to minority cultures through internet, if there is no technology, how could we know that there is actually a special language existed? Moreover, many books about those minority languages is hard to preserve due to the easily damaged. However, with the computer, the technology like E-copy, it is quite convenient to view and preserve those valuable resources, which contributes to people’s learning. As for me, I am responsible to protect the minority languages and cultures because they represents the history of human. It is necessary for us to learn the development of human by the assistance of those languages. Language is the most direct and valuable source to record customs, cultures and spirit of a specific area. And it is those areas consists of the whole world. Therefore, in case we forget the history, we have to engage in protecting minority languages, and use them to understand the history of ancestors, even the world. One of the method to protect them is teaching own languages to local children, and when they grow up, they could spread it to people from different countries who are interested in those languages. By doing it, the world will have more diversification.
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I believe recent technologies, such as Internet and smartphones, are doing a good job helping the preservation of language diversity. Although most context on the Internet are in only small number of languages, as Leonard points out in his essay, it actually allows indigenous people to share their language, knowledge and culture with the world at very low costs. Unlike television and video games, both of which are costly to produce and only provide one-way cultural affection, the Internet allows two-way communication between cultures at nearly no cost. Given this convenient and cost-efficient tool, I believe I have the capability, and duty to protect minority languages. As a bilingual, I have the access to two (actually more since I also know a dialect) different cultures, therefore I could help one culture to learn something unique from another. Thanks to the development of self-media and Internet transmitting speed, people could easily share their lives and custom with people on the other side of the planet almost instantly, and intercultural conversation could be established without effort.
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In my opinion, it is inevitable that the development of technologies will make a few languages disappear, which is what we called the survival of the fittest. When some languages that are used too little and should be eliminated disappear, in fact, we don’t need to be too panic, because the disappearance of these languages will not have much impact on cultural heritage. And actually taht is how development of technology eliminate unnecessary parts of our lives. In the process of globalization, these languages have lost their meaning of existence. However, most of the historic languages and cultures are worth retaining. We, as global citizens, have an obligation to protect our own languages and traditions.The development of science and technology as a bridge can actually provide more ways to protect traditional cultures. For example, antiquities restoration technology can restore some ancient secretaries and records, which largely facilitates our study of ancient literature. And that is exactly what we need to inherit our traditional languages and culture. For us, what we need to do is no relying on other cultures to live. Even living in other countries and under other cultures, we still need to remember and cherish our roots.
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I believe that technology does play two different roles in minority languages and cultures. Since middle age, the fast urbanization of human beings has formed many clusters of cities, towns and villages. People move from suburb area to a more central business area for economic activities. Especially after the third technological revolution, the use of internet and the increasing speed of transportation tools become the foundation of globalization. People are more willing and able to travel around the world. Mainstreaming languages play important roles in communication, trade and so on. Those people with minority languages and cultures are forced or willing, to some extent, to learn mainstreaming languages to adapt to the fast changing landscape of the world.
Meanwhile, technology also helps preserve minority languages and cultures by its recording devices and research skills. Linguists now could use these recording techniques to preserve many nearly extinct languages and use scientific research skills to investigate the characteristics of languages and cultures.
As a global citizen, I respect every presence of languages and regard them as treasure to human beings. Culture, literature and history behind those languages are invaluable. Personally, I encourage linguists to do more work to preserve minority languages and cultures, which also requires much support from the public and the government. I could engage in rising awareness of the public and users of these minority languages. However, it is personal freedom for them to wether use mainstreaming languages or not. I cannot say that they must use their native languages as long as they are born with the specific identities, but lose opportunities to learn mainstreaming languages and have a better life.
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For me, as a classics major, I believe that technology is actually preserving minority languages.
There used to be hundreds of tragedies, written in Ancient Greek or Latin. However, now we only have less than 50. This is a huge pity. They were destroyed or lost through wars or careless preservation.
Nowadays, thanks to technology and the increasing awareness of protecting these precious ancient pieces, we are able to unearth cultural relics from deeper ground, as well as keep the pieces much more carefully.
Besides, due to the massive impact of the Internet, the beauty of minority languages can be fully displayed through propaganda, thus making people willing to protect them. If there is a dying language, the stories and reports about that phenomenon can reach evey corner of the Earth and people will start to rescue this language. The subject linguistics is actually invented around a hundred years ago. As people are being more literate and educated than usual, people start to value languages, both majority and minority languages, higher than before.
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I believe that technology plays a role of preservation more. Because of technology, people can know more about the places that are far from their lives. I think I would never know that there’s a minority language and what it is called, where it is originated without this vedio. Technology is a way to discover those minority languages, record them, and spread them to other people in the world to let then know and even learn to speak it. The interviewee in this vedio mentions that there are some languages that are only spoken between less than 500 people. Without the video, and without the internet to let people in the world to know about it, when the population of those who speak hte minority languages become less and less, finally no one will notice them, and the result is vanishment. As for me, I’m willing to be inclusive to any language. But I’m not sure what I can do for it all my spoken langauge are not minority language. But I would really glad to participate in the activities of the protection of minority language to protect the culture.
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I think the technology causes the extinction of the minority languages. In the essay “Death by Monoculture” by Leonard, the author says that the globalization and the technology will let the people speaking minor languages become more international and feel connection to the rest of the world. Hence, the author argues that these people will give up their own language and use the major languages to communicate with others. They do this because they do not want to be discarded in the globalization process. The technology helps them do this. Also, this point is proved in the video. The interviewer mentions everybody want to participate in the world discussion with bullet languages. The technology offers the opportunity for these people to join in. Hence, I think people speaking the minor languages decide to give up their own language is because they are afraid of being abandon from us in the globalization process. When these people watch TV and use their smart phones and find out that they can not understand what the latest world and entertainment news, they can be stimulated and decide to speak other major languages. I think I do have the responsibility to protect these minor languages. The language difference is a part of factors making our world interesting. The purpose of globalization is to make our life easier not to make the world boring.
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According to the gleiser , the author of “Globalization: Two Visions of the Future of Humanity”, technologies meant to developed for humanity;s favor with a task to alleviate people’s suffering which are leading the globalization. However, both author agrees that even though technologies helped rapid globalization, it is also true that it silenced the groups who are in the side of minority. And I believe the language . And I believe the purpose of the globalization is to make people around the world connected not excluding one.
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I agree with the statement that technology both has an impact on linguistic diversity to be preserved and diminished. According to his essay “Death by Monoculture,” Stephen Pax Leonard argues that advanced technologies using Internet fastly destructs minority cultures as only about 15 of languages are used. Additionally, I think as technology develops, people don’t need to learn languages as the way before because there will be more advanced tools like grammarly and translators. I think I have a duty to protect indigenous languages as a global citizen who are speaking a language other than what I am typing now, and a language that I have to protect as only approximately 1% of the global population use. Languages represent cultures; If we do not try to protect minority languages, it means the cultures are disappearing. In doing so, I would like to send a request email to the developers of google translators to include indigenous languages in addition to what it is already, and don’t forget that every different language has its culture and identity through it.
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