Language Endangerment and Language Revitalization

Language Endangerment and Language Revitalization
Author: Tasaku Tsunoda
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2013-02-06
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 3110896583

In almost every part of the world, minority languages are threatened with extinction. At the same time, dedicated efforts are being made to document endangered languages, to maintain them, and even to revive once-extinct languages. The present volume examines a wide range of issues that concern language endangerment andlanguage revitalization. Among other things, it is shown that languages may be endangered to different degrees, endangerment situations in selected areas of the world are surveyed and definitions of language death and types of language death presented. The book also examines causes of language endangerment, speech behaviour in a language endangerment situation, structural changes in endangered languages, as well as types of speakers encountered in a language endangerment situation. In addition, methods of documentation and of training for linguists are proposed which will enable scholars to play an active role in the documentation of endangered languages and in language revitalization. The book presents a comprehensive overview of the field. It is clearly written and contains ample references to the relevant literature, thus providing useful guidance for further research. The author often draws on his own experience of documenting endangered languages and of language revival activities in Australia. The volume is of interest to a wide readership, including linguists, anthropologists, sociologists, and educators.

Language Endangerment and Language Revitalization

Language Endangerment and Language Revitalization
Author: Tasaku Tsunoda
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 340
Release: 2006
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9783110184297

In almost every part of the world, minority languages are being threatened with extinction. At the same time, dedicated efforts are being made to document endangered languages, to maintain them, and even to revive once-extinct languages. The book presents a comprehensive overview of language endangerment and revitalization. Among the examined aspects are: degrees of endangerment, definitions of language death, causes of endangerment, types of speakers in endangerment situations, methods of documentation. The book is of interest to a wide readership, including linguists, anthropologists, sociologists, and educators.

Responses to Language Endangerment

Responses to Language Endangerment
Author: Elena Mihas
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
Total Pages: 291
Release: 2013-11-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9027271151

This volume further complicates and advances the contemporary perspective on language endangerment by examining the outcomes of the most commonly cited responses to language endangerment, i.e. language documentation, language revitalization, and training. The present collection takes stock of many complex and pressing issues, such as the assessment of the degree of language endangerment, the contribution of linguistic scholarship to language revitalization programs, the creation of successful language reclamation programs, the emergence of languages that arise as a result of revitalization efforts after interrupted transmission, the ethics of fieldwork, and the training of field linguists and language educators. The volume’s case studies provide detailed personal accounts of fieldworkers and language activists who are grappling with issues of language documentation and revitalization in the concrete physical and socio-cultural settings of native speaker communities in different regions of the world.

The Cambridge Handbook of Endangered Languages

The Cambridge Handbook of Endangered Languages
Author: Peter K. Austin
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 581
Release: 2011-03-24
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 113950083X

It is generally agreed that about 7,000 languages are spoken across the world today and at least half may no longer be spoken by the end of this century. This state-of-the-art Handbook examines the reasons behind this dramatic loss of linguistic diversity, why it matters, and what can be done to document and support endangered languages. The volume is relevant not only to researchers in language endangerment, language shift and language death, but to anyone interested in the languages and cultures of the world. It is accessible both to specialists and non-specialists: researchers will find cutting-edge contributions from acknowledged experts in their fields, while students, activists and other interested readers will find a wealth of readable yet thorough and up-to-date information.

Saving Languages

Saving Languages
Author: Lenore A. Grenoble
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 254
Release: 2005-11-03
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9781139445429

Language endangerment has been the focus of much attention and as a result, a wide range of people are working to revitalize and maintain local languages. This book serves as a general reference guide to language revitalization, written not only for linguists and anthropologists, but also for language activists and community members who believe they should ensure the future use of their languages, despite their predicted loss. Drawing extensively on case studies, it sets out the necessary background and highlights central issues such as literacy, policy decisions, and allocation of resources. Its primary goal is to provide the essential tools for a successful language revitalization program, such as setting and achieving realistic goals, and anticipating and resolving common obstacles. Clearly written and informative, Saving Languages will be an invaluable resource for all those interested in the fate of small language communities around the globe.

Attitudes to Endangered Languages

Attitudes to Endangered Languages
Author: Julia Sallabank
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 287
Release: 2013-12-19
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1107030617

An in-depth study of endangered language revitalisation, which assesses the implications of changing language attitudes for language campaigners and policy-makers.

The Green Book of Language Revitalization in Practice

The Green Book of Language Revitalization in Practice
Author: Leanne Hinton
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2013
Genre: Language revival
ISBN: 9789004254497

With world-wide environmental destruction and globalization of economy, a few languages, especially English, are spreading, while thousands others are disappearing, taking with them cultural, philosophical and environmental knowledge systems and oral literatures. This book serves as a manual of effective practices in language revitalization. This book was previously published by Academic Press under ISBN 978-01-23-49354-5.

The Oxford Handbook of Endangered Languages

The Oxford Handbook of Endangered Languages
Author: Kenneth L. Rehg
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 1037
Release: 2018-07-18
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0190877049

The endangered languages crisis is widely acknowledged among scholars who deal with languages and indigenous peoples as one of the most pressing problems facing humanity, posing moral, practical, and scientific issues of enormous proportions. Simply put, no area of the world is immune from language endangerment. The Oxford Handbook of Endangered Languages, in 39 chapters, provides a comprehensive overview of the efforts that are being undertaken to deal with this crisis. A comprehensive reference reflecting the breadth of the field, the Handbook presents in detail both the range of thinking about language endangerment and the variety of responses to it, and broadens understanding of language endangerment, language documentation, and language revitalization, encouraging further research. The Handbook is organized into five parts. Part 1, Endangered Languages, addresses the fundamental issues that are essential to understanding the nature of the endangered languages crisis. Part 2, Language Documentation, provides an overview of the issues and activities of concern to linguists and others in their efforts to record and document endangered languages. Part 3, Language Revitalization, includes approaches, practices, and strategies for revitalizing endangered and sleeping ("dormant") languages. Part 4, Endangered Languages and Biocultural Diversity, extends the discussion of language endangerment beyond its conventional boundaries to consider the interrelationship of language, culture, and environment, and the common forces that now threaten the sustainability of their diversity. Part 5, Looking to the Future, addresses a variety of topics that are certain to be of consequence in future efforts to document and revitalize endangered languages.

Revitalizing Endangered Languages

Revitalizing Endangered Languages
Author: Justyna Olko
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages:
Release: 2021-01-31
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 110862443X

Of the approximately 7,000 languages in the world, at least half may no longer be spoken by the end of the twenty-first century. Languages are endangered by a number of factors, including globalization, education policies, and the political, economic and cultural marginalization of minority groups. This guidebook provides ideas and strategies, as well as some background, to help with the effective revitalization of endangered languages. It covers a broad scope of themes including effective planning, benefits, wellbeing, economic aspects, attitudes and ideologies. The chapter authors have hands-on experience of language revitalization in many countries around the world, and each chapter includes a wealth of examples, such as case studies from specific languages and language areas. Clearly and accessibly written, it is suitable for non-specialists as well as academic researchers and students interested in language revitalization. This book is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

Endangered Languages and Languages in Danger

Endangered Languages and Languages in Danger
Author: Luna Filipović
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
Total Pages: 413
Release: 2016-10-03
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9027266441

This peer-reviewed collection brings together the latest research on language endangerment and language rights. It creates a vibrant, interdisciplinary platform for the discussion of the most pertinent and urgent topics central to vitality and equality of languages in today’s globalised world. The novelty of the volume lies in the multifaceted view on the variety of dangers that languages face today, such as extinction through dwindling speaker populations and lack of adequate preservation policies or inequality in different social contexts (e.g. access to justice, education and research resources). There are examples of both loss and survival, and discussion of multiple factors that condition these two different outcomes. We pose and answer difficult questions such as whether forced interventions in preventing loss are always warranted or indeed viable. The emerging shared perspective is that of hope to inspire action towards improving the position of different languages and their speakers through research of this kind.