According to Aitor García Moreno, from the Institute of Languages and Cultures of the Mediterranean and Near East, there are no sufficiently clear parameters to determine when a language is considered dead or extinct. In general, it is considered as such with the death of the penultimate of its speakers, since no conversation can no longer be established.
On the other hand, to be considered in danger of extinction, a language must have fewer than 1,000 speakers who use it fluently in their daily lives. According to UN data, currently more than half of the world’s languages are in this situation, and many others have completely disappeared in recent years.
Today we bring you several extinct or almost extinct languages that have been recovered thanks to various revitalization processes carried out either by government organizations or by groups of speakers who have set out to conserve and preserve their language.
Before delving into some of the languages that have been resurrected, let’s talk about why a language becomes extinct or why it enters the process of disappearance. The causes are numerous, but among all of them, the following stand out:
1. Globalization
In our eminently globalized world there is a tendency to use the majority languages to establish communication with others. Thus, languages such as English, Spanish or Chinese, which are among the most spoken on the planet, are usually some of the most used in this sense.
Although globalization is a positive thing in terms of practicality, it is tremendously detrimental to cultural wealth. As a consequence of the expansion of the majority languages, many others, spoken only by small groups, have seen their number of speakers decrease; at least, in terms of first language.
The conquest of other territories is a constant in human history. In general, this conquest entails the expansion of the culture of the conquerors and, more than often, its imposition on other minority cultures. A good example is the African languages, greatly damaged by the increasing European colonization of the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as the indigenous American languages. The imposition of the language of the conquerors can occur in several ways. One, through forced imposition, and two, through cultural policies that marginalize other languages and turn them into a manifestation of a supposed “lack of culture.” This happens when the newly arrived language is perceived or encouraged as the representative of what is cultured and “civilized.”
3. Linguicide
Sometimes the minority language is directly persecuted and canceled. In these cases we speak directly of linguicide, since the destruction of the language in question is intentional and aggressive.
7 languages that have been resurrected
Fortunately, there are many languages that have been resurrected and that, little by little, are recovering speakers. In today’s article we bring you 7 of these recovered languages.
1. The Prussian
Prussian is a Baltic language originally spoken in the so-called East Prussia, a region that is currently divided between Poland, Russia and Lithuania. Its decline began after the invasions of Germans and Poles, and from the 18th century until 2009 it was considered an extinct language.
However, since the 1970s groups of scholars began to reconstruct and expand Old Prussian through platforms such as YouTube, Facebook or some book editions. The result of such a great undertaking was that, in 2009, this very ancient Baltic language was revived again, and little by little it seems that it continues to grow.
The Hebrew language is the only case of an extinct language not only recovered, but elevated to a language in common use by millions of people. Although Hebrew continued to be used as a liturgical language, until the 19th century, coinciding with the rise of Zionism, it did not begin to be spoken on a daily basis.
The promoter was Eliezer Ben-Yehuda (1858-1922), considered the father of modern Hebrew, who adapted the ancient sacred language for popular use. He himself taught his son to speak it, who thus became the first native modern Hebrew speaker in history. The growth of this language is evident: it is currently the official language of Israel and a vehicle of communication for many members of the international Jewish community.
3. The Cornish
This ancient language from the Cornwall region of England has Celtic origins and officially became extinct in the 18th century, with the death of its last native speaker.
However, it is currently in the process of recovery, the results of which could not be more positive: in 2000, according to a report from the United Kingdom, there were already 300 people who spoke Cornish, in addition to more than seven hundred in the process of learning it. In 2010, UNESCO delisted Cornish as an extinct language, which is always great news.
4. The livon
Transmitted from generation to generation as an exclusively oral language, Livonian is one of the few non-Indo-European languages that exist in Europe. Originally spoken in the Gulf of Riga, only 30 people are currently recorded as fluent speakers, although fortunately a few more study it.
In 2009, the last speaker of Livonian as a first language, Viktor Berthold, died, although it is assumed that some of his descendants were able to continue speaking it. That same year, the Latvian government recognized Livon as the country’s linguistic heritage and established measures to safeguard it.
The Nubian people were numerous and important in ancient times; He was, no less, in control of the destinies of Egypt towards the 8th century BC. However, the migration of the Nubian population, caused by the opening of the Aswan Dam, spread the speakers throughout Egypt and Sudan.
Dispersed and coexisting with the Egyptian and Sudanese population, the Nubian tries to maintain its ancestral language through applications that already have several thousand subscribers. It is one of the oldest languages in Africa spoken by one of the oldest ethnic groups, which makes its conservation a historical and cultural responsibility.
6. The Norman
Today, Norman is spoken in French Normandy (although without official recognition) and on some of the Channel Islands, especially the islands of Jersey and Guernsey. It belongs to the old oil languages (of the Romance family), very widespread in the Middle Ages and sadly almost disappeared.
It is estimated that today only 2% of the population of the aforementioned islands speaks Norman, despite the fact that they are fully recognized by the BIC (British-Irish Council). Currently, various Norman language clubs are trying to recover and expand this ancient European language.
7. The Maori
Spoken by the Maori people (native to New Zealand), this ancient language was seriously harmed with the arrival of European settlers. In 1847, and through the Education Ordinance Act, English was established as the official language, the only one allowed as a teaching vehicle in schools. Later, in 1858, the language was prohibited as a spoken language in educational centers.
Fortunately, a group of young Māori (known as Nga Tametoa) began a Māori revival campaign in the 1970s. As a result, and with the support of the government, Since 1996 the language has grown significantly.
