Is Language Preservation a Human Rights Issue?
- Sam Baker
- Sep 12, 2018
- 3 min read
Language of focus: Quechua
Topics addressed:
Preservation efforts & how they differ by country
Relation to the culture of that country
Role of technology
Importance of linguistic diversity & human rights
The Amerindian language Quechua -spoken in Peru, and parts of Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina- is dying. This was the primary language of the Incas and is spoken today by around 8 million people. Sure, 8 million sounds like a lot. But let's take some things into account. The language of the Latin American job market is Spanish. This means that in order to make yourself employable/attractive to businesses, you need to speak Spanish. Given this rather important fact, parents are shying away from teaching Quechua to their children, since they will just need Spanish anyway. This is one of the huge threats to the Quechua-speaking society.
In Bolivia, a multilingual education program that helps kids learn their native language first has been in place since 1994. In 2009, all 37 languages spoken in the country were made official. State employees are now required to speak one of these in addition to Spanish.
In Peru, Quechua is also recognized as being an official language. It has been spoken there for over 600 years, as it was the unifying language of the Inca empire.
Preservation efforts can differ because of a lack of connection to cultures of the past. If there is a disconnect between the current inhabitants of an area and those who lived there before, one could expect less of an emphasis on an indigenous language. The farther someone feels from any concept, the less likely they are to care about it. They could also differ depending on the way the language is perceived. If there is a certain stigma attached to it, parents may be hesitant to teach it to their children, because they themselves are ashamed of it. This attitude then becomes part of the culture and, as a result, the language can die off.
The role of the government is very important as well. If the government is on-board, this opens up the door for funding and places the language at a higher regard. This funding could be put toward strengthening the media presence of that language. If the primary language used in TV and other forms of media is always Spanish, people are less inclined to learn Quechua because they will see no need for it. Unless the language is kept alive, there will soon be no translations for many of the new words utilized today, such as those brought about by the introduction of new technologies. Then the language will be seen as no longer relevant (even more so).
The concept of linguistic diversity is exceedingly important. Language is one of the things that makes any given area unique. There are 20 times as many languages as there are countries. If the passing-down of certain languages continues to decline, the number of languages spoken in the world will also decline. Should this pattern continue, we can all eventually expect to be speaking the same few languages, those that are the most dominant now. We will have lost an important aspect of what makes different places so unique. The art of learning a language is much more than just the written or spoken word itself, it is also the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the culture. Without a variety of languages, we will find ourselves living in a homogeneous society that no longer values tradition or culture. A human right is something "that is believed to belong justifiably to every person". Everyone has the right to hold onto their culture. With that being said, I personally believe that the act of preserving languages falls under the human rights umbrella.
“The people who push for language revitalization
tend to be the more educated people who are bilingual."
Sources used:
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