When Languages Die: The Extinction of the World's Languages and the Erosion of Human Knowledge.WHEN LANGUAGES DIE: The Extinction of the World's Languages and the Erosion of Human Knowledge K. DAVID The Reverend Dr. K. David[1][2] was a Pastor, a New Testament Scholar, a Bible Translator and an able Administrator. He was a member in the Society for Biblical Studies in India (SBSI) HARRISON Close to half the world's languages will disappear when their current speakers die, writes linguist lin·guist n. 1. A person who speaks several languages fluently. 2. A specialist in linguistics. [Latin lingua, language; see Harrison. A specialist in Siberian Turkic languages Turkic languages Family of more than 20 Altaic languages spoken by some 135 million people from the Balkans to central Siberia. The traditional division of Turkic is into four groups. , Harrison describes the nature of this phenomenon and considers the impact it will have on humanity. He explains that all the speakers of 3,586 languages make up only 0.2 percent of the world's population. Most of the people doing so are in isolated, indigenous cultures, such as the Ifugao people of Indonesia and the Tofa people of Siberia. After examining how these diverse populations in unusual corners of the world have over millennia named plants and animals Plants and Animals are a Canadian indie-rock band from Montreal, comprised of guitarist-vocalists Warren Spicer and Nic Basque, and drummer-vocalist Matthew Woodley.[1] They are signed to Secret City Records. , the author ponders whether significant knowledge about these species is being lost with their names. Both written and oral traditions of storytelling are suffering. Oxford, 2007, 292 p., b&w images, hardcover, $29.95. |
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