20 Rare Languages Still Spoken Today
A century is a long time in a person’s life. But when we judge by the age of a society, a century is not that long. Humans have been around for 200,000 years, which is a long time, and the reason we have managed to accomplish so much. We had time to experiment and create things. We managed to improve whatever our ancestors created. Today, many things may appear perfect to us, but our future generations would think differently. As time pass, things change, and that is not something we can stop. In our 200,000 years on earth, we have learned that change is inevitable, and everything we have created will get replaced.
Languages:
Culture is the most personal thing society came up with. It defines the people of a community and regulates their everyday life. There are many aspects of culture, but the most important one is language. It is impossible to figure out what was the first language spoken by humans, but we do know some ancient tongues. We can also figure out which is the least spoken language. But languages die too even if they were quite famous at some point. Latin is a good example of this because it was a very powerful tongue once, but today, it does not have a single native speaker. Out of all the seven thousand languages spoken today, experts are sure that half of them will become extinct within a hundred years.
20 Rare Languages Still Spoken Today:
The world does not give up on things easily, which is why there are still plenty of rare languages that are spoken today. These tongues are either endangered or extinct, with only a handful of speakers. Here are twenty such tongues that are still in use today: Njerep: Njerep is the rarest language which has been declared extinct by the experts. It is native to Cameroon and does not have more than five speakers today. These speakers are not fluent in the tongue. Turkish Bird Language: Known as Kuş Dili in Turkish, this bird language is one of the most uncommon languages of the world. It has no alphabet and is made up entirely of whistles and melodies. Since mobile phones help people communicate over long distances now, this tongue is in danger of becoming extinct. Kalasha-mun: It is the language of the Kalash people of Chitral, Pakistan. With only five thousand speakers, it is considered at risk by experts. Chamicuro: With no native speakers alive, this tongue from Peru is considered dormant. However, a dictionary of Chamicuro exists, which can help those who want to learn it. Ongota: This Ethiopian tongue only has 12 speakers, and all of them are elderly. It is unclear which family Ongota belongs to. Liki: This Indonesian tongue is nearly extinct today. It had eleven speakers in 2005, and none of them were children. Sarcee: Spoken by the Tsuutʼina Nation, this tongue had 150 speakers in 2016. Plenty of information is available about the grammar and sentence structure of Sarcee. Pirahã: This indigenous language is native to Brazil and has between 250 to 380 speakers. Out of all the dialects of Mura, it is the only one that has survived. Pawnee: Spoken by the Pawnee Native Americans, this gradually lost its importance. There are only ten speakers of this tongue today as children focus more on English. Lemerig: If you are wondering what is the least spoken language in the world then Lemerig with only two speakers is the answer. Chemehuevi: Named after its speakers, the Chemehuevi was in danger of becoming extinct in 2008 when only three people could understand it. But efforts have been made to revive it. Paakantyi: This Australian language only had four speakers in 2005, but the number had increased to 42 in 2016. Rotokas: Spoken on the island of Bougainville, Rotokas has only 13 alphabets. It had 4,300 speakers in 1981. Ormuri: Spoken by the 2300 years old tribe of the Burki people. It had 6000 speakers in 2004. The importance of Pashto in the region has endangered Ormuri. Tunebo: Tunebo is spoken by the Uwa people of Colombia. It has approximately 3600 native speakers. It is one of the few rare languages that have a writing system and dictionary. Jedek: This Austroasiatic language is spoken in the Malay Peninsula by 280 people. Although it is critically endangered, its speakers are committed to keeping it alive. Mudbura: This aboriginal language is spoken by 92 people in Australia. The number is expected to decline when the older generations that know the language pass away. Hértevin: This rare language is spoken by a thousand people. It originated in Turkey, but over time, its speakers moved to different parts of the world. Most speakers of Hértevin are isolated today. Sentinelese: This tongue is spoken by the Sentinelese people. Its speakers can be anywhere between 100 to 250. Not much is known about the tongue since outsiders are not allowed on the island of Sentinelese people. Ishkashimi: Spoken in Afghanistan and Tajikistan, this tongue does not have more than 3000 speakers. There is no writing system of Ishkashimi, which is why it is quite difficult to study. Everything in our world is temporary, which is why it is so important to value our culture and languages. Just because a vernacular has speakers in millions doesn’t mean it won’t become extinct in the future. Everything around us deserves our attention because it can disappear at any moment. Read the full article
