Dying Words: Endangered Languages and What They Have to Tell

Dying Words: Endangered Languages and What They Have to Tell Us (The Language Library Book 23)
The next century will see more than half of the worldâ€™s 6,000 languages become extinct, and most of these will disappear without being adequately recorded. Written by one of the leading figures in language documentation, this fascinating book explores what humanity stands to lose as a result.
- Explores the unique philosophy, knowledge, and cultural assumptions of languages, and their impact on our collective intellectual heritage
- Questions why such linguistic diversity exists in the first place, and how can we can best respond to the challenge of recording and documenting these fragile oral traditions while they are still with us
- Written by one of the leading figures in language documentation, and draws on a wealth of vivid examples from his own field experience
- Brings conceptual issues vividly to life by weaving in portraits of individual â€˜last speakersâ€™ and anecdotes about linguists and their discoveries
Country USA
Manufacturer Wiley-Blackwell
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2011-08-17
Format Kindle eBook

Dying Words: Endangered Languages and What They Have to Tell Us (The Language Library Book 23)