Language is not merely a passive tool, rather it is actively involved in the creation of the perception of the outer world and construction of social reality. It emerges as a powerful manifestation of culture that acts as an identity marker at the individual and societal level. It is important to acknowledge the strong link between the language and a person’s belief as the world is perceived, understood, interpreted and represented through thought which is unique to each language. However, it is shocking to learn that a number of languages are currently facing the threat of extinction. If we search through the pages of history, we can find incidents where languages have disappeared, yet the alarming fact about the present situation is that the rate of extinction has accelerated.
About 66 languages are spoken in different parts of Pakistan. And then there are many variations of these languages that are spoken in tribal and rural areas. Since more and more people are moving to large urban cities in order to build their educational and professional life, they leave behind a huge part of their culture and adopt languages spoken in those cities. Many need to adopt the universal language, English. It is because of this that many of these variations have either significantly been altered or have been lost.
The extinction of a language does not just mean the disappearance of a few words, but the loss of identities, the death of particular viewpoints and the extinction of social histories. It is essential that action be taken at the local level to help conserve the languages spoken across Pakistan. Ezra Pound had said, “The sum of human wisdom is not certain in any one language and no single language is capable of expressing all forms and degrees of human comprehension.”
Attah Azad Nodizi
Turbat
Published in The Express Tribune, August 23rd, 2020.
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