Importance Of Language And Culture

ARE LANGUAGES AND CULTURES PRACTICED BY ONLY A FEW PEOPLE WORTH PROTECTING? A language of any culture, whether big or small, is its soul. (Wenying Jiang, ND) “Language simultaneously reflects culture, and is influenced and shaped by it. In the broadest sense, it is also the symbolic representation of a people, since it comprises their historical and cultural backgrounds, as well as their approach to life and their ways of living and thinking. Brown (1994: 165) describes the two as follows: ‘A language is a part of culture and a culture is a part of a language; the two are intricately interwoven so that one cannot separate the two without losing the significance of either language or culture.’ In one word, culture

Economically, protecting endangered languages and cultures can be challenging especially in 3rd world countries where are supposedly in abundance. Languages and cultures practiced by only a few people rick extinction. One of the best ways of protecting a language and culture is by having it on written records and teaching it in schools. This in itself may incur great expenses and if done seriously and less strategically. This project can largely depreciate a countries economy. Socially and politically, languages and cultures practiced by only a few people have unethical linguistic and cultural traditions that may contrast The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in a

For their boys to be considered men, they must endure a tormenting bloody whip match that will test their strength, self-control and bravery. The initiate picks a long stick and sharpens it in a way that will guarantee the most painful blow with every whip. Once he has his weapon … two youths are pitted against each other. His goal is to hit his opponent the hardest, and wince the least when he’s struck. Three blows are exchanged between each boy. The crowd decides who has shown the most courage through the ordeal, and he is the winner of the match.” It is clearly seen that endangered language and cultures are only practiced by a few people for various reasons stated above. The question still begged to be answered is: are such linguistic and cultural traditions worth protecting? Protecting languages and cultures only spoken by a few may pose a threat to the economy but, the opposite is true. In various places endangered cultures have been a tourist attraction for Individuals as well as organisations such as the Global Heritage Fund. Language and culture are an identity and create diversity: what is man without identity? What is the world without variety and diversity? Who are we without language and