Importance of preserving India’s linguistic diversity

Importance of preserving India’s linguistic diversity

The importance of preserving India’s linguistic diversity is being discussed from time to time. There are efforts being made to preserve the languages, for example, translating the web pages and stories written in other language of the country to different languages. The efforts could be a start towards preserving the diversity, but they have limited impact as they are not reaching more people. The importance of preserving India’s linguistic diversity is being discussed from time to time. There are efforts being made to preserve the languages, for example, translating the web pages and stories written in other languages of the country to different languages. The efforts could be a start towards preserving the diversity, but they have limited impact as they are not reaching more people.

Need and importance of preserving linguistic diversity in India

Cultural Identity: Language is a primary part of one's cultural identity. It is also a repository of collective knowledge and cultural artifacts, an expression of collective creativity. Language helps in bonding people and communities having a common culture. It makes communication easy and effective among them. In the context of India, we are a country with a lot of diversities in Language.

Cultural Diversity: Language is a great facilitator of the diverse culture. Linguistic diversity in India is unparalleled and unique. India is home to many different languages, some having 100s of dialects and numerous sub-dialects. Because language brings people together from different cultures, linguistic diversity is a strong base for cultural diversity.

Human rights: The term ‘linguistic minorities’ refers to certain groups of people who find themselves in the position of either having been denied the right to use their mother tongue or, at least, being in a minority situation with regard to using it. Many people don’t know English and thus fail to enjoy rights provided due to lack of understanding.

A glimpse of our past: Language is a very important part of our culture. It gives a glimpse of a tradition, heritage and history of a people. Without maintaining the same our culture will be degenerate to others through influences.

Environment: The environmental challenge before India is huge. Environmental degradation causes socio-economic instability and scarcity of food, water and livelihoods. India’s linguistic and biological diversity contributes substantially to its economy and life quality. However, when it comes to decision-making, these vibrant languages are not allowed to contribute the full potential they hold.

Cognitive abilities: One of the most neglected forms of linguistic competence in children is bilingualism. Most often than not, children aren’t given a chance to use both the languages they know. The implications are lifelong, as language is one of the strongest predictors of mental health and cognitive abilities.

Government efforts to preserving India’s linguistic diversity

Information technology: Information technology can facilitate the Indian language without barriers and information tools can help to revitalize Indian languages. We have seen how the Internet and mobile phones have brought new opportunities for people in rural areas, women, youth, and other disadvantaged groups. The IT revolution will affect most fundamentally the way we live, communicate, express ourselves, educate each other and provide services.

Inclusion of Indian languages in cell phone: Mandatory inclusion is a term used in India to describe the Indian government policy whereby cell phone manufacturers are required to ensure that all cell phones sold in the country after July 2017 must support all official languages of India.

Measures to preserve linguistic diversity

Engage indigenous people: It is a positive perception to associate the indigenous people with policies of development and promotion. This way, the people can be able to realise their aspirations and rights that are recognised as human rights. On the other hand, there are more ways that the government should direct in order to ensure that its policies would be accessible to indigenous people. These will make sure that indigenous will enjoy their civil, political and cultural rights.

Education: Education is one of the keys to empowering people and communities, and it is a necessary component to the survival of any language. It is the only way to ensure that our natural, cultural, intellectual and scientific heritage will be handed down from generation to generation.

Internationalized Domain Names: In the past few years, Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) have been gaining momentum in various parts of the world. IDNs enable people to use Unicode characters for domain names instead of Latin characters as is the case with a conventional domain name. An internationalized domain name allows users to type non-Latin characters into their browsers, giving them an option to select from a wide range of global languages and scripts.

Awareness: In the age of globalization, we are losing languages at an astonishing rate. As populations change (through immigration or shifts in demographics), the first thing that is lost is often the indigenous language. And most people don’t care about this; they consider it an inevitable byproduct of progress. Although this may be a natural, geological-like phenomenon, language extinction is not just something that happens with time; it is being actively prevented and intensified by certain realities of the modern world. The internet can be used to raise awareness about the issues of language extinction and language preservation.