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I see that as an apples to oranges comparison. When we say "saving languages," do we mean archiving them, backing them up, creating stores of references and rec

I see that as an apples to oranges comparison. When we say "saving languages," do we mean archiving them, backing them up, creating stores of references and recordings that can be easily recalled yet inexpensively preserved? If so, then I am definitely for that. If "saving languages" means accepting nothing less than the descendants of the speakers of a dying language needing to expend mental energy and time to remain active speakers of that language, placing them at a disadvantage when compared with those who have free time for other pursuits and contributing to segregating that group from others, I don't know if that's as beneficial. In general, all knowledge should be preserved when possible. The question is whether it's better for it to be stored on hard drives or in brains.

lesu 12y ago
Good question :) not sure I have a good answer for that one, although I'd like to point out that many people elect to expend mental energy on otherwise unproductive minutia (aka. hobbies) so perhaps the task of carrying on a spoken tradition is less onerous to some than one might expect. Language contributing to group segregation is a very strong claim, however, and if you have any case studies (or, like, newspaper articles, this isn't academia) I'd be interested in seeing them.
robryan 12y ago
Yes, I think most people would agree that creating a record of as many languages as possible before they die out is a good idea.
walterbell 12y ago
Books answer questions. Brains conceive new questions.
panglott 12y ago
Every child must expend enormous energy to learn their mother language, but the human mind is not a cup that can hold but one language. Bilingualism and diglossia are the human norm, not monolingualism. Language is a human right, and parents have a right to teach their children their heritage. Languages are only ever "dying" because of state coercion aimed at robbing children of their cultural heritage.

lesu 12y ago

Good question :) not sure I have a good answer for that one, although I'd like to point out that many people elect to expend mental energy on otherwise unproductive minutia (aka. hobbies) so perhaps the task of carrying on a spoken tradition is less onerous to some than one might expect. Language contributing to group segregation is a very strong claim, however, and if you have any case studies (or, like, newspaper articles, this isn't academia) I'd be interested in seeing them.

robryan 12y ago

Yes, I think most people would agree that creating a record of as many languages as possible before they die out is a good idea.

walterbell 12y ago

Books answer questions. Brains conceive new questions.

panglott 12y ago

Every child must expend enormous energy to learn their mother language, but the human mind is not a cup that can hold but one language. Bilingualism and diglossia are the human norm, not monolingualism. Language is a human right, and parents have a right to teach their children their heritage. Languages are only ever "dying" because of state coercion aimed at robbing children of their cultural heritage.