Group 8

What Is an Endangered Language?

• An endangered language is one that is likely to become extinct in the near future

• Endangered languages is very strong on linguistic grounds.

• Endangered languages are no longer viable

• An endangered language is one at risk of fewer and fewer people speak it,

Which of the following is NOT necessarily a characteristic of an endangered language?

• The language is regarded as socially inferior and/or has no monolingual speakers.

• Only a few elderly speakers of the language remain alive.

• It is spoken by people who live in isolated areas.

• The language is no longer being taught to children.

Which place have the most lost languages?

• Australia

• The United States of America

• India

• Brazil

Answer explanation

Australia: 42

The United States of America: 82

Brazil: 45

India: 41

Which of the following statements about the world's languages is FALSE?

• Australia has dozens of endangered languages.

• It is estimated that about 50 of the world's languages have only a single surviving speaker

• Europe has no endangered languages.

• Half of all the world's languages occur in only eight of its countries.

How many languages are in use in Vietnam?

• 90

• 69

• 1

• 18

96% of the world's 6800 languages are spoken by only 4% of its people.

• True

• False

Why should endangered languages be protected?

• Language is an important part of any society, because it enables people to communicate and express themselves

• Future generations lose a vital part of the culture that is necessary to completely understand it

• Without its language, a culture can die out quickly and become lost to time

• All are correct

Which of the following languages has NOT shown a large increase in the number of people speaking it in the past hundred years?

• Hawaiian

• Irish Gaelic

• Hebrew

• Manx

Which of the following is a major cause of language loss?

• All of these

• War and discrimination

• Population movement, especially urbanization

• Westernization and the rise of global communication

How can we promote endangered languages?

• Recorded and printed documentation

• Teaching and taking language classes

• Using digital and social media outlets

• All are correct