[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:00.52,0:00:03.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Hello everyone, welcome to the\NLangfocus Channel
Dialogue: 0,0:00:03.19,0:00:04.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and my name is Paul.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:05.02,0:00:06.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Today's topic is language death.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:07.63,0:00:10.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Normally on this channel,\Nwhen I talk about a language,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:10.20,0:00:11.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it's usually a living language,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:11.99,0:00:14.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a language that's still spoken\Nby native speakers today
Dialogue: 0,0:00:14.77,0:00:17.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and continues to grow and evolve.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:17.20,0:00:20.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But there are also dead languages\Nand extinct languages.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:21.11,0:00:24.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Languages are considered dead when\Nthey simply have no more native speakers,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:24.86,0:00:27.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,even though they may continue\Nto be used in some way.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:27.76,0:00:29.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Latin is dead for example,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:29.51,0:00:32.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but it continues to be used\Nfor religious purposes
Dialogue: 0,0:00:32.01,0:00:34.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and for some\Nadministrative purposes in the Vatican.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:35.64,0:00:39.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some people can speak it,\Nbut not naturally like a native language.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:39.08,0:00:41.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it's not passed down\Nas a native language.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:41.75,0:00:43.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Another example is Hebrew,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:43.52,0:00:46.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which was a dead language\Nbefore its revival
Dialogue: 0,0:00:46.02,0:00:47.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the form of modern Hebrew.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:47.92,0:00:50.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Nobody spoke it natively for a long time
Dialogue: 0,0:00:50.22,0:00:53.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but it continued to be used\Nfor religious purposes
Dialogue: 0,0:00:53.02,0:00:55.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and as a written literary language.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:55.28,0:00:58.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In contrast,\Nlanguages are considered extinct
Dialogue: 0,0:00:58.07,0:01:00.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when no living person can speak them.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:00.40,0:01:02.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For example, if the last remaining speaker
Dialogue: 0,0:01:02.70,0:01:04.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of a Native American language dies
Dialogue: 0,0:01:04.59,0:01:06.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and nobody has learned it\Nas a second language,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:06.94,0:01:08.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,then that language becomes extinct.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:09.08,0:01:12.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Likewise, ancient languages,\Nlike Sumerian, are extinct.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:12.57,0:01:15.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some people might be able to read\Nancient texts in that language,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:15.75,0:01:17.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but nobody really uses it today.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:17.75,0:01:20.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Languages become either dead or extinct
Dialogue: 0,0:01:20.22,0:01:21.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as a result of language death.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:24.51,0:01:26.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Languages don't always\Ndie in the same way.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:26.74,0:01:28.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There are various types of language death.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:29.12,0:01:31.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The most common ways\Nthat languages disappear
Dialogue: 0,0:01:31.41,0:01:33.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is through gradual language death.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:33.32,0:01:35.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This normally happens when\Nspeakers of one language
Dialogue: 0,0:01:35.92,0:01:38.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,come into contact with\Na language of higher prestige,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:39.16,0:01:41.91,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the language of a dominant,\Nmore powerful group of people.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:42.06,0:01:45.03,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That community may remain bilingual\Nfor quite a long time.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:45.03,0:01:46.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But with each successive generation,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:46.92,0:01:49.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,fewer young people speak\Ntheir traditional language
Dialogue: 0,0:01:49.46,0:01:51.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and with lower levels of proficiency,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:51.50,0:01:54.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as they opt to use the\Nprestige language instead...
Dialogue: 0,0:01:54.51,0:01:58.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,until one day their communities\Ntraditional language is no longer spoken.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:58.37,0:01:59.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,An example of this is Cornish,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:59.95,0:02:02.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which ceased to be spoken\Nby the late 19th century
Dialogue: 0,0:02:02.97,0:02:05.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as a result of the\Ngrowing influence of English
Dialogue: 0,0:02:05.52,0:02:09.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and also as a result of the perception\Nof Cornish as a lower class language,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:09.48,0:02:11.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,even amongst its own\Nspeakers at the time.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:11.81,0:02:14.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But Cornish is actually not {\i1}extinct{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:14.05,0:02:16.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because there are revitalization efforts
Dialogue: 0,0:02:16.11,0:02:18.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to encourage people to continue\Nto use that language.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:18.87,0:02:21.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Next: bottom-to-top language death.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:21.63,0:02:23.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In bottom-to-top language death,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:23.44,0:02:26.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a language ceases to be used\Nas a native spoken language
Dialogue: 0,0:02:26.45,0:02:29.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but continues to be used\Nin certain contexts:
Dialogue: 0,0:02:29.46,0:02:33.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,normally in a formal religious context,\Nor ceremonial context,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:33.22,0:02:35.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or perhaps for literary purposes.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:35.93,0:02:37.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In gradual language death,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:37.46,0:02:40.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the language normally disappears first\Nin more formal contexts
Dialogue: 0,0:02:40.91,0:02:43.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as its replaced by the prestige language.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:43.23,0:02:47.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But it continues to be spoken in more\Ncasual contexts for a longer time.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:47.38,0:02:49.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In bottom-to-top language death,\Non the other hand,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:50.02,0:02:51.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the language dies out {\i1}at the bottom{\i0},
Dialogue: 0,0:02:51.81,0:02:53.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in other words, in casual contexts,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:53.78,0:02:56.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but it continues to be used\Nin more formal contexts.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:57.57,0:02:58.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,An example of this is Latin,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:58.99,0:03:01.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which is basically no longer used\Noutside of religious
Dialogue: 0,0:03:01.73,0:03:05.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or ceremonial contexts,\Nor perhaps literary contexts.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:05.70,0:03:07.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Next: sudden language death.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:08.14,0:03:10.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Sudden language death occurs when all
Dialogue: 0,0:03:10.24,0:03:12.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or almost all the speakers of a language
Dialogue: 0,0:03:12.39,0:03:15.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,suddenly die as a result\Nof a disaster or violence.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:16.23,0:03:19.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,An example of this took place\Nin the 1830s in Tasmania
Dialogue: 0,0:03:19.52,0:03:22.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when virtually all of the island´s\Nnative inhabitants
Dialogue: 0,0:03:22.25,0:03:25.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,were wiped out by European colonists\Nduring the "Black War".
Dialogue: 0,0:03:26.98,0:03:29.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Next: radical language death.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:29.55,0:03:31.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Similar to sudden language death,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:31.39,0:03:34.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,radical language death\Nnormally happens very rapidly
Dialogue: 0,0:03:34.46,0:03:37.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and normally happens\Nas a result of political repression
Dialogue: 0,0:03:37.31,0:03:38.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or under threat of violence.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:39.37,0:03:42.53,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The difference is that the language's\Nspeakers are not wiped out,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:42.53,0:03:44.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but suddenly stop using their own language
Dialogue: 0,0:03:44.89,0:03:46.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as a way to avoid persecution.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:46.81,0:03:49.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,An example of this occurred in El Salvador
Dialogue: 0,0:03:49.06,0:03:51.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,during an uprising in the 1930s
Dialogue: 0,0:03:51.22,0:03:54.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when many aboriginals abruptly\Nstopped speaking their native languages
Dialogue: 0,0:03:55.00,0:03:57.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as a way to avoid being identified
Dialogue: 0,0:03:57.02,0:03:59.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as aboriginals and potentially killed.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:59.60,0:04:04.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Two languages that suddenly died out where Lenca and Cacaopera.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:04.98,0:04:05.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Case studies
Dialogue: 0,0:04:05.72,0:04:11.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Let's look at a few languages that have already died and see if we can figure out how they ceased to be spoken.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:11.87,0:04:12.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Old Church Slavonic
Dialogue: 0,0:04:12.87,0:04:20.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Old Church Slavonic is the first attested Slavic language which was spoken and written between the 9th and 11th centuries.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:20.40,0:04:28.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was a standardized variety of Slavic that was understood by speakers of the various Slavic dialects of that time which were still quite similar to each other.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:28.84,0:04:32.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Those Slavic dialects which were basically the colloquial form of the same language,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:32.92,0:04:35.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,gradually developed into the different Slavic languages of today.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:36.67,0:04:40.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Because it's still used in some churches for religious purposes today,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:40.08,0:04:43.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it's a liturgical language so it fits in with the
Dialogue: 0,0:04:43.27,0:04:49.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,category of bottom to top language death. The newly developing Slavic languages replaced the old Slavonic
Dialogue: 0,0:04:49.60,0:04:52.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,dialects as the languages of daily life, but old Church Slavonic
Dialogue: 0,0:04:53.17,0:04:58.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Continued to be used for religious purposes and for a certain amount of time for political purposes.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:58.90,0:05:04.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's worth noting that some dead languages never actually died in both the case of Latin and of old Slavonic.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:04.93,0:05:09.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The language never stopped being spoken, it just continued to evolve into different languages,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:10.00,0:05:16.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,leaving the codified literary language behind as a separate dead language that was no longer spoken.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:16.41,0:05:17.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The Mandan Language
Dialogue: 0,0:05:18.12,0:05:23.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In 2016, a man named Edwin Benson, the last remaining speaker of the Mandan language, passed away.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:24.34,0:05:27.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Mandan was a Native American language of the Siouan language family
Dialogue: 0,0:05:27.75,0:05:29.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which was spoken in the state of North Dakota.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:30.10,0:05:38.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The population of Mandan speakers was nearly wiped out by an outbreak of smallpox in the 1780s and again in the 1830s.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:38.50,0:05:41.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The cohesion of the remaining population was limited by government
Dialogue: 0,0:05:41.86,0:05:48.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,relocation and the construction of dams which separated villages from each other, while the influence of English grew.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:48.26,0:05:52.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The fact that the most of the population was wiped out in tragic outbreaks of smallpox
Dialogue: 0,0:05:52.50,0:05:58.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,would place this in the category of sudden language death. Even though some speakers of the language continued to live on.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:58.90,0:06:03.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Among the remaining speakers, we can also say that there was an element of gradual language
Dialogue: 0,0:06:03.51,0:06:10.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,death as more and more members of that community began to speak the prestige language English until one day, Mandan was no longer spoken.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:11.14,0:06:11.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Gaulish
Dialogue: 0,0:06:11.64,0:06:17.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Up until the 6th century CE, a Celtic language called Gaulish was spoken in what's now France.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:17.32,0:06:19.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When the Romans conquered the area,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:19.06,0:06:25.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they made Latin the official language of the state, and being able to speak Latin became a way to gain status and economic opportunity.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:26.56,0:06:32.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For a number of centuries it was common to be bilingual in Gaulish vernacular and the prestige language Latin
Dialogue: 0,0:06:32.46,0:06:38.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,until Latin finally replaced Gaulish entirely. This is a clear case of gradual language death,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:38.20,0:06:43.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as a population gradually gave up their traditional language in favor of the prestige language.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:43.61,0:06:44.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Ajawa
Dialogue: 0,0:06:44.96,0:06:52.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Between 1920 and 1940, the Ajawa language died out in Nigeria because its entire community of speakers switched to
Dialogue: 0,0:06:52.78,0:06:59.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Hausa for economic and practical reasons. The entire community very rapidly stopped using their traditional language
Dialogue: 0,0:06:59.47,0:07:01.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it was not passed down to the next generation
Dialogue: 0,0:07:01.94,0:07:08.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is an example of radical language death, when a language dies because all of its speakers suddenly switch to another language.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:09.20,0:07:15.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In many cases of radical language death, the community gives up their language for survival in the face of violence,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:15.65,0:07:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but in this particular case they gave up the Ajawa language because it was more beneficial for their community to speak Hausa.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:22.97,0:07:24.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Why should we care about language death?
Dialogue: 0,0:07:24.97,0:07:29.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some people think that language death is a good thing, that less language diversity
Dialogue: 0,0:07:29.36,0:07:36.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is a good thing. For example the leaders of some countries want one language to be dominant and to replace all of the others because
Dialogue: 0,0:07:36.19,0:07:38.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they think that will promote the unity of their country.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:38.85,0:07:46.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,On the other hand, a language is part of a culture so when a language dies part of that culture dies, and a unique way of seeing the world dies with it.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:46.84,0:07:51.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For example, let's look at the endangered Kallawaya language of Bolivia.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:51.02,0:07:58.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Kallawaya is used by a sect of medicine men who learned the language not only to understand the ritual practice and oral tradition of their ancestors,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:58.88,0:08:02.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but also to understand the thousands upon thousands of plant names
Dialogue: 0,0:08:02.75,0:08:08.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,specific to the Kallawaya language that explained the medicinal uses of different plants in the local region.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:08.32,0:08:12.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If Kallawaya disappears, then all of that culture and secret knowledge will disappear with it.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:14.20,0:08:22.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Linguistic diversity has been on a steady decline and of the present, nearly 7,000 languages on earth nearly half are endangered
Dialogue: 0,0:08:22.18,0:08:27.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the top 100 most spoken languages are spoken by 85% of the world's population.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:28.08,0:08:32.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some endangered languages are finding new life through revitalization efforts
Dialogue: 0,0:08:32.00,0:08:35.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which require that the language first be recorded and documented,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:35.54,0:08:41.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,then learned by new speakers and also used by an enthusiastic and motivated community.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:41.46,0:08:43.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And having some political influence wouldn't hurt either.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:44.78,0:08:46.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The Question of the Day
Dialogue: 0,0:08:46.40,0:08:51.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In your country or in your region, are there languages that are in danger of dying or becoming extinct?
Dialogue: 0,0:08:51.48,0:08:55.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,How would you feel about those languages disappearing? Would something important be lost?
Dialogue: 0,0:08:56.09,0:09:00.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Be sure to follow Langfocus on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. and once again.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:00.88,0:09:03.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you to all of my wonderful patreon supporters,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:03.40,0:09:09.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,especially my top tier Patreon supporters whose names are on the screen right now. Very many thanks to them.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:10.07,0:09:16.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,By the way on the last video about Toki Pona, some of you asked why Toki Pona was listed on the page of patrons.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:16.61,0:09:21.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's because the creator of the Toki Pona language has been a Patreon since last summer
Dialogue: 0,0:09:21.22,0:09:27.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but preferred not to appear on the list. But upon request. I've begun listing the name of the language instead,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:27.47,0:09:32.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you for watching and have a nice day!