Mars: You know, it's kind of wild how English just seems to pop up everywhere. Like, you're scrolling through TikTok in some tiny village in Vietnam, and bam, someone's chatting away in English.
Mia: Tell me about it! English is practically the world's default setting at this point. But there's this whole debate raging: is it a killer language, steamrolling over smaller tongues, or more like a global translator, a lingua franca?
Mars: A killer language? That sounds a bit dramatic, doesn't it? What's the story behind that label?
Mia: Well, some people argue that as English spreads, local languages lose speakers and eventually just fade away. They point to communities switching to English for school and jobs, leaving their mother tongues in the dust. It's like... a giant corporation gobbling up all the little mom-and-pop shops.
Mars: I see. But isn't that a slightly... Eurocentric view? I mean, isn't calling it a killer kind of blaming the messenger?
Mia: Exactly! Salikoko Mufwene, who's a rockstar in linguistics, argues that this killer tag is really a European-focused perspective. Outside of Europe, people often juggle multiple languages. Think of India, where English coexists with Hindi, Tamil, and dozens of others. It's more like a multilingual buffet than a hostile takeover.
Mars: Okay, a buffet – I like that analogy. But remember Latin? It used to be massive, then it just kind of fizzled out. Could the same thing happen to English?
Mia: That's where it gets interesting. Latin's decline happened before mass media. No radio, no Netflix, no cat videos online. Today, we've got Shakespeare in podcasts, Hollywood on demand, global news outlets. Plus, English keeps evolving into different flavors – British English, American English, Singlish, you name it. So, it might never shrink back into a purely dead language.
Mars: So, we're talking about different dialects on steroids?
Mia: Pretty much! And linguist Nicholas Evans suggests we might see diglossia – a neat split between a standard, written English everyone learns and a bunch of local, spoken versions. Like Arabic or Swiss German: one official form, plus regional varieties you actually use to chat with your neighbors.
Mars: Wow, that's wild! So, what about the smaller languages? How are they holding up?
Mia: Honestly, it's pretty serious. Out of roughly 7,000 languages, almost half are endangered. And about 1,500 might vanish this century if things don't change.
Mars: Yikes! Is there any hope? Any good news stories?
Mia: Absolutely! Take Hebrew. It was basically extinct as a mother tongue by the 2nd century, but it got revived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and is now Israel's national language. And then there's Welsh – it's a slow burn, but schools in Wales are pushing immersion programs, street signs, pop songs in Cymraeg. It's a struggle, but culture and the youth are key.
Mars: So, it's not just about numbers, right? It's about whether kids actually want to speak it?
Mia: Exactly! Revival isn't just a census count. It's seeing your friends texting in the local tongue, memes flying around, TikToks and rap battles. When young people embrace it, a language doesn't just survive – it evolves and thrives.
Mars: Okay, let me play devil's advocate for a second. Is it even worth saving every single language? Some languages just die off naturally, right?
Mia: That's true – languages are always shifting. But a language is like a tool. If it opens doors to culture, identity, local knowledge, why not keep it around? Besides, we might be exaggerating how many languages die and undercounting new creoles and mixes that are popping up. We might actually be seeing a linguistic renaissance, with new forms emerging alongside the old ones.
Mars: A renaissance! I love that! So, for communities worried about losing their language, what's the takeaway?
Mia: Address the bigger inequalities – education, media access, economic opportunities in local languages. And let the speakers lead the revival. If the community wants it, and they get the right support, they can breathe new life into their mother tongue.
Mars: That's a really hopeful note to end on. English can stick around, other languages can coexist, and maybe even flourish. Thanks for all the insights. Here's to the next chapter in our global language story!
Mia: My pleasure. Let's keep listening to every voice – big or small.
