“Language is the only tool for expressing identity and culture as well as one of the greatest emblems of human diversity. There are 7,000 living languages in the world and around 3,000 are considered as ‘endangered’. This means that almost half of the planet’s current linguistic diversity is under threat.” – Abhijit Mohanty in “Seven decades after independence, many tribal languages in India face extinction threat” (Down to Earth, 26 August 2020)
https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/governance/seven-decades-after-independence-many-tribal-languages-in-india-face-extinction-threat-73071
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=6879
Find all posts with information relating to this issue under the Category “Endangered language”; or click here >> To read the full article, click here >> Kolami, Koya, Gondi, Kuvi, Kui, Yerukala, Savara, Parji, Kupia. Do these names ring a bell? No, right? They are all native tribal tongues that have immensely contributed to enrich the … Read more
Learn more about India’s tribal communities – their cultural heritage, current conditions and aspirations – with the help of the links seen below Despite their vast differences, anthropologists, including [Verrier] Elwin and [G.S.] Ghurye, as well as Srinivas and other Indian public figures and intellectuals, effectively erased or negated tribes’ worldviews and beliefs. When discussing … Read more
In Rayagada in Odisha, Kondh parents distinguish between dangar patha (mountain learning) and kagaj patha (paper learning). Asked which they prefer, many parents answer ‘both’. This expresses a need deeply felt by Adivasis: literacy, with fluency in the regional language or English, is important; but so is respect for native languages and knowledge systems linked … Read more
Source: Lexicographer David Harrison interviewed by Srijana Mitra Das in “Indigenous languages have wisdom that can save us from climate crisis”, Times of India, 23 January 2021URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indigenous-languages-have-wisdom-that-can-save-us-from-climate-crisis/articleshow/80411082.cmsDate Visited: 26 July 2022 1. Language is one of the fundamental preconditions to human development, dialogue, reconciliation, tolerance, cultural and linguistic diversity, and the peaceful existence of … Read more
DIALECT AREA(S) OF TONDAI MANDALAM Gnanasundaram, V. The Iravallan tribe who live in the Anaimalai mountainous region, Coimbatore, Tamilnadu and adjacent Palakad district, Kerala speak generally 1) an indigenous tribal mother tongue viz Iravalla among themselves, which shares the phonological, grammatical and lexical features of both old Tamil and present day Malayalam, 2) the Tamil … Read more