Pingie: HTTP:: Database of Extinct and Endangered Languages In The Works

HTTP:: Database of Extinct and Endangered Languages In The Works
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Anthony Aristar, a professor of linguistics at the Eastern Michigan University, and Lyle Campbell, also a professor of linguistics and the director of the Center for American Indian Languages (CAIL) at the University of Utah have recently decided to organize the world's first-ever workshop featuring a large number of experts on defunct or nearly extinct languages and dialects. Between November 12-14, about 50 international experts will catalog endangered and dying languages, in a large database that could be used for reference in the future.Chances are very high that, within a few decades, dying languages will completely die out, and that very few experts will struggle with the dialects. Most likely, only the most important extinct mother tongues, such as Latin and old Greek, will remain in use, while obscure African and Asian dialects will fade from memory. The goal of the Endangered Languages Information and Infrastructure workshop is precisely to prevent that from happen!
ing, the two professors say. “A language is not just words and grammar; it is a web of history that binds all the people who once spoke the language, all the things they did together, all the knowledge they imparted to their descendants. When a language dies, it's just the same as when a s...
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http://news.softpedia.com/news/Database-of-Extinct-and-Endangered-Languages-in-the-Works-125852.shtml
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