5.
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It's reported that half of around 7,000 languages on the
earth are in danger of disappearing by 2100. There are many reasons for such disappearance.
Sometimes younger generations stop learning a language because parents want
children to fit in modern society. For instance, native American children of the
late-19th century were required to attend boarding schools where educators
forbade them from speaking their native languages.
Endangered languages are ranked according to their risk
level by the United Nations. A "critically endangered" language is
one that even grandparents don't speak often. New York's Onondaga language is
an example with only 50 speakers left. An "extinct" language has no
speakers, which means it is gone forever. The last person who spoke it
died in 2008. So this language doesn't exist any longer.
Various
animals and plants benefit our environment. Saving these languages benefits our
understanding of other cultures. Languages can show how a society looks at the
world and what it values. The Endangered Language Alliance, a non-profit group,
wants to save languages from disappearing. However, its efforts are limited. If an
endangered language is going to make a real comeback, it'll probably get its
start in schools. Now students in Hawaii can keep learning Hawaiian from
elementary schools to college and beyond.
At least one did. In
1881, a Jewish linguist named Eliezer Ben-Yehuda brought the 3,000-year-old
language Hebrew back to life. Today it is one of the official languages of the
country of Israel, with more than 4 million speakers.
A.Alaska's
Eyak language is one example.
B.Why should
we save endangered languages?
C.With just
five speakers left, it is absolutely endangered.
D.Can a
language with zero native speakers come back to life?
E.
Similarly, different languages contribute to cultural diversity.
F.
Sometimes societies force minorities to give up their language.
G. The
organization finds native speakers and records their stories.