🗣️Bilingualism in History Unit 14 – Preserving Bilingualism: Historical Efforts

Key Concepts in Bilingualism

• Bilingualism refers to the ability to speak and understand two languages fluently
• Individual bilingualism occurs when a person acquires two languages, often from childhood (simultaneous bilingualism) or learns a second language later in life (sequential bilingualism)
• Societal bilingualism exists when a community or nation uses two or more languages for communication and official purposes
• Additive bilingualism results in positive cognitive and social benefits, while subtractive bilingualism may lead to the loss of the first language and cultural identity
• Code-switching, the alternation between languages within a single conversation or utterance, is a common feature of bilingual communication
• Bilingual education aims to foster proficiency in two languages through various program models (dual language immersion, transitional bilingual education)
• Language shift occurs when a community gradually replaces their heritage language with a majority language over generations, often due to social, economic, or political pressures

Historical Context

• Bilingualism has existed throughout human history as a result of cultural contact, migration, trade, and conquest
• In ancient empires (Roman Empire, Persian Empire), multilingualism was common among the elite and in cosmopolitan centers
• Colonial expansion from the 15th to 20th centuries led to the spread of European languages and the suppression of indigenous languages in many parts of the world
• Nation-building efforts in the 19th and 20th centuries often promoted monolingualism and linguistic assimilation as a means of creating a unified national identity
• Globalization and increased mobility in the late 20th and early 21st centuries have contributed to the rise of bilingualism and multilingualism worldwide
• Historical attitudes towards bilingualism have ranged from viewing it as a cognitive and social advantage to perceiving it as a threat to national unity and cultural identity

Early Preservation Efforts

• Early efforts to preserve minority languages often emerged in response to the threat of language shift or loss due to dominant language policies and practices
• In the 16th century, the Catholic Church promoted the use of indigenous languages (Nahuatl, Quechua) in religious texts and missionary work in the Americas
• The 19th-century romantic nationalism movement in Europe sought to revive and celebrate regional languages and cultures (Basque, Catalan, Welsh)
• Indigenous communities in North America, Australia, and New Zealand have long fought to maintain their languages through oral tradition, cultural practices, and community-based education
• The establishment of language academies and societies (Académie française, Real Academia Española) aimed to standardize and promote national languages while also preserving linguistic heritage
• Early bilingual education programs, such as those for Spanish-speaking students in the United States in the early 20th century, aimed to facilitate English acquisition while maintaining the students' first language

Major Policies and Legislation

• International organizations (UNESCO, Council of Europe) have adopted declarations and conventions recognizing the importance of linguistic diversity and the rights of minority language speakers
  • The 1953 UNESCO resolution on "The Use of Vernacular Languages in Education" advocated for the use of mother tongues in early education
  • The 1992 European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages aimed to protect and promote the use of minority languages in education, media, and public life
• National language policies have varied in their approach to bilingualism and minority language rights
  • Canada's Official Languages Act of 1969 recognized English and French as co-official languages and mandated bilingual federal services
  • South Africa's post-apartheid constitution of 1996 recognized 11 official languages and promoted their equitable use and development
• In the United States, the Bilingual Education Act of 1968 provided federal funding for bilingual education programs, while the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 emphasized English acquisition and limited support for bilingual education
• Indigenous language legislation, such as the Native American Languages Act of 1990 in the United States and the Māori Language Act of 1987 in New Zealand, has sought to protect and revitalize indigenous languages through funding, education, and official recognition

Influential Figures and Movements

• Language activists and scholars have played a crucial role in advocating for the preservation and promotion of minority languages
  • Joshua Fishman, a sociolinguist, developed the Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale (GIDS) to assess the vitality of minority languages and propose strategies for their revitalization
  • Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, a Kenyan writer, has championed the use of African languages in literature and education as a means of decolonization and cultural empowerment
• Indigenous rights movements have often included language preservation as a central component of their struggles for self-determination and cultural survival
  • The Zapatista movement in Mexico has promoted the use of indigenous languages (Tzeltal, Tzotzil) in education and community governance
  • The Sami language revitalization movement in Scandinavia has established Sami-medium schools and cultural institutions to maintain and develop the Sami languages
• Grassroots language revitalization initiatives have emerged in communities around the world, often led by local activists, educators, and elders
  • The Hawai'i language immersion movement, which began in the 1980s, has successfully revived the use of Hawaiian through a network of schools and cultural programs
  • The Basque language revival in Spain and France has been supported by a strong network of ikastolak (Basque-medium schools) and cultural organizations

Challenges and Controversies

• Language preservation efforts have often faced resistance from dominant language groups and governments who view linguistic diversity as a threat to national unity or a barrier to social and economic advancement
• The allocation of resources and funding for bilingual education and minority language programs has been a contentious issue, with critics arguing that such programs are costly and ineffective
• Debates have arisen over the most effective approaches to language revitalization, with some advocating for full immersion programs and others favoring more gradual or transitional models
• The role of technology in language preservation has been both praised for its potential to document and disseminate endangered languages and criticized for its limitations in fostering intergenerational transmission and authentic language use
• Controversies have emerged over the standardization and orthography of minority languages, with different factions advocating for competing writing systems or dialect preferences
• The commodification and appropriation of minority languages and cultures by dominant groups has been a concern for many language preservation activists, who seek to ensure that language revitalization efforts are led by and benefit the communities themselves

Successful Preservation Strategies

• Intergenerational transmission, where parents and grandparents pass on the language to younger generations through daily use and cultural practices, is considered the most crucial factor in language preservation
• Immersion education programs, which provide instruction entirely in the target language, have been effective in producing fluent speakers and creating domains for language use outside the home
• Community-based language programs, such as language nests and master-apprentice programs, have successfully engaged learners of all ages in language acquisition and cultural activities
• Language documentation and archiving projects have played a vital role in preserving the linguistic and cultural knowledge of endangered languages for future generations
  • The Endangered Languages Project, a collaborative online platform, has cataloged and shared resources on over 3,000 endangered languages worldwide
  • The Rosetta Project, an initiative of the Long Now Foundation, aims to create a permanent archive of all documented human languages
• Media and technology have been harnessed to create engaging language learning materials, such as interactive apps, podcasts, and social media content, and to connect learners and speakers across distances
• Collaborative efforts between indigenous communities, academic institutions, and government agencies have led to successful language revitalization projects that combine research, education, and community development
  • The Myaamia Center at Miami University in Ohio has partnered with the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma to revive the Myaamia language through language camps, curriculum development, and linguistic research
  • The Mohawk Language Custodian Association in Canada has worked with the Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke and local schools to create a comprehensive Mohawk language curriculum and teacher training program

Modern Approaches and Future Outlook

• Multilingual education models, such as dual language immersion and content and language integrated learning (CLIL), are gaining popularity as a means of fostering bilingualism and intercultural competence in diverse societies
• Language rights are increasingly being recognized as a component of human rights and social justice, with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007) affirming the right of indigenous peoples to revitalize, use, and transmit their languages to future generations
• Advances in technology, such as machine translation, speech recognition, and natural language processing, are creating new opportunities for language documentation, learning, and use
  • The Duolingo language learning app has added courses in endangered languages such as Hawaiian, Navajo, and Scottish Gaelic, making them accessible to a global audience
  • The National Research Council of Canada has developed a suite of language technologies for indigenous languages, including speech synthesis and automatic speech recognition
• Interdisciplinary approaches to language preservation, drawing on insights from linguistics, education, anthropology, and cognitive science, are informing the design and implementation of more effective revitalization strategies
• The future of language preservation will depend on sustained efforts by communities, governments, and international organizations to value and support linguistic diversity as a vital part of human heritage and identity
• Successful language revitalization will require a combination of top-down policies and bottom-up initiatives, as well as a commitment to long-term, intergenerational transmission and the creation of vibrant, multilingual societies