Approaches to Language Endangerement

Approaches to Language Endangerment

Academic

The academic approach to language endangerment is often spear headed by linguists, with varying goals in mind. There are several approaches linguists can work on from an academic point of view.

Often the first steps in understanding the situation requires both assessing the situation and understanding the causes behind it; the reasons for a language to become endangered can be very complex and require thorough knowledge of the context. Understanding what causes lie behind the decline of a language can help in its revitalization.

Another, a more traditional way linguists approach language endangerment is by language documentation and description. "Language documentation, also known as documentary linguistics, is the subfield of linguistics that deals with creating multipurpose records of languages through audio and video recording of speakers and signers and with annotation, translation, preservation, and distribution of the resulting materials."

In the end perhaps the most important way to help is by offering linguistic expertise in discussing with politicians and especially communicating with the communities themselves.

Language endangerment phenomenon

The language endangerment phenomenon approach "is concerned with the phenomenon of language endangerment itself, and salvage is not the most important aim of the research.”

Language revitalization

Trying to save a language from extinction or revitalizing an already disappeared language. There are several ways of approaching this.

Cases of language revitalization