Half of World's 6,800 Languages Face ExtinctionAmong the world's 6,800 languages, half to 90% could be extinct by the end of the century.Half of all languages are spoken by fewer than 2,500 people each, according to the Worldwatch Institute, a private organization that monitors global trends. Languages need at least 100,000 speakers to pass from generation to generation, says UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The outlook for Udihe, Eyak and Arikapu ¡ª spoken in Siberia, Alaska and the Amazon jungle, respectively ¡ª is particularly bleak. About 100 people speak Udihe, six speak Arikapu, and Eyak is down to one, Worldwatch says. Marie Smith, 83, of Anchorage, Alaska, says she's the last speaker of Eyak, a claim verified by linguists. Linguists believe 3,400 to 6,120 languages could become extinct by 2100, a statistic grimmer than the widely used estimate of about one language death every two weeks. |
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