Language Endangerment Status | |
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Extinct (EX) | |
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Endangered | |
Safe | |
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Related topics | |
![]() UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger categories | |
An endangered language is a language that is at risk of falling out of use, generally because it has few surviving speakers. If it loses all of its native speakers, it becomes an extinct language. A language may be endangered in one area but show signs of revitalisation in another, as with the Irish language.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization defines five levels of language endangerment between "safe" (not endangered) and "extinct": [1]
The list below includes the findings from the third edition of Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger (2010; formerly the Red Book of Endangered Languages), as well as the online edition of the aforementioned publication, both published by UNESCO. [2]
Language | Status | Nations | ISO 639-3 |
---|---|---|---|
Abaza language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia, Turkey | abq |
Abkhaz language [1] | Vulnerable | Georgia, Russia, Turkey | abk |
Adyghe language (West Circassian) [1] | Definitely endangered | Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Macedonia, Russia, Syria, Turkey | ady |
Agul language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | agx |
Akhvakh language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | akv |
Alabugat Tatar language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Aleut language (Western, Commander Islands) [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | ale |
Alutor language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | alu |
Andi language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | ani |
Archi language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Avar language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Bagvalal language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Baraba Tatar language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Bashkir language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Belarusian language [1] | Vulnerable | Belarus, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Ukraine | |
Bezhta language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Bohtan Neo-Aramaic language [1] | Severely endangered | Georgia, Russia | |
Botlikh language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Buryat language (Cis-Baikal) [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Buryat language (Trans-Baikal) [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Central Selkup language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Central Siberian Yupik language (Chukotka) [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Chamalal language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Chechen language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Chelkan language [3] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Chukchi language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | ckt |
Chulym language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Chuvash language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Copper Island Aleut language [1] | Extinct | Russia | |
Dargwa language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Dolgan language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | dlg |
East Cape Yupik language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Eastern Khanty language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Eastern Mansi language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Eastern Mari language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Erzya language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Even language (Kamtchatka) [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Even language (Siberia) [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Evenki language (Northern Siberia) [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Evenki language (Sakhalin) [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Evenki language (Southern Siberia) [1] | Severely endangered | Mongolia, Russia | |
Forest Enets language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Forest Nenets language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Forest Yukagir language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Godoberi language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Hinukh language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Homshetsma dialect (Caucasus) [1] | Severely endangered | Georgia, Russia | |
Hunzib language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Ingrian language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Ingush language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Inkhokvari dialect [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Itelmen language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | itl |
Juhuri language(Judeo-Tat) (Caucasus) [1] | Definitely endangered | Azerbaijan, Israel, Russia | |
Kabardian (East Circassian) [1] | Vulnerable | Russia, Turkey | |
Kalmyk language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Kamas language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Karachay-Balkar language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Karagas language [1] | extinct | Russia | |
Karata language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Karelian language (Karelia) [1] | Definitely endangered | Finland, Russia | |
Karelian language (Tikhvin) [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Karelian language (Tver) [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Ket language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Khakas language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Khamnigan Mongol language [1] | Definitely endangered | China, Mongolia, Russia | |
Khvarshi language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Kildin Saami language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Kilen language [1] | Critically endangered | China, Russia | |
Kili language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Koibal language [1] | extinct | Russia | |
Komi language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Koryak language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Kumandin language [4] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Kumyk language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Lak language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Latgalian language [1] | Vulnerable | Latvia, Russia | |
Lezgian language [1] | Vulnerable | Azerbaijan, Russia | |
Low Saxon language [1] | Vulnerable | Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Russia | |
Lude language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Moksha language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Motor language [1] | Extinct | Russia | |
Nanay language [1] | Severely endangered | China, Russia | |
Negidal language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Nganasan language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Nivkh language (Amur) [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Nivkh language (Sakhalin) [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Nogay language (Caucasus) [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
North Saami language [1] | Definitely endangered | Finland, Norway, Russia, Sweden | |
Northern Altai language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Northern Khanty language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Northern Mansi language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Northern Selkup language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Olonetsian language [1] | Definitely endangered | Finland, Russia | |
Oroch language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Orok language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Ossete language [1] | Vulnerable | Georgia, Russia | |
Permyak language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Pontic Greek language [1] | Definitely endangered | Armenia, Georgia, Greece, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine | |
Romani language [1] | Definitely endangered | Albania, Austria, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom | |
Rutul language [1] | Definitely endangered | Azerbaijan, Russia | |
Shor language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Siberian Tatar language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Skolt Saami language [1] | Severely endangered | Finland, Norway, Russia | |
Southern Altai language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Southern Selkup language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Soyot language [5] | Extinct, partly revitalized | Russia | |
Tabasaran language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | |
Tazy language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Teleut language [6] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Taigi language [1] | Extinct | Russia | |
Ter Saami language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Tindi language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Tofa language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Trukhmen language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia, Turkmenistan | |
Tsakhur language [1] | Definitely endangered | Azerbaijan, Russia | |
Tsez language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Tundra Enets language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Tundra Nenets language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Tundra Yukagir language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Tuvan language [1] | Vulnerable | China, Mongolia, Russia | |
Udege language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Udmurt language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | |
Ulcha language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Urum language [1] | Definitely endangered | Georgia, Russia, Ukraine | |
Veps language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Võro-Seto language [1] | Definitely endangered | Estonia, Russia | |
Vote language [1] | Critically endangered | Russia | |
Western Mari language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Yakut language [1] | Vulnerable | Russia | sah |
Yazva Komi language [1] | Severely endangered | Russia | |
Yiddish language (Europe) [1] | Definitely endangered | Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Moldova, Norway, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom | ydd |
Yurt Tatar language [1] | Definitely endangered | Russia | nog |
An endangered language or moribund language is a language that is at risk of disappearing as its speakers die out or shift to speaking other languages. Language loss occurs when the language has no more native speakers and becomes a "dead language". If no one can speak the language at all, it becomes an "extinct language". A dead language may still be studied through recordings or writings, but it is still dead or extinct unless there are fluent speakers. Although languages have always become extinct throughout human history, they are currently dying at an accelerated rate because of globalization, mass migration, cultural replacement, imperialism, neocolonialism and linguicide.
An extinct language is a language that no longer has any speakers, especially if the language has no living descendants. In contrast, a dead language is one that is no longer the native language of any community, even if it is still in use, like Latin. A dormant language is a dead language that still serves as a symbol of ethnic identity to a particular group. These languages are often undergoing a process of revitalisation. Languages that currently have living native speakers are sometimes called modern languages to contrast them with dead languages, especially in educational contexts.
Pakistan is a multilingual country with dozens of languages spoken as first languages. The majority of Pakistan's languages belong to the Indo-Iranian group of the Indo-European language family.
Lists of endangered languages are mainly based on the definitions used by UNESCO. In order to be listed, a language must be classified as "endangered" in a cited academic source. Researchers have concluded that in less than one hundred years, almost half of the languages known today will be lost forever. The lists are organized by region.
Language revitalization, also referred to as language revival or reversing language shift, is an attempt to halt or reverse the decline of a language or to revive an extinct one. Those involved can include linguists, cultural or community groups, or governments. Some argue for a distinction between language revival and language revitalization. There has only been one successful instance of a complete language revival, the Hebrew language, creating a new generation of native speakers without any pre-existing native speakers as a model.
In linguistics, language death occurs when a language loses its last native speaker. By extension, language extinction is when the language is no longer known, including by second-language speakers. Other similar terms include linguicide, the death of a language from natural or political causes, and rarely glottophagy, the absorption or replacement of a minor language by a major language.
An indigenous language, or autochthonous language, is a language that is native to a region and spoken by indigenous peoples. This language is from a linguistically distinct community that originated in the area. Indigenous languages are not necessarily national languages but they can be; for example, Aymara is an official language of Bolivia. Also, national languages are not necessarily indigenous to the country.
The UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger was an online publication containing a comprehensive list of the world's endangered languages. It originally replaced the Red Book of Endangered Languages as a title in print after a brief period of overlap before being transferred to an online only publication.
Language preservation is the preservation of endangered or dead languages. With language death, studies in linguistics, anthropology, prehistory and psychology lose diversity. As history is remembered with the help of historic preservation, language preservation maintains dying or dead languages for future studies in such fields. Organizations such as 7000 Languages and the Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages document and teach endangered languages as a way of preserving languages. Sometimes parts of languages are preserved in museums, such as tablets containing Cuneiform writing from Mesopotamia. Additionally, dictionaries have been published to help keep record of languages, such as the Kalapuya dictionary published by the Siletz tribe in Oregon.
Alabat Island is an island of the Philippine archipelago, in the Quezon Province of the Calabarzon region, situated just off the east coast of Southern Luzon. The island has an area of 192 square kilometres (74 sq mi) and a population of 41,822. The island has a mountain ridge with peaks ranging from 1,083 ft (330.10 m) to 1,384 ft (421.84 m) which look like islands at a distance. The highest peak is called Mt. Camagong.
Danau, also spelt Danaw or Htanaw, is a Mon–Khmer language of Myanmar (Burma). It is the most divergent member of the Palaungic branch. Danau is spoken by about 5,000 people near Aungban, Kalaw Township, Shan State. Danaw was classified as a "critically endangered" language in UNESCO's 2010 Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger.
The Anishinaabemowin language belongs to the Central Algonquian language family, and is located in Kettle and Stony Point First Nation. This name variation stems from the relation between the name of the language and the name of the people speaking it, as Anishinaabemowin is spoken by the Anishinaabe. It is also a combination of Pottawatomi and Ojibway. There is a population of 936 people living in Kettle and Stony Point, and of those 936 less than 10 people are fluent speakers of the language. Kettle and Stony Point is located in Canada, in the province of Ontario and in the municipality of Lambton County.