SHINJINI BHATTACHARJEE

8/11/19
DESIGN DISSERTATION - SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Preserving Linguistics in the context of Architecture

 Definitions (Lexicon)
 Excerpts of reading (relevance, author background)
 Bibliography (APA format)
 Understanding of the above research (enquiry questions, leading ideas, aims)
 Visuals (graphics, maps, photographs, infographics, statistics)
 Sample space

Language as more than a means of Languages

communication BY CARL SANDBURG
Deconstructing the science of linguistics into various
aspects of- speech, script and sense. THERE are no handles upon a language
Men have traversed through ages and grown into the most Whereby men take hold of it
superior race on Earth because of their advanced linguistic and
communication skills. Human language is unique in comparison And mark it with signs for its remembrance.
to other forms of communication, as it allows us to produce a
vast range of expressions and emotions from a finite set of It is a river, this language,
elements. Language is much more than just a means of
communication; it is a central and defining feature of identity as Once in a thousand years
all human thoughts are conceptualised through a language and Breaking a new course
all human values are pronounced and perceived through it. It is
also an inseparable part of our culture. In fact, language allows Changing its way to the ocean.
culture to exist. Language allows us to pass on ideas,
knowledge, and even attitudes on to the next generation. It is mountain effluvia
Language allows culture to develop by freeing people to move
beyond their immediate experiences”. People identify with the Moving to valleys
(local) community of speakers of their language, recognise one And from nation to nation
another as members of the same group on the basis of
language, and have a more or less settled desire that the group Crossing borders and mixing.
should survive and flourish into the indefinite future.
Language is intrinsic to the expression of culture. As a means Languages die like rivers.
of communicating values, beliefs and customs, it has an
important social function and fosters feelings of group identity Words wrapped round your tongue today
and solidarity. It is the means by which culture and its traditions And broken to shape of thought
and shared values may be conveyed and preserved.
Languages are the most important part of a particular cultural Between your teeth and lips speaking
heritage. As one culture dies and another grows, the same
happens to their languages. Language is a relic that needs Now and today
preservation as other inventions and objects of importance. It is
an intangible resource that can also unlock some of the lost Shall be faded hieroglyphics
secrets and even civilizations that existed on the face of the Ten thousand years from now.
earth.
Sing—and singing—remember

Your song dies and changes

Current scenario
Statistics from Census over the years And is not here to-morrow

Any more than the wind

The 1961 census records India as having 1,652 languages. By
1971, it was 808. Over 220 Indian languages have been lost in Blowing ten thousand years ago.
the last 50 years, with a further 197 languages categorised as
endangered according to the People’s Linguistic Survey of India,
2013. This drastic decrease in the number of languages represents the discrepancy of the surveys
conducted. India, with its uniquely diverse nature where the language and dialect changes with every
step you take, the falling numbers shows how the emergence of more widely popularised languages of
Hindi and English have taken a toll on the heritage of the smaller, less prevalent languages spoken by
the natives. Somehow, despite our faith in diversity, we simply are not able to quantify it, especially in
terms of languages and dialects.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s (UNESCO) Atlas of the World’s
Languages in Danger (2009), the third in the series, presents a grave picture of the world’s languages
which are extinct or are on the verge of extinction. The Atlas identifies 196 languages that are
endangered in India, which comprise 84 languages that are “unsafe”, 62 languages that are “definitely
endangered” and six and 33 languages that are respectively “severely” and “critically” endangered
(Table 2). Nine languages – Ahom, Aimol, Andro, Chairel, Kolhreng, Rangkas, Sengmai, Tarao and
Tolcha – have become extinct in India from the 1950s. Though these endangered languages are spread
across the entire country there is some degree of concentration, with many of these languages being
located in the north-east as well as the tribal belts of West Bengal and Orissa and in Himachal Pradesh,
Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand. These languages are also diverse in terms of the number of
speakers, who range from zero to 27.14 lakhs (Gondi) as per the 2001 Census. Besides the aspect of
having the highest number of endangered languages, the distribution of these 196 languages as per
the number of speakers is also a matter of concern. In the two categories with the least degree of vitality,
that is, “critically” and “severely” endangered, 28 out 37 languages (75%) have less than 5,000 speakers
(Table 2). In the same two categories 92% of the languages have less than 20,000 speakers. On the
other hand, in the category which has the highest vitality within the endangerment schema, viz, “unsafe”,
about 85% of languages have more than 20,000 speakers. The Atlas incorporates the “absolute number
of speakers” as one of nine factors in constructing its endangerment framework because a very small
population is especially vulnerable to extinction as a result of both natural disasters such as
earthquakes, epidemics or even tsunamis as well as man-made causes such as genocide or war. It is
a matter for investigation as to whether the number of speakers in almost all the “critically” and
“severely” endangered languages are so low because these languages are well advanced within the
trajectory of becoming extinct or whether these languages had a very low number of speakers to begin
with. In either case, there is clearly a need for the initiation of remedial policies to protect and promote
these endangered languages.
The language of our ancestors, the spoken words concentrated in a few pockets of the country are
breathing their last breath. In this densely polyglot country called India, you have to demarcate between
a language and a dialect in order to gather a sense of the loss in the linguistic frame of things.

800 Number of languages and dialects in India

96% of 380 Number of languages spoken in India that are endangered
300 Languages that have become extinct till now
220 Languages that have disappeared in last 50 years
150 Languages that could vanish in the coming half of century

How to preserve a language - Potential

Languages cannot be preserved by making dictionaries or grammars. Languages live if people who
speak the languages continue to live. So, we need to look after the wellbeing of the people who use
those languages, which means we need a micro-level planning of development where language is taken
as one factor. A proven method to ensure survival of languages is the development of schools that
teach in them, enabling the new speakers to preserve and enrich the language. A vast digital project
for preserving and growing India’s endangered languages must be launched. Audio-visual
documentation of the important aspects of such language — like storytelling, folk literature and history
— will be an ideal start. Revival is possible only if the livelihood of those people is protected.
Immersive and interactive experience so that essence of a particular lingual form rather than a robotic
brush through is felt. It should reflect on the culture where a particular language originated for the people
to completely understand the vitality of that language
Creation of a dedicated learning platform that will allow a detailed research and innovation in terms of
the past, present and future world languages. The learning center should study various aspects of a
language like speech (phonetics, pronunciations, accents etc.), writing (scripts, fonts etc.) and
sense(vocabulary, grammar and structure open-ended concept inviting everyone could contribute and
study. The learning center should have designed spaces that will allow discussions, debates and
presentations among people with linguistic interest. The learning center should also allow for the
development of new communication systems and languages, especially for people with speech or
hearing disabilities, thus contributing to the society in a fulfilling way.

How to preserve using architecture

Architecture has the power to give meaning to a space. The physical manifestation of a built form to
preserve language should invoke an immediate powerful emotional response among the people. By
articulating the mass and volume of the shell with various aspects of design like rhythm, balance, scale
and proportionality like a language is articulated to create the best piece of literature. Drawing a parallel
between the structure of linguistics and architecture, the application of semantics and morphology can
be interpreted in terms of architecture. By creating a multi-sensory experience for the people, they are
able to understand the beauty of linguistics. Creating a poetic response for a language museum through
the means of architecture is a potential step that can be taken.

Challenges

But, ultimately, languages are not preserved by documentation but by having a

profusion of people speaking them. State support continues to remain necessary.
There remains little institutional support for growing languages like Bhojpuri, or
declining languages like Mehali (Maharashtra), Sidi (Gujarat) and Majhi (Sikkim).
Their revival is dependent on ensuring livelihood support for the speakers of the
language.

India is one of the most linguistically rich countries. When we lose a language, it is a
loss of an entire universe, including its cultural myths and rituals. Ignoring languages
with fewer speakers will simply not do. Languages like Hindi have over 126
languages feeding into them. Cutting down on such roots will harm the larger
languages as well.

There is still hope. A language like Bhil has showcased an 85% growth in speakers
in the last 20 years. We need a new social contract where we seek to preserve the
orality and textual nature of languages using digital means. Such a practice would
keep India’s purported pluralism alive, giving it renewal.

LEXICON

Semantics:
Polyglot:
Pragmatics:
Language

Bibliography

https://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/News-Analysis/2016-07-28/India-rapidly-losing-its-
languages/245117
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/blogs/et-commentary/preserving-indias-endangered-
languages/
http://blogs.reuters.com/india/2013/09/07/india-speaks-780-languages-220-lost-in-last-50-years-
survey/\\

Site Selection

Areas of the country are language clusters mainly found

In all the states and union territories, invariably, there are at least 10 languages or more, but in urban
spaces, like Delhi or Bombay, or Hyderabad or Bangalore, nearly 300 language communities inhabit
that space in a very substantial number for each community. In the northeast, there are more than 250
languages.

Language decline is more visible along the coast of India.

Because of change in the sea farming technology, local people have lost their livelihood. They are no
longer into fishing, making of nets, ship breaking. They have migrated inward. So they have migrated
out of their language zones… Wherever people move from one livelihood to another livelihood, they
carry their language for a while. But in the second generation, or the third generation, a shift takes place.
The third generation no longer feels related to the earlier language the same way.

Where else do you find major decline?

Nomadic communities. We had a very terrible law brought in by the British called the Criminal Tribes
Act, 1871 (Rescinded in 1952). Under that act, many communities were described as criminal by birth,
not criminal by act. So those communities got stigmatised. … They are mostly nomadic in habit, and
today in India those people are trying to move away from their cultural identity. They are trying to conceal
their cultural identity. Therefore they are giving up their language.

Extinct languages: are they mainly from small communities?

In history, very large languages also go down sometimes. Latin is one example. The (ancient) Greek
language is another, Sanskrit is the third
one. A language does not have to be
small in order to face extinction. That is
the nature of language … In India
linguistic states are created. If there is a
very large language for which there is no
state, then slowly that language will stop
growing. This has happened.

For example, Bhojpuri is a very, very

robustly growing language, but there is no
state for Bhojpuri. So after some time the
robustness will be lost … So small is not the condition for the death of a language. Several external
elements play a role. Often smaller languages move to the centre … slowly grow and occupy centre
stage …

So this equation that the government will come, will do something, then language will survive, that has
to be taken out of all thinking. It is a cultural phenomenon.