Discussion Post#9

[Xiwei Gu]

The sign for a language being extinct is no longer spoken or used by any groups for communication purposes. However, the article explores deeper than that. When a language dies, a way of thinking and communicating also perishes. The loss of a language marks the loss of the cultural identity and heritage of the community. In many communities seeking to revitalize their languages such as Native Americans, the biggest problem is that younger generations are no longer interested in it and see no need to learn it. Therefore, they came up with the development of a language immersion program and the creation of language learning materials. Linguists preserve a language by documenting it, studying its grammar and vocabulary. They usually work closely with the local communities to promote usage of the language. Reviving a dead language can be unrealistic because of limited conditions for using and lack of background knowledge. People are still striving to bring them back to life in order to learn more about a culture and its history. For example, Hebrew was revived into a modern language in the 19^th century. Various organizations are working with communities to document their languages and creating learning materials these days.

[Ethan Han]

It is very important to understand human history and language may be one of the most important factors to understand this world we live in. Reviving a dead language allows us to read their historical text which may contain knowledge that has never been discovered before. Sometimes research doesn't need to be done but needs to be discovered.