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Contents 1 Language 1.1 Interesting Language Facts 1.2 Language map of Europe 1.3 Language extinctions 1.3.1 Internet 1.3.2 Languages are dying out 2 List of languages 3 External Links:

[edit] Language

• A language is a system of symbols, generally known as lexemes, and the rules by which they are manipulated. Languages are not just sets of symbols. They also contain a grammar, or system of rules, used to manipulate the symbols. While a set of symbols may be used for expression or communication, it is primitive and relatively inexpressive, because there are no clear or regular relationships between the symbols. Because a language also has a grammar, it can manipulate its symbols to express clear and regular relationships between them. The word language is also used to refer to the whole phenomenon of language, i.e., the common properties of languages. Though language is commonly used for communication, it is not synonymous with it. The scientific study of language, its historical development, characteristics, and use in society is known as Linguistics (syntax, semantics, phonetics, phonology, etc).
• Human language is a natural phenomenon, and language learning is instinctive in childhood. In their natural form, human languages use patterns of sound or gesture for the symbols in order to communicate with others through the senses. Though there are thousands of human languages, they all share a number of properties from which there are no known deviations.
• In this world are 6,912 known living languages (Ethnologue).
• Languages are important to people not only as means of communication and understanding, but also as marker of their ethnic identification. That is, people may hold on to a specific language as a badge of ethnicity, even though they may comprehend another language. Therefore, their response to the Gospel may be dependent on which language the message is in. This factor if often the reason for doing a Bible translation or the Jesus film in some languages, even though the people may be able to cognitively process the information in another language.

[edit] Interesting Language Facts

See for details and a language map: Joshua Project

[edit] Language map of Europe

• Language map of Europe

[edit] Language extinctions

• Globalization threatens the world’s rich language diversity.

[edit] Internet

• The Internet and technological revolution has made English the preferred global language. A disproportionate number of the world’s wealthy speak English. This aids in international communication, but is a cultural juggernaut that is crushing many smaller cultures.
• Only 65 languages are spoken by more than 10 million people and only 45 are used as a main teaching medium in secondary schools.

[edit] Languages are dying out

• Over 50 have one speaker only, 426 are nearly extinct and some estimate that half of the 7,148 languages may be extinct in 2100. The work of Bible translators together with literacy workers is one significant ministry in preserving languages and restoring pride in their cultures.

[edit] List of languages

• Abkhaz
• Achang is the mother tongue of the Achang in China.
• Africans
• Akawaio is the mother tongue of the Akawaio in Guyana.
• Amharic is the national language of Ethiopia.
• Arabic
• Armenian
• Azerbaijani, North is the national language of Azerbaijan and the mother toungue of the Azerbaijani, North.
• Bai is the mother tongue of the Bai in China.
• Bashkort is the mother tongue of the Balkar in Russia.
• Bangla is the national language of Bangladesh.
• Basari is one of the national languages of Guinea and Brazil.
• Bengali is one of the languages in India.
• Berta is the mother tongue of the Berta people who lives Ethiopia and Sudan.
• Biafada, a Niger-Congo language, is the mother tongue of the Biafada in Guinea-Bissau.
• Buriat, Mongolia is the mother tongue of the Buriat, Mongolia of Mongolia.
• Chadian Arabicis widely understood in Chad
• Cishingini is the mother tongue of the Chishingyini in Nigeria.
• Ciyawo (aka Chiyao) is the native language for the 2 million + Yawo (or Yao) people of Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania
• Creole: Jamaica is one of the national languages in Jamaica, it is also spoken in Belize, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama.
• Dagaari Dioula is the mother tongue of the Dagaari Dioula, Wala people in Burkina Faso.
• Dagbani is the mother tongue of the Dagbamba in Ghana.
• Daur is the mosther tongue of the Daur in China.
• Dolgan is the mother tongue of the Dolgan in Siberia in Russia.
• Dongxiang is the mother tongue of the Dongxiang in China, this language is related to the Mongol language.
• Dutch
• English is a language spoken by over 300 million mother-tongue speakers around the world.
• French
• Frisian
• Fulani is one of the national languages of Guinea.
• Fulfulde, Central-Eastern Niger is the mother tongue of the Fulani, Sokoto in Nigeria and Niger.
• Georgian
• German
• Gujarati is one of the languages in India.
• Hakka
• Hani is the mother tongue of the Hani in China.
• Hindi is the national language of India.
• Indonesian
• Jahanka is the mother tongue of the Jahanka of Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Senegal in West Africa.
• Japanese
• Javanese
• Kanembu is the mother tongue of the Kanembu in Chad, Nigeria, and Niger.
• Kannada is the mother tongue of people in Karnataka state in India.
• Kashmiri
• Kazakhis the mother tongue of the Kazakh people in Kazakhstan, China and other countries.
• [Kissi]] is one of the national languages of Guinea.
• Kituba is the mother tongue of the Monokutuba people in Congo-Brazzaville.
• Koniagi is one of the national languages of Guinea.
• Korean
• Kpelle
• Kumzari is the mother tongue of the Shihuh, they live in Oman near to Strait of Hormuz.
• Latin
• Loma is one of the national languages of Guinea.
• Malayalam is one of the languages in India.
• Malinke is one of the national languages of Guinea.
• Mandarin
• Marathi is one of the languages in India.
• Mari is the mother tongue of the Mari in the Mari El ASSR. in Rusia.
• Mehri is the mother tongue of the Mahra people, who live mainly in Oman and Yemen, but also in Saudi Aabia and Kuwait.
• Mongour, the mother tongue of the Tu in China.
• Nanai is the mother tongue of the Nanai in Siberia/Russia and China.
• Naxi is the mother tongue of the Nai in China.
• Nepali is one of the languages in Nepal and India.
• Nuosu is the mother tongue of part of the peoples of the Nosu Cluster in China.
• Oriya
• Oromo is a major language in Ethiopia.
• Pashto is a major language in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
• Portuguese is the national language in Portugal, Brazil, Mozambique, Guinea Bissau.
• Russian
• Sani is the mother tongue of the Sani in China.
• Sanskrit
• Siwah is the mother togue of the Siwa people in Egypt.
• Soninke is the mother tongue of the Soninke in Cote d'Ivoire, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal.
• Sorani a Kurdish language
• Spanish
• Susu is one of the national languages of Guinea; and is the mother tongue of the Susu in Guinea-Bissau.
• Swahili
• Tama is the mother tongue of the Tama, who live in Sudan, the Tama in Chad are using Arabic, Chadian Spoken and the Tama language as secondary language.
• Tamil
• Taiwanese
• Tamazight is the mother tongue of the Berber tribes, who live in Morocco and Algeria.
• Telugu is one of the languages in India.
• Tsikimba is the mother tongue of the Tsikimba in Nigeria.
• Tsishingini is the mother tongue of the Ashingini in Nigeria.
• Twi is the main language of the Akan people in Ghana. There are 32 different variations of Twi.
• Urdu is the mother tongue of a number of peoples: Bihari Muslim in Bangladesh;
• Uyghur is the mother tongue of the Uyghur, who live in China, Afghanistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan.
• Vietnamese
• Zazaki, Language of the Zaza-Dimli. A Kurdish language.

[edit] External Links:

• [Ethnologue: Languages of the World]
• [Wikipedia]