Few years ago, I came across an article entitled, “How a Bihari lost his mother tongue to Hindi.” It dawned upon me that like Biharis, Bengalis and other Indian communities, Nagas are also going through a peril of losing the importance of their mother tongue. Most Nagas, as we see are bi or multi-lingual, speaking Nagamese, English, Hindi and their ancestral languages. With the advent of globalisation, every Naga tribe faces the threat of neglecting our individual mother tongue.
When we look at global statistics, UNESCO has recognised over 6,900 languages worldwide. Almost 900 of these languages are spoken in India, with 197 recognised as endangered. Among this, 80 endangered languages are in northeast India. Since the dawn of the 20th century, 5-6 Indian languages have become extinct. One such example of an extinct language is from our neighbouring state of Assam, whereAhom or Tai Ahom, the language spoken by the great kings of Ahom Dynasty has fallen into disuse and is now used for religious chants and literary purpose only. In the list of endangered Indian languages, most Naga languages have been categorisedas vulnerable, where most children speak the language but may be restricted to certain domains. With globalisation and shift in socio-cultural-political dynamics, our precious Naga languages and dialects are going through the initial stage of endangerment and on the verge of becoming extinct.
In olden times, since, it was difficult for people of one tribe or village to understand the native language of the other, we had people learning each other’s language to communicate. However, with Nagas opening up to the outside world, it gave birth to a lingua franca, Nagamese. At times, a non-Naga who speaks Nagamese is easily incorporated into our fold than a Naga who cannot speak Nagamese. This is a reason due to which our fellow Nagas hailing from other states sometimes feel alienated. From improving our social interactions with our fellow Nagas to business dealings within Nagaland, the benefits of speaking Nagamese are manifold.Speakers ofNagamesealso findit easier to master other Indian languages such as Assamese, Bengali, Hindi, Nepali, etc., because Nagamese has borrowed words from them.
Besides Nagamese, another significant language that is imperatively influential in our Naga society today is English. It is the official language of our state and ‘lingua franca of the digital age’. Usually, webegin to learn English by the time we start going to school. Some begin to learn English as early as the time they start learning to speak, which is sometimes propelled by the motive to let the child speak fluent English so as to have an academic ace. With the influence of television, internet and mobile phones, children are exposed to Englishat a very young age. Today, I find young school children having a diction, accent and articulation better than I do as an adult.
And yes, like Nagamesebridges the communication gap for most Nagas, English also connects our people-those who can and cannot speak Nagamese, too.There is doubtlessly no denying the aspirational, academic, social, commercial and global value that English controls. But is our impeccable English acquisition coming at the cost of being able to proudly speak our mother tongue?
Coming back to the repercussion of Nagamese and English on our local Naga dialects, it is perceivable through many Naga families who speak Nagamese and English at home. In giving such a statement, I do not intend to demean those families who speak Nagamese or English at home nor discourage the usage of these languages in our society. But it is out of sheer concern which has arisen with thereceding use of our native languages that I write this article.
With rise in inter-tribal or mixed marriages (which I do not intend to oppose), we see that the native languages of neither parentsis transmitted to the children in some cases. In such instances, the family tend to communicate in either Nagamese or English. Assimilation of tribes and cultures also has its own perks and benefits in bringing peace and understanding in our Naga society where tribalism continues to blight the society. However, with the loss of our ancestral tongues (be it the mother or father’s), which were passed down to us for millennia, along with their unique and incomparable arts, ideas and values, our future generations may have to face consequences that we may not understand until it is too late to reverse them.The pressure to make our children fit into the English speaking mass, has also created an attitude of negligence towards the transmission of our mother tongues to the younger generation. Such a disposition is also seen in both same and mixed tribal marriages.
With local youths gravitating towards towns and cities, we see that in our urban social circles, most youths communicate in either English or Nagamese with peers, even when they belong to the same tribe. For obvious reasons, many Naga families residing outside the state also develop a tendency to speak English even at home.
Of late, we also see a trending inclination of youths towards foreign languages due to the influence of K-pop, Japanese anime, exposureto foreign languages and culturesfor travel, professional and academic purposes, etc. The day has dawned on many of uswith the necessity to learn other foreign languages as well.
Under such circumstances, sometimes I see hope in our social institutions called church. Because most churches in our state are conducted in the common native dialect, many people from our generation continue to learn our common tribal languages because we attend church. Along with the churches, the tribal organisations continue to have a protagonistic command in preserving our tribal languages and ethos. In saying so, I do not intend to advocate tribalism nor do I oppose churches conducted in English or Nagamese.
I firmly believe in the institution of the family where children learn their language, culture and moral values from their parents, elders and grandparents. Because of nuclear family system, and lack of time spent or communication gap between parents/elders/grandparents and children, we have seen a decline in the transmission of this knowledge and wisdom.
Though the Naga society is afflicted with tribalism,the loss of even a single language will have social, political and cultural consequences. It will lead to a weakened social fabric, disunity and lose of political legitimacy as a community with exclusive political rights. Our languages also bear the wisdom of our ancestors and ancient knowledge regarding our communities, philosophy, environment, medicine, flora, fauna, etc. If any of the Naga village dialect or common tribal language vanishes, these priceless knowledge of our ancestors will vanish into thin air.
I would like to ask the youngsters; what values will you give your next generation, if you do not imbibe those values when your elders are around? Is it enough for you to live without the wisdom of your ancestors? To the elders; what legacy will you leave behind to the upcoming generation if you do not teach them your language, values and wisdom now? Is the English education you paid for, enough for them to live in harmony? Is it enough for them to live without knowing about their roots?
We need to realise that learning our own mother tongue is also a part of our children’s education. Though the family is not necessarily the only place where we learn languages, learning the mother tongue is best done within our family. At the moment, the solution for this crisis is to encourage the speaking of our mother tongue at home and increase the interaction of parent/elder with the younger generation.
Rita Mae Brown, an American writer and activist rightly quoted, “Language is the road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where they are
going.”
Where are we, the Nagas headed to?
