Dimapur Watsü Telungjem and Ao Students’ Union Dimapur mark International Mother Language Day.
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DIMAPUR — The Dimapur Watsü Telungjem (DWT) or Dimapur Ao Women’s Union, in collaboration with Ao Students’ Union Dimapur celebrated International Mother Language Day on the theme “Youth voices in multilingual education," at Sümedem Fellowship, DABA, Lengrijan, on Saturday.
Speaking as the guest of honour, Commissioner of Police, Dimapur, Aotula Imchen stressed that in today’s global village, indigenous languages hold immense importance.
She said that learning from other cultures and traditions has always been part of human behaviour and there is nothing wrong with it. However, she emphasised that having clarity about one’s own identity, culture and traditions is most important, and urged the gathering to safeguard their mother tongue.
She stressed that language is central to identity, and if a community loses its language, it risks losing its culture and traditions as well.
Imchen encouraged everyone to be able to read, write and speak their mother tongue so that it does not become extinct. Highlighting the fast-paced technological era and rapid advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI), she said communities must ensure their language is not left behind.
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She noted that while people use smartphones and give voice commands to Siri and Alexa, they are unable to do so in their own mother tongue because it has not been integrated into such systems.
She encouraged young minds to step forward and work towards integrating their language into machine learning and AI technologies, so that one day they can interact with digital platforms like Alexa or Google Maps in their own language.
Explaining why International Mother Language Day is observed, she referred to the language movement in present-day Bangladesh. When the government of then East Pakistan attempted to impose Urdu as the sole official language, disregarding Bengali, the people resisted and many sacrificed their lives. In recognition of their struggle, the UNESCO declared February 21 as International Mother Language Day.
Citing UNESCO reports, she said that out of the world’s approximately 7,000 languages, nearly 40 percent are endangered, and on average, one language disappears every two weeks.
She mentioned that in 2010, the death of the last speaker of the Bo language in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands led to its extinction. Similarly, in 2016, the passing of the last speaker of the Aka-Cari language marked its extinction, and the Majhi language in India also became extinct after the death of its last fluent speaker. She added that similar trends are being observed globally, including in Indonesia where several languages have gone extinct in recent years.
She further explained that UNESCO classifies language endangerment into different stages: vulnerable (spoken by children at home but not outside), definitely endangered (spoken by parents but not by children), severely endangered (spoken only by grandparents), critically endangered (spoken partially and infrequently by the oldest generation), and extinct (no living speakers).
According to the UNESCO World Atlas of Languages, she noted that the Ao language is currently categorised as vulnerable, meaning it is not entirely safe. She therefore urged indigenous and tribal communities to take the matter seriously and work collectively to preserve their mother tongue.
She encouraged the gathering to embrace technological innovation, integrate their language into modern digital platforms, and called upon youth, parents and community leaders to unite in preserving and promoting their mother tongue before it is lost forever.
On the occasion, a short speech was also delivered by president of Ao Senso Telongjem Dimapur. The celebration also featured an Ao song competition along with an Ao language spelling bee contest.