16. On the Human Value of Local Language

Abstract

This chapter presents two brief illustrations of the idea that linguistic diversity is important to human intellectual life. The first relates to the class of human activities normally thought of as scientific, the second to the class of activities typically considered humanistic. The chapter refers to the languages with which author concerned as languages. The loss of local languages, and of the cultural systems which they express, has meant irretrievable loss of diverse and interesting intellectual wealth, the priceless products of human mental industry. It describes a cultural product of a people's intellectual work and presents a somewhat self-serving perspective on the human costs of the observed decline in linguistic and cultural diversity. Bilingual Ulwa-Miskitu speakers are impressive in their command of Ulwa, their being no real difference in fluency. But the health of the language depends not on what the speakers know but rather on who speaks. Keywords:cultural diversity; human intellectual life; linguistic diversity; local language; Ulwa