List of revived languages
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Revived languages are those which, having experienced near or complete extinction as either a spoken or written language, were intentionally revived and have eventually regained some of their former status.
The most frequent reason for extinction is the marginalisation of local languages within a wider dominant nation state, which might at times amount to outright political oppression. This process normally works alongside economic and cultural pressures for greater centralisation and assimilation. Once a language has become marginalised in this way, it is often perceived as being "useless" by its remaining speakers who associate it with low social status and poverty, and consequently fail to pass it on to the next generation.
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[edit] Basque
Main article: Basque language
The region in which Basque is spoken is smaller than what is known as the Basque Country, or Euskal Herria in Basque. Basque toponyms show that Basque was spoken further along the Pyrenees than today. Basque experienced a rapid decline in Navarre during the 1800s. Today Basque holds co-official language status in the Basque regions of Spain: the full autonomous community of the Basque Country and some parts of Navarre. Basque has no official standing in the Northern Basque Country of France and French citizens are barred from officially using Basque in a French court of law.
[edit] Belarusian
Main article: Belarusian language
The whole nation of Belarusians was "invisible" 150 years ago, with the area's people being known as Litvins, from the name of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, to whom the Belarusian land belonged. The nation was under heavy Polonization, followed by Russification. The language recovered after the Russian Revolution, followed by another period of neglect.
A second chance of revival appeared after the collapse of the Soviet Union, followed by significant increase of interest in Belarusian culture, language and historical heritage. The government of Alexander Lukashenko has been accused of associating these interests with opposition to his policy of union with Russia. As of 2005, Minsk, the capital of Belarus, does not have a single school with education carried out in the Belarusian language.
[edit] Catalan
Main article: Catalan language
Whilst never endangered, Catalan was previously unwelcome in its host country. After the disappearance of the institutions of the Aragonese empire in 1714, the Spanish Bourbonic dynasty began a policy of linguicide against Catalan. During the 19th century some cultural associations with strong support of the population began to make efforts to revive the language. During Francisco Franco's administration, the policies of linguicide were revived, but following his death and a return to democracy in Spain, the situation has changed considerably and Catalan is now one of the most successful cases of a revived language.
[edit] Cornish
Main article: Cornish language
Cornish lost most of its official status following the Protestant Reformation but lingered on in rural parts of West Cornwall, United Kingdom, until the late 18th century. There were sufficient records of the language (mainly in its medieval form) to allow it to be revived in the 20th century. The revival continues to gain strength, although accompanied by often bitter disputes over spelling and exactly what type of Cornish should be used.
[edit] Czech
Main article: Czech language
After the incorporation of the Czech lands into the Habsburg Empire in the 17th century, the language was suppressed under the policy of Germanization. It recovered in the 19th century after the creation of the Dual Monarchy, which brought a measure of devolution to parts of the Empire. Czech became one of the official languages of the new country of Czechoslovakia upon independence in 1918.
[edit] Frisian
Main article: Frisian language
Until the 15th century, Frisian was a widely spoken and written language, but from 1500 onwards it became an almost exclusively oral language, mainly used in rural areas. This was in part due to the occupation beginning in 1498 of its stronghold, the Dutch province of Friesland (Fryslân), by Duke Albert of Saxony, who replaced the language of government from Frisian to Dutch. This practice went on under the Habsburg rulers of the Netherlands and continued after the Netherlands attained independence.
Around 1820, the language staged a spontaneous comeback and an entire generation of Frisian authors and poets appeared.
[edit] Galician
Main article: Galician language
Like Catalans and Basques, for centuries the Galicians saw their language retreat to family use among the lower classes as Spanish was imposed as the Official language of the kingdom. As most Galicians were peasants and fishermen, the language continued in use only in everyday life. The situation deteriorated in the 19th and 20th century with the emergence of a centralised government and education and a single Spanish marketplace the aspiring lower and middle classes started raising their offspring only in Spanish. With the arrival of democracy in 1979 and Galician autonomy, coupled with a separate educational system, this trend was slowed considerably as businesses, non-Governmental affairs, the press and most social institutions continue to conduct their business overwhelmingly in Spanish. The survival of the language continues to be seriously compromised by the fact that Galician native speakers and non-speakers alike still regard the Galician language as a sign of social disadvantage vis-à-vis mainstream Spaniards.
[edit] Hawaiian
Main article: Hawaiian language
On six of the seven inhabited islands of Hawaii, Hawaiian was displaced by English and is no longer used as the daily language of communication. The one exception is Niʻihau, where Hawaiian has never been displaced, has never been endangered, and is still used almost exclusively. Native speakers of Niʻihau Hawaiian are able to use a manner of speaking among themselves which is significantly different from the Hawaiian of the other islands, so different that it is unintelligible to non-Niʻihau speakers of Hawaiian.
Efforts to revive the language have increased in recent decades. Hawaiian language "immersion" schools are now open to children whose families want to retain (or introduce) Hawaiian language into the next generation. The local NPR station features a short segment titled "Hawaiian word of the day." Additionally, the Sunday editions of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin feature a brief article called Kauakukalahale, written entirely in Hawaiian by a student.
[edit] Hebrew
Main article: Hebrew language
Hebrew was reborn after two millennia - longer than any other revived language - and most successfully. The language was mostly extinct as anything but an antiquated scriptural language until the 19th century when it was revived by Eliezer Ben-Yehuda; though respected and preserved as the holy language of Judaism, it was considered impractically archaic or too sacred for day-to-day communication, yet is now spoken by over 7,000,000 people. Most of these live in Israel, where Hebrew is the official and most commonly spoken language, but many in Jewish communities outside Israel have undertaken its study. It is also spoken as a form of trade language by non-Jews in other countries where Israelis are often present as tourists or expatriates, such as Turkey or India.
[edit] Irish
Main article: Irish language
The Gaelic Revival has tried to revive the Irish language since the late 19th century, however, there are today fewer Irish speakers than there were before the Republic of Ireland gained independence in 1922. Efforts were increased near the end of the 20th century and politicians have predicted a significant rise in speakers in the next decade. This has been helped by a new national radio station Raidió na Gaeltachta and TV station TG4. There has also been an increase in the number of children attending Irish speaking schools, Gaelscoileanna.
[edit] Manx
Main article: Manx language
Manx ceased to function as a community language during the first quarter of the 20th century, but was revived by enthusiasts at a time when there were still a number of native speakers alive (though, at one point, no native speakers of the language were alive and it may officially be classified as "dead" in 1975). The revival appears to have gained strength in recent years. There is a regular programme in Manx on Manx Radio. As of 2006 there were forty-six pupils undergoing their education through the medium of Manx at the Bunscoill Ghaelgagh.
[edit] Mirandese
Main article: Mirandese language
While never really endangered, Mirandese has always had a very small number of speakers in northeastern Portugal, with native speakers numbering about 500 in isolated villages. It may become endangered by modern political and cultural pressures, especially given that it has a history of being perceived as "useless" and "rural". However, the language has gained official status and has started to be learned along with Portuguese in schools. It has recently lost much of its negative public image in light of the fact that it is a language that emerged from Vulgar Latin in the same way as Portuguese. Today, second language speakers may number as many as 15,000.
[edit] Provençal (Occitan)
Main article: Provençal language
Provençal is one of several dialects of the Occitan language, which is spoken by a minority of people in southern France and other areas of France.
"Provençal" is also the customary name given to the older version of the langue d'oc used by the troubadours of medieval literature, corresponding to Old French or langue d'oil of the northern areas of France.
Some secluded areas of Sicily still bear significant traces of Provençal in terms of vocabulary and pronunciation.
