Linguistic Situation, Multilingualism and Lg Endangerment in NE India

Awadesh K. MishraEnglish & Foreign Languages University

Shillong Campus, Shillong [email protected].: 9436110345/9774010345

© Awadesh K. Mishra, 2010. Paper presented at annual conference at Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysore, India, 15 July 2010

NER LanguagesThe North East Region of India comprises 8 States – Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura. These states are home to more than a hundred languages, which include Adi, Aimol, Anal, Apatani, Angami, Ao, Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Bhutia, Bishnupriya , Chakma, Chiru, Chokri, Chang, Chothe, Deori, Dimasa, Gangte, Garo, Gurung, Halam, Hmar, Hrangkhol, Hajong, Kabui, Karbi, Khampti, Khasi, Khiemnungan, Koirao/Thangal, Koireng, Koch, Kokbarak, Kom, Konyak, Kuki, Lakher/ Mara, Lepcha, Liangmei, Limbu/Limboo, Lotha, Mangar/Thapa, Manipuri, Mizo, Mao, Maram, Maring, Miji/Sajolang, Mising, Mishmi, Monpa, Nepali, Newari, Nissi, Nocte, Paite, Phom, Pochury, Purik/Puroik, Rai, Rabha, Ralte, Rengma, Riang, Sadri (a Creole language), Sangtam, Sema, Sherpa, Singpho, Sunuwar/Mukhia, Tai, Tamang, Tangkhul, Tangsa, Tarao, Thado, Tedim/Tiddim, Tiwa, Vaiphei, Wancho, Yimchungre, Zemi/Zeme, Zou, etc. All the languages used in the North East (NE) region except Arabic, Assamese, Bengali, English, Gurung, Hindi, Mangar, Manipuri, Nepali, Newari, Persian, Rai, Sanskrit, Sunuwar and Tai are tribal languages.

2(c) 2010 Awadesh K. Mishra, EFL University, Shillong 793022, India.

STATES/UTs LANGUAGES/DIALECTS

1. Arunachal Pradesh : Adi, Aka, Apatani, Bangni, Bugun/Bogum, Deori, Hill Miri, Hindi, Khamba, Kongbo, Khampti,

Lisu, Meyor, Miji, Muktum, Mishmi, Monpa, Nah, Nishang, Nepali, Nissi, Nocte, Puroik/Sulung, Sherdukpen, Singpho, Tagin, Taram, Tangsa,

Tutsa, Wancho, Zakhring

2. Assam: Assamese, Bengali, Bishnupriya Manipuri, Bodo/Boro, Chakma, Deori, Dimasa, Garo,

Hajong, Hmar, Kabui/Rongmei, Karbi/Mikir, Khasi (including Jaintia,Pnar), Koch, Tiwa, Mising, Mishmi, Nepali, Rabha, Sonowal Kachari, Tai/ Man, Zemi

3. Manipur : Aimol, Anal, Chiru, Chothe, Gangte, Hmar, Inpui,

Kabui, Kharam, Khoibu, Koirao, Koireng, Kom, Kuki, Lamkang, Liangmei, Lushai/Mizo, Mao, Manipuri, Maram, Maring, Moyon, Mongsang, Nepali, Paite, Paomei, Purum, Simte, Sukte, Tangkhul, Tarao, Thadou-Kuki, Vaiphei, Zemi,

Zou

4. Meghalaya : Hajong, Garo, Karbi, Khasi, Koch, Nepali, Pnar / Synteng, Rabha


5. Mizoram : Hmar, Lakher/Mara, Lushai/Mizo,Paite, Lai/Pawi

6. Nagaland : Angami, Ao, Chakru/Chokri, Chang,Khezha, Khiemnungan, Konyak, Kuki, Liangmei, Lotha, Phom, Pochury, Rengma, Sangtam, Sema/Sumi, Yimchungre, Zemi

7. Sikkim : Bhutia, English, Hindi, Gurung, Lepcha, Limbu, Mangar, Mukhia/Sunuwar, Nepali, Newari, Rai, Sherpa, Tamang

8. Tripura: Bengali, Bishnupriya Manipuri, Bongcher, Chakma, Darlong, Halam, Hrangkhol, Kokbarak, Korbong, Manipuri, Mogh, Reang, Jamatia


Scheduled and Non-Scheduled Languages

Scheduled languages:

• Five of the 22 scheduled (listed in the VIII Schedule of the Constitution of India) or national languages, viz., Assamese, Bengali, Bodo/Boro, Manipuri and Nepali are spoken in this region.

Non-scheduled languages:

• Languages listed in the Census of India, 2001: Out of 100 non-scheduled languages mentioned in the Census of India, 2001, sixty one are listed in the Census of India. The rest of the languages are excluded from the list for the reason that each of them is spoken by less than 10,000 persons.

Adi, Anal, Angami, Ao, Bhotia (Bhutia), Bishnupriya, Chakesang , Chang, Chokri/Chakru, Deori , Dimasa, Gangte, Garo, Halam, Hmar, Kabui, Karbi, Khasi, Khezha, Khiemnungan, Koch, Kom, Konyak, Kuki, Lakher, Lalung (Tiwa), Lepcha, Liangmei, Limbu, Lotha, Lushai/Mizo, Maram , Maring, Miri/Mising, Mishmi, Mogh, Monpa, Nissi, Nocte, Paite, Pawi (Lai), Phom, Pochury, Rabha, Rai, Rengma, Sangtam, Sema, Sherpa, Simte, Tamang, Tangkhul, Tangsa, Thado, Tripuri (Kokbarak), Vaiphei, Wancho, Yimchungre, Zeliang , Zemi, Zou.


Languages not listed in the Census of India, 2001:

Besides the above mentioned scheduled and non-scheduled languages, there are about forty languages spoken in the states of NE which do not find a place in the two lists because each of these are spoken by less than ten thousand persons. Some of them are:

Khampti, Miji/Sajolang, Puroik, Sherdukpen, Singpho, Chakma, Darlong, Hrangkhol, Baite/Biate, Sadri, Tai, Aimol, Chiru, Chothe, Koireng, Mao , Tedim/Tiddim, Tarao, Thangal (Koirao), Gurung (Tamu), Mangar (Thapa), Mukhia (Sunuwar), Newari, etc.


Numerically significant languagesStates Languages Total Number

of speakersPercentage

Arunachal Pradesh NissiAdiBengaliNepaliHindiMonpaAssameseWanchoTangsa

208,337193,37997,14994,91981,18655,42851,55148,54434,231

18.9717.618.858.647.395.054.704.423.12

Assam AssameseBengaliHindiBodoNepaliMising

13,010,4787,343,3381,569,6621,296,162564,790517,170

48.8127.555.894.862.121.94

Manipur ManipuriThadoTangkhulKabuiPaiteNepaliHmar

1,266,096178,696139,97987,95048,37945,99843,137

58.438.256.464.082.232.121.99 7

(c) 2010 Awadesh K. Mishra, EFL University, Shillong 793022, India.

States Languages Total Number of speakers

Percentage

Meghalaya KhasiGaroBengaliNepaliHindi

1,091,087728,424185,69252,15550,055

47.0631.418.012.252.16

Mizoram MizoBengaliLakherPawiTripuriPaite

650,60580,38934,73124,90017,58014,367

73.229.053.912.801.981.62

Nagaland AoKonyakLotha Angami Phom Sema Yimchungre Sangtam Chakru / ChokriChang Zeliang

257,500248,002168,356131,737122,45492,88492,09284,15083,50662,34761,492

12.9412.468.466.626.154.674.634.234.203.133.09


States Languages Total Number of speakers

Percentage

Sikkim NepaliBhotiaHindiLepchaLimbuSherpaTamangRai

338,60641,82536,07235,72834,29213,92210,0898,856

62.617.736.676.616.342.571.871.64

Tripura BengaliTripuri (Kokbarak)HindiMogh

2,147,994814,375 53,69128,850

67.1425.48 1.580.90

9(c) 2010 Awadesh K. Mishra, EFL University, Shillong 793022,

India.

Bi-/Multi-lingualism is a way of life in all the NE states. The number of bi-/trilinguals in the NE states is as follows. The national average with respect to bilinguals is 19.44, and that with respect to trilinguals is 7.26.

(i) Scheduled languages (Source: Census of India, 1991) :

Languages Total number Bilinguals Trilinguals % of Bilinguals % of

of speakers Trilinguals

Assamese 130,79,696 19,78,990 16,71,331 15.13 12.77

Bodo/Boro 1,221,881 462,686 161,791 37.87 13.24

Manipuri 1,270,216 1,41,773 2,78,443 11.16 21.92

(ii) Non-scheduled languages:

Adi 1,58,409 57,294 33,257 36.17 20.99

Anal 12,156 7,471 2,601 61.46 21.40

Angami 97,631 42,995 24,442 44.04 25.04

Ao 1,72,449 51,763 21,625 30.02 12.54

Bhotia 55,483 33,814 12,537 60.94 22.60

Bishnupriya 59,233 39,765 14,169 67.13 23.9210(c) 2010 Awadesh K. Mishra, EFL University, Shillong 793022, India.

Chakesang 30,985 12,517 6,638 40.40 21.42

Chang 32,478 6,293 2,664 19.38 8.20

Chokri 48,207 13,079 6,842 27.13 14.19

Deori 17,901 12,322 4,093 68.83 22.86

Dimasa 88,543 41,415 19,904 46.77 22.48

Gangte 13,695 4,848 1,284 35.40 9.38

Garo 6,75,642 1,23,958 42,896 18.35 6.35

Halam 29,322 12,282 2,867 41.89 9.78

Hmar 65,204 19,913 8,380 30.54 12.85

Kabui 68,925 29,734 8,163 43.14 11.84

Karbi 3,66,229 1,70,939 51,426 46.68 14.04

Khasi 9,12,283 1,14,920 30,126 12.60 3.30

Khezha 13,004 5,127 3,470 39.43 26.68

Khiemnungan 23,544 2,740 1,429 11.64 6.07

Koch 26,179 10,363 5,362 39.59 20.48

Kokbarak 6,94,940 3,10,818 33,555 44.73 4.83Kom 13,548 6,497 1,979 47.96 14.61Konyak 1,37,722 28,532 12,628 20.72 9.17Kuki 58,263 27,646 11,753 47.45 20.17


Lakher 22,947 6,660 807 29.02 3.52

Lalung 33,746 20,762 6,074 61.52 18.00

Lepcha 39,342 23,044 7,746 58.57 19.69

Liangmei 27,478 10,123 3,898 36.84 14.19

Limbu 28,174 16,907 3,810 60.01 13.52

Lotha 85,802 31,347 18,569 36.53 21.64

Mao 77,810 24,475 14,153 31.45 18.19

Maram 10,144 3,765 2,187 37.12 21.56

Maring 15,268 9,400 1,242 61.57 8.13

Mising 3,90,583 2,02,365 48,171 51.81 12.33

Mishmi 29,000 12,523 7,516 43.18 25.92

Mizo 5,38,842 53,253 11,823 9.88 2.19

Mogh 28,135 9,770 467 34.73 1.66

Monpa 43,226 11,895 3,469 27.52 8.03

Nissi 1,73,791 45,571 26,160 26.22 15.05

Nocte 30,441 12,007 6,669 39.44 21.91

Paite 49,237 11,828 2,971 24.02 6.03

Phom 65,350 19,483 10,291 29.81 15.75


Pochury 11,231 4,923 2,683 43.83 23.89

Rabha 1,39,365 79,906 17,297 57.34 12.41

Rengma 37,521 9,622 6,316 25.64 16.83

Sangtam 47,461 13,141 6,708 27.69 14.13

Sema 1,66,157 47,827 27,447 28.78 16.52

Sherpa 16,105 10,979 3,170 68.17 19.68

Tangkhul 1,01,841 41,199 10,742 40.45 10.55

Tangsa 28,121 14,528 8,826 51.66 31.39

Thado 1,07,992 40,917 9,772 37.89 9.05

Vaiphei 26,185 8,887 2,278 33.94 8.70

Wancho 39,600 9,203 4,805 23.24 12.13

Yimchungre 47,227 9,813 4,057 20.78 8.59

Zeliang 35,079 11,034 4,346 31.45 12.39

Zemi 22,634 7,719 2,608 34.10 11.52

Zou 15,966 4,087 1,211 25.60 7.58


Scripts• Except for a few, almost all of the NE languages, in the absence of indigenous writing systems, use the

Roman script with modifications. • Manipur: Meitei Mayek is used for the Manipuri language. The tribal languages of Manipur use the

Roman script. • Assam: Assamese—Assamese, Bengali—Bengali, Bodo—Devanagari, Sadri--Assamese and

Devanagari, Deori, Rabha and Tiwa-- Assamese script for official purposes, but the primers in these languages are written in the Roman script, Bishnupriya Manipuri—Bengali, Tai--Ahom/ Tai, Dimasa-- has been using Assamese, Bengali and Devanagari scripts, but now under pressure from the Dimasa literary society and the demand of the younger generation, use of Roman is increasing day-by-day.

• Tripura: the policy of the government is to use the Bengali script for all the languages. But Chakma, Halam-Kuki and Kokbarak languages use both the Bengali and the Roman scripts with some modifications.

• Meghalaya: Garo and Khasi—Roman . • Arunachal Pradesh: Khampti and Monpa--Lik Tai and Bhoti (Tibetan) respectively. The

remaining languages either use the Roman script for writing or are not written at all. • Sikkim: Nepali, Bhutia, Lepcha, and Limbu--Devanagari, Lhoyig, Rong or Lepcha and Srijonga

respectively, Mangar, Newari, Rai, Sherpa and Sunuwar/Mukhia--Akha, Prachalit, Kirat or Kirawa Chaap, Sambota and Koinch Breshe respectively, Gurung and Tamang--Samboti and Tamyig respectively.

• Mizoram : All languages use Roman.• Nagaland : All languages use Roman.


Number of School Languages Taught as First/Second/Third Languages

• In the NE States, a total of sixty eight languages are used either as subjects of instruction

or as mediums of instruction. This includes Arabic, English, Hindi, Persian, and

Sanskrit. English is used as a subject and first language (medium of instruction) in

Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Sikkim, and as a second language in other 5 states.

• Hindi is used as a subject of instruction in all the NE states except Tripura. In Assam, it

is taught as compulsory second language in classes 5-7, and as an optional subject from

class 8 onwards; in Arunachal Pradesh, as a compulsory second language in classes 1-

10; in Manipur, as a second language from class 1 to 12; in Nagaland, as a compulsory

subject in classes 2-8, and as an optional subject in classes 9-12. Hindi is taught as a

subject of instruction in Sikkim from class 3 to 8; and in Meghalaya and Mizoram from

class 5 to 8.

• Arabic and Persian languages are used in the Madarasa schools of Assam and Tripura;

and Sanskrit in Arunachal Pradesh (as L3), Assam, Sikkim (in 12 schools) and Tripura.

English is used as L2 in all the States except Arunachal Pradesh, where it is used as L1.

Hindi is used as L2 in Arunachal Pradesh, and in all other States as L3.15


Medium of Instruction (Number of Languages):

• Elementary : 21 (including English and Hindi)

• Secondary : 09 (excluding Arabic, English, Hindi, Persian

and Sanskrit) Languages used as Subjects of Instruction at Elementary

Level: States Languages

Arunachal Pradesh English, Hindi, Adi, Apatani, Galong, Khampti,

Monpa, Nissi, Mishmi, Singpho, Sanskrit

Assam Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Deori, Dimasa, English, Garo, Hindi, Hmar, Karbi, Manipuri, Mising, Nepali, Tai, Tiwa, Rabha, Bishnupriya Manipuri

Manipur Assamese, Bengali,English,Hindi,Hmar,Kom, Mao, Manipuri/Meitei, Mizo, Nepali, Paite,

Kabui, Tangkhul, Thado, Vaiphei, Zou16(c) 2010 Awadesh K. Mishra, EFL University, Shillong 793022, India.

Meghalaya Assamese, Bengali, English, Garo, Hindi, Khasi, Nepali

Mizoram Chakma, English, Hindi, Lai, Lakher (Mara), Mizo

Nagaland Angami, Ao, Chang, Chokri, English, Khezha, Khiemnungan, Kuki, Konyak, Liangmei, Lotha, Phom, Pochury, Rengma, Sangtam, Sema, Yimchungre, Zemi

Sikkim Bhutia, English, Gurung, Hindi, Lepcha, Limbu, Mangar, Nepali, Newari, Rai, Sherpa, Sunuwar/Mukhia, Tamang

Tripura Bengali, Bishnupriya Manipuri,Chakma,

English, Halam Kuki, Kokbarak, Manipuri


Languages Used as Mediums of Instruction

STATES NON-TRIBAL LANGUAGES

TRIBAL LANGUAGES (TRIBAL LANGUAGES)USED IN CLASSES

Arunachal Pradesh 1. English None ----

Assam 1. Assamese 2. Bengali 3. Hindi 4. Manipuri 5. Nepali

1. Bodo 2. Garo 3. Hmar

I-XIII-VIII-VII

Manipur 1. Manipuri 2. English

1. Hmar2. Kom3. Lushai/Mizo4. Mao5. Paite6. Kabui7. Tangkhul8. Thadou-Kuki9. Vaiphei10. Zou

I-VI-VI-VI-VI-VI-VI-VI-VI-VI-V

Mizoram 1. Nepali 1. Chakma 2. Mizo

I-VIII-VII

Meghalaya None 1. Khasi 2. Garo

I-XIII-VII

Nagaland 1.English None ----

Sikkim 1. Nepali None ----Tripura 1. Bengali 1. Kokbarak I-V 18


Languages Used as Subjects of Instruction


TRIBAL LANGUAGES

(TRIBAL LANGUAGES)USED IN CLASSES

Arunachal Pradesh

1. English 1. Adi2. Apatani3. Monpa4. Gallong5. Mishmi6. Nissi7. Khampti8. Singpho

VI-VIIIVI-VIIIVI-VIIIVI-VIIIVI-VIIIVI-VIIIVI-VIIIVI-VIII

Assam 1. Arabic 2. Assamese 3. Bengali 4. Bishnupriya 5. Manipuri 6. English 7. Hindi 8. Sanskrit 9. Nepali 10. Persian 11. Tai (used in classes III-IV)

1. Bodo 2. Mising 3. Karbi 4. Garo 5. Rabha 6. Dimasa 7. Hmar 8. Tiwa 9. Deori

I-XII III-IV III-IV III-IV III-IV III-IV III-IV III-IV III-IV

Manipur 1. Manipuri 2. English 3. Hindi 4. Nepali

1. Tangkhul2. Paite3. Hmar4. Lushai/Mizo5. Thadou-Kuki6. Mao7. Kabui8. Zou9. Vaiphei10. Kom

I-XII I-XII I-XII I-X I-XII I-X I-V I-X I-X I-X




TRIBAL LANGUAGES


Mizoram 1. Nepali2. English3. Hindi

1. Chakma2. Lai3. Mara4. Mizo

I-VIII-IVI-VIII-XII

Meghalaya 1. Assamese2. Bengali3. English4. Hindi5. Nepali

1. Garo2. Khasi3. Mizo

I-XIII-XIII-XII

Nagaland 1.English2. Hindi

1.Angami/Tenyidie2.Ao3.Sema4.Lotha5.Konyak6.Chokri7.Khezha8.Zemi9.Liangmai10.Kuki11.Chang12.Yimchungre13.Khiemnungan14.Phom15.Pochury16.Rengma17. Sangtam

I-XIII-XIII-XIII-XIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIIII-VIII




TRIBAL LANGUAGES


Sikkim 1. Nepali2. Newari3. Gurung4. Mangar5. Rai6. Sunuwar7. English8. Hindi9.Sanskrit (in 12 schools in Gangtok)

1.Bhutia2.Lepcha3.Limbu4.Sherpa5.Tamang

I-XIII-XIII-XIII-VI-V

Tripura 1.Bishnupriya Manipuri2.Manipuri3. English4. Bengali

1.Kokbarak2.Halam Kuki3.Chakma

I-VIIII-III-III


• In Arunachal Pradesh, English is used as L1; Hindi as L2; and Assamese and Sanskrit languages as L3. English and Hindi are taught up to postgraduate level. Adi, Apatani, Khampti, Nissi, Singpho and Mishmi languages are used in some selected schools as subjects of instruction at primary level (in classes VI-VIII). The Monpa language is taught as a subject of instruction in classes VI-VIII in schools of Tawang area.

• In Nagaland, English is used from Class I onwards, and 16 state languages, viz., Angami/Tenyidie, Ao, Chang, Chokri, Khiemnungan, Kuki, Konyak, Liangmei, Lotha, Phom, Pochury, Rengma, Sangtam, Sema, Yimchungre, Zemi are used as subjects of instruction up to class VI. Angami/Tenyidie and English are taught up to postgraduate level.

• In Assam, Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, English, Garo, Hindi, Hmar, Manipuri and Nepali languages are used as mediums of instruction at Elementary level. English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Bodo and Manipuri languages are used as mediums of instruction as well as L2 at Secondary level. Bishnupriya Manipuri, Deori, Dimasa, Karbi, Mising, Rabha, Tai and Tiwa languages are used as subjects of instruction at primary level in schools (in classes III and IV). Assamese, Bengali, English and Hindi languages are taught up to postgraduate level.


• In Mizoram, Lai, Lakher (Mara) and Chakma languages are used as subjects of instruction up to class VI. Mizo is used both as a medium of instruction and as a subject of instruction up to class VII, and it is taught up to postgraduate level. Hindi is used as L2 in classes V -VIII. English is also taught up to postgraduate level.

• In Sikkim, English is used as L1 from Class I. Hindi is used as L3 in schools. English, Hindi and Nepali languages are taught up to postgraduate level. Bhutia, Gurung (Tamu), Lepcha, Limbu/Limboo, Mukhia (Sunuwar), Mangar (Thapa), Newari, Nepali, Rai, Sherpa and Tamang languages are taught as L2 at various levels. The Bhutia, Lepcha, Limbu/Limboo and Nepali languages are taught from class I onwards (up to under-graduate level), Mangar (Thapa) from class I to III, and Sherpa from class I to VI. The remaining languages are taught as subjects of instruction in classes I-V.

• In Meghalaya, Assamese, Bengali, Khasi, Garo and Nepali languages are used as L1 at primary level in some of the schools (meant for the respective linguistic communities); English as L2 from Class I onwards; and Hindi as L3 in classes IV-VI in some schools, and in classes V-VIII in some other schools. English, Hindi, Khasi and Garo languages are taught up to postgraduate level. 23(c) 2010 Awadesh K. Mishra, EFL University, Shillong 793022, India.

• In Manipur, Assamese, Bengali, English and Hindi are taught as L2 in schools. Mizo, Nepali, and Zou languages are used as subjects of instruction up to class X. Hmar, Paite, Tangkhul and Thado languages are taught up to class XII as subjects of instruction. Kabui and Mao languages are used as subjects of instruction up to classes VIII and X respectively. Manipuri is used as a medium of instruction up to class X. English, Hindi and Manipuri languages are taught up to postgraduate level.

• In Tripura, Bishnupriya Manipuri and Chakma languages are used as mediums of instruction up to class V. Kokbarak is used up to class V as a medium of instruction, and as a subject of instruction in classes VI-X. Bengali is the medium of instruction in schools from class VI onwards, and is taught up to postgraduate level. English is used as L3 from class I onwards, and is taught up to postgraduate level.


LANGUAGE SHIFT

• There are four probable directions of language shift:

to other tribal language

Own mother tongue to own regional language

to other regional language

to national/international language

• The NE tribes generally exhibit three (with a couple of exceptions) patterns of shift—(i) mother tongue to other tribal language, (ii) mother tongue to own regional language, and (iii) mother tongue to national language.


S.No. Tribe Population Mother Tongue

1 Khamti 8462 254 (Assamese)205 (Hindi)7925 (Others)

2 Nocte 23418 22086 (Nocte)1095 (Wancho)

3 Singpho 3575 57 (Assamese)3486 (Others)

4 Tangsa 9682 261 (Adi)8786 (Tangsa)

5 Wancho 45182 37343 (Wancho)7217 (Nocte)

Arunachal Pradesh

Assam


1 Dimasa, Kachari 65009 60668 (Dimasa)205 (Hindi)7925 (Others)

2 Hajong 1638 1120 (Karbi)314 (Bengali)

3 Man (Tai) 2582 958 (Bodo)170 (Karbi)



4 Mikir/Karbi 285711 2800982985 (Assamese)

5 Barmans in Cachar

13378 11081 (Dimasa)2297 (Bengali)

6 Bodo, Bodo Kachari

1267015 1155070 (Bodo)103629(Assamese)

7 Deori 35849 16982 (Deori)13374 (Assamese)

8 Hojai 4582 1756 (Assamese)761 (Bodo)372 (Dimasa)651 (Tripura)

9 Kachari, Sonowal 251725 205328(Assamese)36379 (Bodo)

10 Lalung 143746 14550 (Lalung)123737 (Assamese)

11 Rabha 236931 112424 (Rabha)


ManipurS.No. Tribe Population Mother Tongue

1 Anal 10642 10025 (Anal) 60 (Gangte)52 (Hindi)156 (Hmar)30 (Paite)182 (Others)

2 Gangte 12793 211 (Anal)11833 (Gangte)58 (Hindi)88 (Hmar)83 (Kabui)51 (Kuki)122 (Tangkhul)82 (Thado)

3 Hmar 62487 208 (Dimasa)286 (Gangte)880 (Hindi)58760 (Kabui)283 (Liangmei)807 (Zeliang)465 (Others)

4 Kabui 62487 208 (Dimasa)286 (Gangte)880 (Hindi)58760 (Kabui)283 (Liangmei)807 (Zeliang)465 (Others) 28


Manipur


5 Kacha Naga 33640 40 (Anal)75 (Assamese)407 (Gangte)89 (Hindi)2212 (Kabui)193 (Kuki)24409 (Liangmei)130 (Manipuri)413 (Zeliang)

6 Kom 13003 111 (Dimasa)138 (Hindi)11701 (Kom)24 (Manipuri)368 (Thado)380 (Others)

7 Mao 76972 281 (Hindi)2350 (Kabui)663 (Khezha)71135 (Mao)718 (Maram)116 (Thado)1343 (Others)

8 Maram 9592 54 (Anal)36 (Adi)343 (Gangte)8352 (Maram)521 (Maring)463 (Others) 29



9 Tangkhul 107244 94 (Anal)1242 (Chakesang)216 (Gangte)277 (Hindi)149 (Kuki)70 (Manipuri)38 (Maring)56 (Nepali)87 (Paite)103712 (Tangkhul)379 (Thado)177 (Vaiphei)142 (Others)

10 Vaiphei 26877 139 (Anal)1051 (Gangte)791 (Kabui)74 (Hindi)103 (Kom)228 (Kuki)107 (Paite)159 (Tangkhul)806 (Thado)22805 (Vaiphei)262 (Others)


MeghalayaS.No. Tribe Population Mother Tongue

1 Garo 546734 539346(Garo)3997 (Khasi)720 (Hindi)331 (Koch)161 (Nepali)139 (Rabha)337 (Others)

2 Hajong 29997 37 (Bodo/Boro)394(Garo)1980 (Assamese)26097(Bengali)964 (Hindi)300 (Koch)125 (Karbi/Mikir)

3 Khasi (including Jaintia, Synteng,Pnar,War, Bhoi, Lyngngam)

870165 853478 (Khasi)9892 (Garo)1965 (Karbi/Mikir)1158 (Hindi)496 (Nepali)397 (Lalung)249 (Assamese)249 (Bengali)103 (Lushai/Mizo)70 (Vaiphei)933 (Others)

4 Raba/Rava 24859 19608 (Rabha)4578 (Assamese)161 (Bodo/Boro)348 (Garo)19 (Others) 31(c) 2010 Awadesh K. Mishra, EFL University, Shillong 793022, India.

Mizoram


1 Chakma 54217 48137(Bengali)1313 (Lushai/ Mizo)2121 (Lakher)

2 Hmar 12535 6932 (Hmar)4015 (Lushai/ Mizo)1357 (Paite)

3 Lakher 24884 23381 (Lakher)1128 (Lushai/ Mizo)

4 Pawi 27649 14010 (Pawi)11600 (Lushai/ Mizo)

NagalandS.No. Tribe Population Mother Tongue

1 Angami 97408 74032 (Angami)575 (Ao)640 (Chakru/Chokri)131 (Khezha)471 (Lotha)149 (Pochury)252 (Sema)857 (Zeliang)17987 (Others)

2 Ao 165893 162209 (Ao)1079 (Angami)317 (Chang)174 (Hindi)217 (Nepali)356 (Sema) 32



3 Chakesang 89166 28398 (Chakesang)43091 (Chokru/ Chokri)10953 (Kheza) 3332 (Mao)

4 Phom 65339 54013 (Phom)9066 (Sema)

5 Rengma 32368 28391 (Rengma)1624 (Bengali)

6 Sangtam 28199 45720 (Sangtam)2664 (Chang)1129 (Sema)1058 (Yimchungre)

7 Sema 150780 139457 (Sema)4985 (Chang)

SikkimS.No. Tribe Population Mother Tongue

1 Bhutia(including Chumlipa, Dopthapa)

59449 32283 (Bhotia) 13100 (Sherpa) 2420 (Tibetan) 6777 (Nepali)1318 (Lepcha)

2 Lepcha 30266 27224 (Lepcha) 1954 (Nepali)547 (Bhotia)163 (Sherpa)


Tripura


1 Chakma 96096 95195 (Bengali) 125 (Magh) 591 (Tripuri)

2 Halam 36499 22013 (Halam)361 (Bengali)13759 (Tripuri)

3 Mag (Mogh) 31612 27402 (Mogh)2688 (Bengali)605 (Tripuri)876 (Others)

4 Orang 6751 4210 (Kurukh/Orang)791 (Oriya)421 (Bengali)933 (Hindi)81 (Tripuri)

5 Tripuri, Tripura,Tippera

461531 453830 (Tripuri) 5389 (Bengali)


ENDANGERED LANGUAGES IN NER

Out of 196 Indian languages (and dialects) declared as endangered languages, 89 languages (and dialects) are located in the NER:

Adi, Ahom, Aimol, Aiton, Aka, Anal, Angami, Ao, Apatani, Bawm, Biete, Bishnupriya Manipuri, Bodo, Bokar, Chang, Chokri, Deori, Dimasa, Galo, Gangte, Hill Miri, Hmar, Hrangkhol, Idu, Kabui, Kachari, Karbi, Khamba, Khampti, Khasi, Kheza, Khiamngan, Khoirao, Khowa, Koch, Koireng, Kokborok, Kom, Konyak, Lamgang, Lepcha, Lotha, Liangmai, Limbu, Lishpa, Mao, Mara, Maram, Maring, Mech, Meitei, Miji, Miju, Milang, Minyong, Mising, Mizo, Moyon, Mzieme, Na, Nocte, Nyishi, Padam, Paite, Pasi, Phom, Pochuri, Purum, Rabha, Rengma, Ruga , Sangtam, Sherdukpen, Sherpa, Singpho, Sulung, Tagin, Tai Phake, Tamang, Tangam, Tangkhul, Tangsa, Tarao, Thado, Tiwa, Tshangla , Wancho, Yimchungru, Zeme.

The 89 endangered languages, in fact, include some dialects [e.g., Bokar, Galo, Milang, Minyong, Padam, Pasi, Tangam, Idu, Miju, etc. ) and alternate names of the same language (e.g., Hill Miri and Mising; Ahom, Aiton and Tai Phake; Mzieme and Zeme; Khampti and Khamba; Tshangla and Lishpa (Monpa)].

Some languages (having less than 10000 speakers ), which are really critically endangered, are not included in the list of endangered languages (e.g., Chakma, Newari, Sunuwar, Thangal, Tarao, etc.).


• An endangered language is a language headed for extinction. It is a language without monolingual speakers, people who speak only that language. It is a language spoken by a minority of people in the nation and for that reason is held in low esteem, causing its speakers to avoid using it or passing it on to their children.

• Because it is not useful in the society, perhaps even a social liability, an endangered language is not passed on by parents to their children. Speaking the majority language better equips children for success in the majority culture than speaking a less prestigious language. Some governments actively discourage minority language use.

• The important points to keep in mind are these: (1) large numbers of languages, probably the majority, are in danger of extinction and (2) many more have not yet been described in grammars and dictionaries.

• More often language death is the culmination of language shift, resulting from a complex of internal and external pressures that induce a speech community to adopt a language spoken by others. These may include changes in values, rituals, or economic and political life resulting from trade, migration, intermarriage, or religious conversion.

• Conceiving language loss as a Darwinian process implies that some languages are fitter than others, that the "developed" will survive and the "primitive" will go the way of the dinosaurs.

• A language can “kill itself' by becoming so impoverished that its function as an adequate means of communication is called into question" (Sasse, 1992).

• "Language murder or language suicide?" (Edwards, 1985) – According to the "suicide" model, a language community (say, the Chakma, Sadri, or Hajong) opts to abandon its native tongue out of self-interest (to enjoy the superior opportunities open to Assamese/Bengali speakers) rather than in response to coercion. As Denison (1977) asserts, a speech community sometimes `decides,' for reasons of functional economy, to suppress a part of itself. ... [T]here comes a point when multilingual parents no longer consider it necessary or worthwhile for the future of their children to communicate with them in a low-prestige language variety, and when children are no longer motivated to acquire active competence in a language which is lacking in positive connotations such as youth, modernity, technical skills, material success, and education. The languages at the lower end of the prestige scale retreat from ever increasing areas of their earlier functional domains, displaced by higher prestige languages, until there is nothing left for them to be appropriately used about. In this sense they may be said to "commit suicide."


The vicious circle of language disadvantage (Mohanty, 2005)• Whether deliberate or not, the notion of language suicide fosters a victim-blaming strategy. It reinforces the

ethnocentric prejudice, all too common among dominant groups, that certain languages are unfit to survive in the modern world.

• Languages die from both internal and external causes, operating simultaneously. • On the one hand, the process always reflects forces beyond its speakers' control: repression, discrimination, or

exploitation by other groups (and, in many situations, all three). • On the other hand, except in the case of physical genocide, languages never succumb to outside pressures alone.

There must be complicity on the part of speech community itself, changes in attitudes and values that discourage teaching its vernacular to children and encourage loyalty to the dominant tongue.


WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE?

• As "globalization" increases, so does the loss of human languages. Globalization and other factors speed language loss. Globalization is endangering languages, as people prefer to conduct business and communicate in widely used tongues like Assamese, Bengali, Manipuri, Nepali, English, Hindi, etc.

• People find it easier to conduct business and communicate with those outside their own culture if they speak more widely used languages like Assamese, Bengali, Hindi, Manipuri, Nepali or English, etc.

• Children are not being educated in languages spoken by a limited number of people.

• As fewer people use local languages, they gradually die out.

• Public education, the Internet and print and television media also speed the rate of language loss.


WHY IT MATTERS ?

• At least 3,000 of the world’s 6,000-7,000 languages (about 50 percent) are about to be lost. The enormous variety of these languages represents a vast, largely unmapped terrain on which linguists, cognitive scientists and philosophers can chart the full capabilities—and limits—of the human mind.

• Each endangered language embodies unique local knowledge of the cultures and natural systems in the region in which it is spoken. These languages are among our few sources of evidence for understanding human history.

• The requirement to speak one language is often associated with violence. Repressive governments forbid certain languages and cultural customs as a form of control. And suppressed people resist assimilation by speaking their own languages and practicing their own customs.

• On the positive side, one language can enrich another—for example, by providing words and concepts not available in the other language.

• Learning another language often brings an appreciation of other cultures and people.

• The loss of linguistic diversity represents a loss of intellectual diversity. The less variety in language, the less variety in ideas.

• Language loss is "part of the more general loss being suffered by the world, the loss of diversity in all things" (Hale, 1992).

• "The destruction of a language is the destruction of a rooted identity" (Fishman, 1991) for both groups and individuals.

• Language death does not happen in privileged communities. It happens to the dispossessed and the disempowered, peoples who most need their cultural resources to survive.


India.

WHAT CAN BE DONE?• Documentation is the key to preserving endangered languages.

• Many endangered languages are only spoken; no written texts exist. So it is important to act quickly in order to capture them before they go extinct.

• Governments should provide sufficient funds for revitalization projects.

• The use of the state language in school further causes the reduction of the domain of use of their first (tribal) language because bilingual children tend to use the state language (as opposed to their mother tongue) in most public domains. After a couple of generations, the language of home (of the tribal communities) is gradually replaced by the dominant state language, thus causing severe attrition of the tribal language. In contrast, those children who do not go to school tend to preserve their languages (tribal languages) as their use at home is maintained. This phenomenon supports the hypothesis that a guaranteed functional load (i.e. sustained use in a domain) guarantees maintenance of a language while the reduction and/or elimination of functional load leads to language attrition.

• There is a need to raise the functional load of tribal as well as minority languages by using them in schools to prevent their shift and/or attrition. Also, through the use of tribal/minority languages in school education students would be more motivated to learn and can achieve a higher level of learning through the use of mother tongue instruction.

• Many of the tribal languages are unwritten and for languages to be used in schools they need to be codified, i.e., if there are many varieties , attempts should be made to ensure uniformity as far as possible. One particular variety of a language may be chosen to be developed (if it is not already done) as standard variety keeping in mind the attitudes and preferences of the concerned speech community.


India.

• Languages to be used in school education need to be standardized—in terms of both linguistic structure and orthography.

• Another key task is bridging the gap between home language and school language by rigorously implementing tribal languages in school education and teacher-training.

• There is an imperative need for introduction of bi-lingual education. Mother tongue should be the medium of instruction at primary school level. This should lead to a smooth switch over to bi-lingual instruction i.e., local contact language and general switch over to regional language and link language in a phased manner. Tribal languages must find their due place in the language formula.

• Some tribes still need expert help to complete orthographies, grammar books, and dictionaries. Virtually all need assistance in developing and publishing curriculum materials.

• Tribal language speakers often lack academic credentials, while outsiders lack essential cultural and linguistic knowledge. As a result, these projects must draw on cultural resources available on reservations, relying especially on elders, the true experts in these languages.

• Tribal initiative and control are essential to the success of revitalization efforts because language choices are a matter of consensus within each community.


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UNESCO .1953. The Use of Vernacular Languages in Education UNESCO, Paris.

UNESCO .2003. Education in a Multilingual World. UNESCO Education Position Paper. Paris: UNESCO. On WWW at: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001297/129728e.pdf

Waiko, J., (from 1997 Waigani Seminar). Keynote Address: “The Value of Traditional Knowledge in the 21st Century”. On WWW at http://www.pngbuai.com/600technology/information/waigani/w97-keynote.html.

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Linguistic Situation, Multilingualism and Lg Endangerment in NE India

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