Language is a form of identity for people and the Gurune language could be under serious threat due to globalization processes, says Director of Museum in Upper East Region, Mrs. Prisca na’ambome Yenzi.
According to her, the English Language is taking over the indigenous languages in various communities in Ghana, hence becoming a threat to the indigenous languages.
Speaking to A1 Radio, Mrs. Prisca na’ambome Yenzi said if measures are not put in place by government and other stakeholders in languages, the first language that could fade out easily in the Upper East Region, is the Gurune language.
“The Gurune language will be the first language to fade out if stakeholders don’t put pragmatic steps to prevent that. We are in a society where parents sometimes fail to speak their local language to their children. What they speak is the English language. English language all the time and you think Gurune will not fade out?”
Her comment came as Ghana joins other nations to observe International Mother Language Day. The Day is observed every year on February 21 to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism around the world.
Mrs. Prisca na’ambome Yenzi however has called on policymakers as well as parents to step up measures to ensure that children are briefed on the importance of speaking in their mother’s tongue.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization has reported that every two weeks a language disappears with its cultural and intellectual heritage. Per its estimation, 43% of the estimated 6000 languages spoken in the world are endangered. Adding that only a few hundreds of languages have genuinely been given a place in education systems and the public domain, and less than a hundred are used in the digital world.
Below is the audio of the interview
Source: a1radioonline.com|101.1 MHz|Moses Apiah|Ghana
