[Dr N Nega]
The other day, I asked the son of one of my distant relatives, “Na emin nv hoge?” (What’s your name? in the Nyishi language). He replied, “Aap kiya bol raha hai, hum ko pata bhi nahi hai” (‘I don’t know what you are saying).
The eroding grasp of our local dialects among the younger generations deeply troubles me. It is evident that if we continue on this path, the very fabric of our identity – the language that binds us – will be replaced even in our villages by Hindi or other languages.
This shift undermines our cultural heritage each passing day. We must ask ourselves: What direction are we heading in? As guardians of our cultural legacy, how are we nurturing the resurgence of our endangered dialects? What proactive steps are being undertaken by our community-based organizations, social leaders, student bodies, officials, and politicians to revive and sustain our linguistic traditions?
The urgency of the situation calls for concerted action to revitalise our fading dialects.
We may propose the following strategic initiatives:
- Reforms may be implemented across various platforms and institutions to ensure that representation at political and social bodies is limited to individuals proficient in our native languages.
- We may consider enacting legislation that requires a certain level of knowledge in local dialects as a prerequisite for any state government appointment, including civil service positions. This can be achieved by integrating a local language paper in all governmental recruiting processes of our state.
- Educational curriculums across the state, right from the formative years, may be encouraged to prioritise our vernacular languages as one of the core subjects. These measures could be the first steps yet a vital one in rekindling the passion for our native tongue among our youths and all community members.
Out of the myriad benefits that we could experience by incorporating our native languages into our life, following are few of them.
- Fosters a deep-rooted sense of identity and unity, reinforcing our tribal cohesion.
- Opens the door to diverse employment opportunities: As educators/teachers specialised in local language instruction in various schools. In public sector undertakings, businesses, private enterprises, (and in some cases of government services), people proficient in indigenous languages would be employed, so that effective communication and customer engagement with the locals could be achieved.
- Serves as a vital instrument for the conservation of our cultural heritage and ancestral practices.
- Offers a strategic means of confidential communication in perilous scenarios in foreign land, thereby potentially safeguarding individuals from becoming targets.
As we stand at the crossroads of cultural preservation and global assimilation, it is incumbent upon us to choose a path that honours our linguistic heritage and ensures its transmission to future generations. We must not allow our local dialects to become mere footnotes in history, supplanted by dominant languages.
Through collective enthusiasm and institutional support, we can stem the tide of linguistic erosion and foster an environment where our dialects do not just survive but thrive. Reinvigorating our native tongues is not a task we can postpone; it is a call to action that must be answered now, for the languages we lose today are the voices of our ancestors we may never hear again. Let this be the era where we embrace our linguistic diversity, where each word spoken in our local dialects acts as a testament to our enduring cultural resilience.
In rallying for the preservation and revitalisation of our dialects, we embody the wisdom of the past and hope for the future – a future that is vocal, vibrant, and unequivocally ours. Let us be the generation that can proudly say, “We saved our languages,” and in doing so, we saved an irreplaceable part of who we are. (The writer is an APPS officer, currently posted as SP (Security) at the police headquarters)
