Language links to culture

EVERY two weeks, a language disappears from the face of our planet, and with it goes extinct the history and culture that it has embodied for years.

This fact bears particular relevance to Malaysia where linguistic diversity is remarkable (our country is home to a stunning 137 languages) yet rapidly diminishing as its “socially subordinate” dialects – from Bajau to Dusun to Hainanese – are being rendered obsolete by dominant languages such as English, Malay and Mandarin.