• ISBN13: 9789391144180
• Binding: Hardcover
• Subject: Sociology and Anthropology
• Publisher: Ratna Sagar
• Publisher Imprint: PrimusBook
• Publication Date: October 16, 2022
• Pages: 372
• Original Price: INR 1495.0
• Language: English
• Edition: N/A
• Item Weight: N/A

Globalization, by incessantly promoting uniformity, is not only destroying biological and cultural diversity but also leading to language shifts because linguistic imperialism and linguistic marginalization are two ends of the same spectrum. Linguistic Diversity in South and Southeast Asia brings together the contributions of scholars concerned with this loss from Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Myanmar, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, and India. It is a compendium on the depleting linguistic diversity, loss of oral cultures, erosion of indigenous knowledge system, and the widening gap between dominant and dominated languages which has created a situation of linguistic apartheid in this part of the world. Interestingly, these essays also reveal that despite globalization some communities have managed to retain their languages, which must now be sustained and treasured and not allowed to die out. Documenting the first-hand experience of working with the diverse and obscure linguistic communities of South and Southeast Asia, this volume not only delves into the complexities of issues but also suggests measures to arrest the loss of languages and to revive those that are on the brink of extinction

Anvita Abbi, an eminent linguist and social scientist, identified the sixth language family of India. A recipient of the Padma Shree and Kenneth Hale Awards, she was a Guest Scientist at the Max Planck Institute, Leipzig, and Leverhulme Professor at the University of London. She has taught at the Jawaharlal Nehru University and in universities across Europe, Australia, Canada and the US. Renowned for her research on lesser-known languages extending from the Himalayas to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, she has numerous publications in the field and is now documenting endangered languages of the Nicobar Islands. Kapila Vatsyayan (1928-2020) served as founding Director of Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts and as Secretary, Department of Arts, Government of India. A Padma Vibhushan, she spearheaded programmes of art history, education, Sanskrit, Buddhist and Pali studies. She was Regents Professor in the University of California (Santa Cruz), Visiting Professor at University of Pennsylvania and taught at the universities of Delhi and Banaras.