According to National Geographic magazine, another language dies every 14 days. There are about 7,000 languages currently spoken on Earth, and it is estimated that half of them will die by 2100. Geographic areas in which languages are at most risk include central and eastern Siberia, northern Australia and central South America.
More about languages:
- There are two main factors for why languages die. If one language is perceived as being superior to another, people will use the superior language for the sake of social advantages. They also will teach their children the socially dominant language. The other factor is the incorporation of words from one language into another. After numerous substitutions and inclusions become established in everyday speech and writing, the original language often dies.
- About 78% of the earth's inhabitants speak one of the 85 most predominant languages.
- It is possible for a language that is spoken primarily in a small community to become extinct after a natural disaster kills all or most of its speakers.