Cambridge IELTS 4 Test 2 Reading original translation Passage 1 Lost for words
This article of Cambridge IELTS 4 Test 2 Passage 1 introduces the crisis faced by minority languages. Although the article has many paragraphs, it actually says three things: the reason for the disappearance of language, why to protect language, and some programs to protect language.
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IELTS real question reading vocabulary sword 4 test 2 passage 1 cultural category
Cambridge IELTS 4 Test 2 Reading Answers Analysis Passage 1 Endangered Language
Natural section 1
In the Native American Navajo nation, which sprawls across four states in the American south-west, the native language is dying. Most of its speakers are middle-aged or elderly. Although many students take classes in Navajo, the schools are run in English. Street signs, supermarket goods and even their own newspaper are all in English. Not surprisingly, linguists doubt that any native speakers of Navajo will remain in a hundred years’ time.
Among the Native American Navajo people in four states in the southwest of the United States, their mother tongue is the translation of each paragraph below.
At the end of the article is attached what you need to know about this reading article vocabulary , and specific Answer analysis 。 Extinction. Most of its users are middle-aged or elderly people. Although many students attend classes in Navajo, the school still operates in English. Street signs, supermarket goods and even their own newspapers are all in English. Not surprisingly, linguists suspect that there will be any Navajo speakers in 100 years' time.
Natural section 2
Navajo is far from alone. Half the world’s 6,800 languages are likely to vanish within two generations – that’s one language lost every ten days. Never before has the planet’s linguistic diversity shrunk at such a pace. At the moment, we are heading for about three or four languages dominating the world,’ says Mark Pagel, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Reading. ‘It’s a mass extinction, and whether we will ever rebound from the loss is difficult to know.’
The Navajo are not alone. Half of the 6800 languages in the world are likely to disappear completely within two generations, that is, one language disappears every ten days. The rate of language disappearance on earth has never been faster. Mark Pagel, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Reading, said, "At present, we are moving towards the situation where only three or four languages dominate the world. This is a large-scale extinction phenomenon, and whether we can recover from it is unknown.".
Natural section 3
Isolation breeds linguistic diversity: as a result, the world is peppered with languages spoken by only a few people. Only 250 languages have more than a million speakers, and at least 3,000have fewer than 2,500. It is not necessarily these small languages that are about to disappear. Navajo is considered endangered despite having 150, 000speakers. What makes a language endangered is not just the number of speakers, but how old they are. If it is spoken by children it is relatively safe. The critically endangered languages are those that are only spoken by the elderly, according to Michael Krauss, director of the Alassk Native Language Center, in Fairbanks.
Isolation breeds linguistic diversity. As a result, the world is full of languages spoken by only a few people. Only 250 languages have more than one million users, while at least 3000 languages have fewer than 2500 users. These small languages will not necessarily disappear. Navajo is considered to be endangered, although it has 150000 users. The language is threatened not only by the number of speakers from the Old Roast Duck IELTS, but also by their age. According to Michael Klaus, director of the Alassk Native Language Center in Fairbanks, if it is used by children, it is relatively safe. It is extremely endangered if only used by the elderly.
Natural paragraph 4
Why do people reject the language of their parents? It begins with a crisis of confidence, when a small community finds itself alongside a larger, wealthier society, says Nicholas Ostler, of Britain’s Foundation for Endangered Languages, in Bath. ‘People lose faith in their culture,’ he says. ‘When the next generation reaches their teens, they might not want to be induced into the old traditions.’
Why do people reject their parents' language? It began with a crisis of confidence. Nicholas Ostler, of the British Endangered Language Foundation, said that when a small community finds a large and wealthy community next to itself, "people will lose confidence in their own culture. When the next generation reaches their adolescence, they may not want to integrate into the ancient traditions".
Natural paragraph 5
The change is not always voluntary Quite often, governments try to kill off a minority language by banning its use in public or discouraging its use in schools, all to promote national unity The former US policy of running Indian reservation schools in English, for example, effectively put languages such as Navajo on the danger list. But Salikoko Mufwene, who chairs the Linguistics Department at the University of Chicago, argues that the deadliest weapon is not government policy but economic globalisation. ‘Native Americans have not lost pride in their language, but they have had to adapt to socio-economic pressures,’ he says. ‘They cannot refuse to speak English if most commercial activity is in English.’ But are languages worth saving? At the very least, there is a loss of data for the study of languages and their evolution, which relies on comparisons between languages, both living and dead. When an unwritten and unrecorded language disappears, it is lost to science.
This change is not always voluntary. In many cases, the government tries to eliminate minority languages by prohibiting their use in public places or discouraging their use in schools. All this is to promote national unity. For example, the previous policy of operating Indian schools in English in the United States put languages such as Navajo on the danger list. But Salikoko Mann, director of the Language Center at the University of Chicago, believes that the most lethal weapon is not government policy, but economic globalization. "Indigenous Americans have not lost their pride in their own language, but they have to adapt to the social and economic pressure," he said. "If most business activities use English, they cannot refuse to speak English.". But is language worth protecting? At least for the study of language and its evolution, there is a problem of data loss. This kind of research relies on the comparison of various languages, whether "alive" or "dead". When a language without written form and records disappears, scientific research completely loses it.
Natural paragraph 6
Language is also intimately bound up with culture, so it may be difficult to preserve one without the other. ‘If a person shifts from Navajo to English, they lose something,’ Mufwene says. ‘Moreover, the loss of diversity may also deprive us of different ways of looking at the world, ’ says Pagel. There is mounting evidence that learning a language produces physiological changes in the brain. ‘Your brain and mine are different from the brain of someone who speaks French, for instance,’ Pagel says, and this could affect our thoughts and perceptions. ‘The patterns and connections we make among various concepts may be structured by the linguistic habits of our community.’
Language is also closely related to culture, so it may be difficult to retain its corresponding language without culture. "If a person changes from using Navajo to using English, he will lose something," Mufwene said. "In addition, the loss of diversity may also deprive us of different ways of looking at the world," said Pagel. There is more and more evidence that learning a language can promote successful changes in the brain. Pagel said, "For example, your brain and my brain are different from those of French speakers." This may affect our thoughts and ideas. "The patterns and connections we establish between various concepts may be formed by the language habits of our population."
Natural paragraph 7
So despite linguists’ best efforts, many languages will disappear over the next century. But a growing interest in cultural identity may prevent the direst predictions from coming true. ‘The key to fostering diversity is for people to learn their ancestral tongue, as well as the dominant language,’ says Doug Whalen, founder and president of the Endangered Language Fund in New Haven, Connecticut. ‘Most of these languages will not survive without a large degree of bilingualism,’ he says. In New Zealand, classes for children have slowed the erosion of Maori and rekindled interest in the language. A similar approach in Hawaii has produced about 8, 000new speakers of Polynesian languages in the past few years. In California, ‘apprentice’ programmes have provided life support to several indigenous languages. Volunteer ‘apprentices’ pair up with one of the last living speakers of a Native American tongue to learn a traditional skill such as basket weaving, with instruction exclusively in the endangered language. After about 300 hours of training they are generally sufficiently fluent to transmit the language to the next generation. But Mufwene says that preventing a language from dying out is not the same as giving it new life by using it every day. ‘Preserving a language is more like preserving f ruits in ajar,’ he says.
Therefore, despite the best efforts of linguists, many languages will still disappear in the next century. But the growing interest in cultural identity may prevent this dire prediction from becoming a reality. "The key to fostering diversity is that people learn the language of their ancestors and the dominant language," said Doug Whalen, founder and chairman of the Endangered Languages Foundation. "Without some degree of bilingual system, most of these languages would not survive," he said. In New Zealand, courses for children have slowed down the loss of Maori and rekindled people's interest in the language. In the past few years, a similar approach in Hawaii has generated about 8000 new Polynesian speakers. In California, the Apprenticeship program supports several indigenous languages. The volunteer "apprentice" pairs up with one of the last users of the American native language to learn traditional skills such as basket weaving, and only uses endangered languages for teaching. After about 300 hours of training, they are fluent enough to pass the language on to the next generation. But Mufwene said that preventing a language from dying out is different from using a language every day to give it new life. "Protecting language is more like preserving fruit in a jar," he said.
Natural paragraph 8
However, preservation can bring a language back from the dead. There are examples of languages that have survived in written form and then been revived by later generations. But a written form is essential for this, so the mere possibility of revival has led many speakers of endangered languages to develop systems of writing where none existed before.
However, protection can make language survive. Some languages exist only in written form, but have been revived by future generations. But to achieve this, it must be in written form, so the mere possibility of revival has led many users of endangered languages to develop writing systems that did not exist before.
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