The United Nations dedicate today, February 21st, to Mother Language Day.
“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.” – Nelson Mandela
"But what language do you speak at home?" Italian. Home is our bubble, there are no flags, but Italianity is everywhere: in spices, in "good" oil, in idioms, in books, in a certain mental attitude, in the stories and memories we share.
Emma was born in Italy and lived there for a few years. She feels both Italian and Dutch.
Jacopo, on the other hand, was born here and is growing up surrounded by Dutch and international culture. He speaks Italian, but is starting to mix up words.
Every now and then, he makes absolutely foreign sounds, even a bit scary, that I can't understand. Emma tells me that, being the mother, I should understand him better than anyone else.
Help! I lack the tools!!
If you only knew how smart I am when I speak in my language!
"Today I'm here to prove to myself that I can manage on my own and that my English is good enough to express what I think and to understand others." I welcomed this personal success of a friend of mine, but I could have said it myself and to anyone who finds themselves speaking and thinking in a language other than their mother tongue. Sometimes you feel a little less, because you don't express yourself as you would like.
"If you only knew how smart I am when I speak in my language!" said a character in a TV series. Among the various forms of discrimination and racism, there is linguistic discrimination that develops on various levels: for some, not knowing the local language is synonymous with ignorance, laziness, and lack of intelligence, and with this prejudice they approach you. Every now and then I hear: "oh, how good you know a few words in Dutch" "ah, but do you understand me a little?" In these moments I wish for a flamethrower, but I just smile. Theirs is not an ignorance that can be filled with a book.
Another aspect concerns spoken language: some languages have a certain charm, like Italian and, in general, the Romance languages, much more musical than the Nordic ones. It doesn't take much. Even though, thanks to songs on the radio, I have learned to appreciate this different musicality, guttural sounds remain a nightmare for learning and for the ear.
I know many people who, to know the local language well, started speaking it at home too. The problem is that practicing a language is the only way to learn it, and this is true, unbelievably, even for preserving one's native language.
Many of us take for granted that, being born and raised speaking Italian, it will be impossible to forget it. That's not true. You start to miss nuances, some words are easier to recall in the new language, you make mistakes in verb tenses, and you start to build sentences randomly. Even writing articles, for me, is an exercise to maintain, at a good level, my Italian.
Why is linguistic diversity important?
There are more than 6,500 living languages in the world. But less than 10 are the most spoken.
The risk is that these will absorb the smaller languages that, over time, will disappear.
A language can disappear even if the people who spoke it remain alive, but do not pass it on to their descendants: language shift is the process by which a community replaces its language with another. Many peoples have been forced to do so. Many others decide more or less voluntarily, but the goal is the same: survival.
But language is an expression of one's culture and, therefore, of one's identity.
We can add, transform, make space, but thinking by subtraction sets in motion a painful process. In gestalt terms, it is necessary to integrate our parts: each of them tells us who we are.
Imagine a puzzle: even the smallest missing piece creates a void that weakens the whole, and the puzzle will eventually crumble.
Recognizing and valuing the linguistic identities of different communities means:
preserving cultural heritage for future generations, whose roots would be taken away from them.
allowing more effective and authentic communication, especially in complex contexts such as those related to science, art, politics, and diplomacy.
promoting innovation and stimulating critical thinking, as people can draw inspiration and new perspectives from different forms of linguistic expression.
contributing to the development of a sense of inclusion and belonging, countering homogenization.
promoting sustainable development. Languages are often the main vehicle for traditional knowledge, which is essential for environmental and social sustainability. The loss of languages can lead to the loss of crucial knowledge related to environmental conservation, traditional medicine, sustainable agriculture, and so on.
It also means returning to Italy and understanding each other with friends and family, without needing to "translate" ourselves.
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