BY
WAISWA JACOB
PEACE CENTER,
MAKERERE-UNIVERSITY
Language is a
cognitive device used for interaction among a specific group of users. It is a
symbol of cultural belonging marked by geographical area and a considerable
membership size. The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities (CLRA) understood
minority languages as a vehicle for cultural identity. Attempting to erode the language, threatens
the users.
Linguists
estimate put the numbers of languages spoken in the world today at 7000. Most spoken languages recorded as of 2001 were
Chinese, Hindu, English, Bengali, Portuguese, Arabic, Russian, Japanese, and
German. Those were only less than 1% of languages spoken. But their speakers
comprised of a half the global population. UNESCO’s 2001 World Atlas of the
World’s Languages in Danger revealed a half of the languages spoken being so
while scholars hint at 90%.
The several
years of slavery and colonial rule commenced the extinction of languages. Whereas
the elimination of indigenous languages began as a forceful process, in recent
time, it has been more gentle yet effective. International media (most culpable
being the movie industry and the internet) has done it all to meet the damage.
Countries like conservative Arab states, China and Russia are a hand full that
have struggled over the years to save their language and culture, where usage
of the indigenous language is not only prestigious, but a way for anyone
(including foreigners) to succeed there. As a result they are forced to learn
them. Concerned authors have revealed that more than a half of the languages
could be extinct by the end of the century, and many might not last 2050.
Languages
thrived handsomely in the oral era of knowledge transfer, weakened with the
introduction of writing and other technologies of language conservation. It has
been the mainstream languages known for having come first into contact with the
foreign visitors that have attempted to utilize new technologies of language
conservation. The second and third largest languages as often graded were kept
behind the innovations as the custodians of the original dialects died away due
to age and disease.
The new
generations that came assumed blurred identities that they could neither
explain nor defend. Many years to come are viewed along the same trend. Instead,
they are consumed by the most dominant urban languages –some of which dictate
career success. The Unites Nations, through its agency the UNESCO promoted
among other things the conservation of languages, but this has to be supported
by the people themselves through advocacy programs. According to the CLRA,
promoting minority languages covered addressing economic and political rights
through critical planning and development of trans-boarder projects.
In Uganda, Lusoga
is among the languages whose dialects are gradually disappearing due to the
adverse impact of tribal invasions, colonial rule and globalization. At
present, there are three known dialects within Lusoga. Some observers may call
them a grouping of three (3) smaller languages, which could want to slip off
the main and stand on their own. These are Lutenga, Lulamogi, and Lugwere (a
mixture of Lusoga, Lulamogi and Lugisu).
Lusoga has lost
originality overtime due to the culturally imposing neighboring tribes (e.g.
Baganda, Banyoro, and Bagisu), very weak cultural leadership, uncompromising
education curriculum, unchecked globalization negativities, and the huge
generation gap. That rendered the Lusoga
language irrelevant in favor of competing yet dominant languages (Luganda,
Lunyoro, Lugisu, and most recently Lungeleeza (English). With no or weak
cultural leadership, huge generation and intellectual gap, there has since been
no savior to revamp the one-way weakening Lusoga language. Only if the trend is
reversed to move into the past to Lusoga originality shall it and the culture
mean true to the ancestors and the creator.
The
biggest motivation of any Lusoga language promotion group should be to increase pride among Lusoga-speaking people, and
promote identity and usage –with emphasis on right usage. The prominence of
Lusoga could attract tourists to learn more about it, or even stay longer to
enjoy speaking it. Researchers too would find it relevant to their projects in
their attempts to find out local names of organisms, medicines and ailments, as
part of the undiscovered local knowledge worth selling out to the world. The
Lusoga project will generate guidelines for conservation replicable to other
languages and culture projects as well as be used as policies by national,
regional and international bodies that strive to protect indigenous knowledge
systems.
Social impact of
such projects can be realized in many forms like the fact that they would resolve
crises associated to cultural identity deficit among Lusoga-speaking people,
which manifested themselves in lost morals, antisocial behavior, personality
disorders and confusion –all of which can be serious social cost to both
directly affected Lusoga-speaking individuals and the communities they live.
Social cohesion,
order, and harmony that are much worked for as not only a point of peace
realized social equilibrium, but a level entire humanity struggle everyday to
attain. Lusoga-speaking people will be
empowered with the right dialects usable in Lusoga, enjoy it, and have the
pride to use it wherever they are or they go. In the same breathe, the
Lusoga-speaking people will be recognized and respected everywhere, and cause
others (other language users) to like to identify with them or the language.
The project will
provide employment to unemployed youth in the much anticipated tourist
development in Lusoga-speaking region and increase revenue to both the local
government and central government. Emancipate Lusoga-language users will have
the time and space to nourish themselves with more knowledge about their
language and culture and the motivation to promote it. Besides, they will have
confidence and the urge to participate in the politics of their country, and
defend their rich language and heritage before other powerfully eroding forces
(e.g. globalization and foreign language influences).
The project will
recruit and train representational committees in places Lusoga-speaking people
live twice a year by means of teleconferencing and annual conferences. Those
trained, then go back to induct their electorates in all they would have
learned. The management will be voted into power and serve a maximum of two
terms in office.
Apart from their
obligations pertaining to their positions, they will be charged with overseeing
healthy functionality of committees wherever they will be. The committees will
centrally advocate and network to share new information and sustain usage and
coverage of the language at different administrative levels of the country and
institutions of work or learning.
Initially, funds
shall be sought from funding agencies in areas of culture, languages, research,
and eco-tourism. In absence of external generated funds the project with embark
of development of assets it owns into serious income-generating ones. For
example, literature books, translation fees, stationery, publishing business,
tourism guide fees, sales from artisan works, research and internship fees, and
advertisements on project media. With all such input lost Lusoga dialects can
be found.
