HOW TO KILL YOUR MOTHER TONGUE! and why you shouldn’t?

*Please note, I’m writing this in English, to reach my target audience.

Everybody knows that human, takes a special place in the animal world due to various unique qualities. Being able to form civilizations is one of the reasons for human to become exceptional. Communication skills that human had, facilitated him in this process of becoming socialized.

Out of all the innovations, “Language” can be considered as the greatest human invention up to today. Language is not just a communication medium but it reflects identity of the culture or the nation that it belongs.

But, in the process of human evolution, we have become a bunch of people with “strong annihilating skills.”

Here are 5 simple steps to kill your mother tongue!

01. Learn & Use when you are a kid.

02. Start pronounces it with a non-relative accent, when you are growing.

03. Pretend like you don’t understand the meaning.

04. Feel inferior on the people who use it.

05. Make it a disqualifier for one’s success.

Each Language is unique, the way it pronounced, and the way it is illustrated is distinctive. We consider Art & craft, historical sites; cloths as elements of cultural identity but sometimes our language is forgotten.

Language is the best medium to get connected to our people and to strengthen our unique culture.

The fundamental thing that we all should realise is, out of hundreds of languages exists in the world, why only one became our mother tongue?

Well, I’m trying to talk about my mother tongue “SINHALA”, which is becoming an endangered among upcoming Sinhalese community.

The word “Sinhala” written in Sinhalese lettering

“SINHALA” AND “SINHALESE” PEOPLE!

With the changes of the society, nowadays people are becoming more westernised, more modernized and more urbanized. In this upcoming community, our native language Sinhala became something invaluable.

It is becoming (already became for some extent) a language that their servants speak. Fluent in Sinhala or speaking broken English is again a disqualification and for them and the opportunities are not opened.

Even though, Abraham Lincoln once stated, “Never make fun of someone, who speaks broken English. It means they know another language”.

Unfortunately, this upcoming community was born in Sri Lanka, started communicating in Sinhala when they were kids, got the free education in Sinhala and now ashamed on speaking. At common gatherings most of them love to pretend that they do not understand Sinhala.

With this, “Sinhalese” people are losing their identity, while other countries are trying to preserve their uniqueness.

ALAS!

Knowing another language is just another skill to gain. But in Sri Lanka, among so-called Sinhalese community, it is opposite.

Not knowing mother tongue is a symbol of prestige.

Suzanne Talhouk stated at TEDxBeirut, “Language isn’t just for conversing, Language represents specific stages in our lives, and terminology that is linked to our emotions.”

http://ideas.ted.com/dont-kill-your-language/

Isn’t true?

I believe learning other languages are talent that we have which allow us to communicate to wider community and it’s not easy to remember few languages. But we must be proud to be speaking in Sinhala as it’s not common and we should protect it.

Let’s preserve “Sinhala” for future.

*My gratitude to all the expats who teaches their children “Sinhala” understanding the rareness.

Thanks for reading! :) If you enjoyed this article, hit that heart button below ❤ Would mean a lot to me and it helps other people see the story.

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Nayomi Lawrance De Silva

Written by

A Wife, a daughter, a friend, a sister and an entrepreneur. Always aspire to change.

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