Who gives a heck anyway?
The first time I heard about Bo language was when it became extinct. Bo is an ancient language which dates back to 65,000 years and belongs to the native Andamanese tribe, the Boa clan. The language became extinct when the last Bo speaker, Boa Sr, who was fluent in the language died earlier this week. Its a shame that we let her die in loneliness and didn’t give her a chance to speak her language during the last years of her life. I believe that I am not the only one to know about Bo clan when they became extinct. And it is also true that not many Indian media gave importance to Boa Sr’s death. This makes me question myself how much we give importance to our culture and languages and how much we give importance to linguistic minorities in our country. It wouldn’t be wrong if I say that we live in a democratic imperialist country, where only numbers decide. Boa did not contribute to what we think as modernization, economy or we assume that she didn’t even represent us. But she did hold a link to the past and present of the entire human community. For us she was yet another tribal woman who didn’t cope up with the moving world, her tribe failed to catch up with the rest of the world. For us they were uncivilized people and would not fit into our society.
It can be argued that languages and civilizations die and its part of human evolution. Also one could ask what is the use of a language which does not contribute to science and technology? But it should be remembered that we understand science, technology and nature only up to a limit. A limit up to which we understand or know. We discard all other facts as they do not fit into our science book because we fail understand them, its not because they do not deserve.
I strongly believe that every language is unique and its beauty can be enjoyed only in its original form. Every language represents its own culture, even a small variation in a dialect represents a difference in culture. Language has always been a sensitive issue in India. Languages are given importance only if it has considerable amount of speakers, in political term, the amount of speakers is vote bank. So, the more the speaker the more importance you get, that too only if you demand. Its a shame that still we behave in a manner that does not endorse diversity.
We were so busy covering the drama of our over hyped Bollywood stars and political heirs that we forgot to give attention when a language of our country disappeared from earth for good. Its not only time to save tigers but also our own people who are nearing extinction.
