"Efforts to preserve regional languages, as part of the Indonesian nation's identity, must become collective awareness," Moerdijat said, according to a written statement received here on Thursday.
According to the Ethnologue: Languages of the World website, which is often cited by linguists, there are 7,168 languages spoken in the world of which 40 percent are endangered. Some endangered languages have also recorded less than a thousand native speakers.
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology's Language Development and Fostering Agency has reported that 718 languages have been identified and verified in Indonesia.
The deputy speaker said that language extinction is a threat amid global development, including in Indonesia.
Linguists have pointed out that non-linguistic factors, such as economic, political, and social factors, as well as behavioral changes among speakers and lack of institutional support for languages, may accelerate language death, she added.
Besides bridging communication among speakers, albeit locally, regional languages can also support Indonesian as the national language, Moerdijat said.
Hence, regional languages must continue to be preserved and developed to enhance national cultural resilience, she added.
She also emphasized that the involvement of all stakeholders, including government institutions and public communities, is vital for ensuring that regional language preservation efforts are implemented consistently.
"The importance of regional languages in realizing cultural resilience as part of national development must be the collective awareness of all Indonesians," the deputy speaker remarked.
Related news: Home ministry invited to revitalize Indonesia's regional languages
Related news: Government to tag more provinces for language revitalization programme
Translator: Narda Margaretha, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2023
