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If language dies does knowledge die with it? - Coggle Diagram
If language dies does knowledge die with it?
Theme: Indigenous Societies
AOK: History
WOK: Language
Claim 1: There is some knowledge about culture that can only be maintained orally and therefore some knowledge is lost
Reasoning: Oral language is, for some, the only way knowledge can be preserved so when language dies, knowledge also dies
Reasoning: If there is only a particular group of knowers that have knowledge, then without language cannot be shared
Example: African storytelling- griots communicating knowledge about communal beliefs, taboos, morals, etc to younger generations
WOK: Sensual Perception
Claim 2: The understanding of language can evolve over time, and therefore knowledge is lost to an extent
Reasoning: If meaning of language evolves, then the understanding of that knowledge diminishes
Reasoning: Words that have been used in the past have evolved to mean other things and therefore perception about knowledge changes
Example: Prophet stories in Islamic culture are told differently to different generations, therefore demonstrating that as the language evolves then the knowledge/understanding follows. The way my mom was taught, differs from the way I was taught
WOK: Language
Claim 3:Language can be described as dead, when in reality only its relevance has died; when language dies, entire civilizations die with it
Reasoning: There are scholars, no matter their education level that cannot decipher languages defined as "extinct" because the languages and their implications are so complex
Reasoning: Learning about a society, from an outside perspective, differs from knowledge derived from people who have experienced and spoken these languages
Example: Yuchi, an extinct language spoken by Native Americans originating in Oklahoma has become extinct because speakers of this language haven't been able to preserve and spread knowledge within their culture
AOK: Art
WOK: Language
Claim: If language dies then knowledge does not die with it because there is a level of interpretation can be recovered.
Reasoning: Just because you don't know everything there is to know about something, doesn't mean that it itself is dead, nor is the language that accompanies it
Reasoning: Not being aware about something doesn't dismiss the fact that it may exist because there is no way someone could know everything
Languages such as Yiddish are classified as "endangered" when in reality it is just not widely taught alongside jewish culture. Knowledge that Yiddish exists is apparent in written form and therefore knowledge about the Yiddish writing system is not lost