Akangjungla
Recently, during the silver jubilee celebration of Capi, a vernacular newspaper in Nagaland, the president of Ura Academy, Kohima questioned whether the Tenyidie language can continue to grow if speaking the language declines with progress of time, even if Tenyidie achieves prominent position among other Naga languages in literature and higher education.
Language, both in the written and spoken form enables all possible communication and interaction. It helps in expressing the human thoughts and mind. Commonly the internal monologue in the human mind, which engages thinking primarily in the first language - mother tongue or the native language, is translated in different structures of word and letter. And consequently, speaking the language, and framing the thoughts and emotions of people share a direct relationship.
Established studies uphold to the findings that a strong mother tongue foundation ensures the child’s comprehensive growth; and also learning to speak the native language plays a huge role in cultivating a deeper understanding of themselves in terms of the cultural identity. This factor becomes even more important for the indigenous peoples as it represent their uniqueness as a community. For the Jicarilla (hē-kah-rē-yah) Apache Nation of northern New Mexico, their language means so much more than a way to communicate—language is a huge part of their spirituality. They say, “Spirituality is not in the English language for us, spirituality is in Apache. When others talk about us, we’re pictured as pagans. In our own language, we can express our understanding of spirit and nature. Our traditional concepts of environmental protection, caring for the elderly, and living in harmony with one another and with nature is embodied in our language.”
Although tremendous efforts are put into preserving and promoting language in the written form, be it academic researches or writing books, speaking the language perhaps would save the language from going ahead in its course towards going extinct in terms of use. The promotion of the language in written format often caters to a selective group depending on their interest and purpose. While speaking the language can be more all-encompassing as it would require every member of the family and community to participate.
As the Ura Academy, Kohima President has rightly observed, although academic contributions are important for the growth of the language, the language will diminish if it is confined to a circle. It is rational for him to ask the people to ‘ponder on who is responsible to expand the scope and importance of the original language form.’
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