3 - Speakers and communities

Summary

This chapter addresses the issue of what makes endangered language speakers different, and why it should matter to be aware of the great diversity when working on the description, documentation or revitalization of endangered languages. The nature of endangered language communities is addressed by considering them through the lens of their geographic locations and configurations. It is considered from the perspective of different concepts of language and speech communities, in order to show how both concepts are intricately intertwined in endangered language communities. The issue of language endangerment in communities is approached from the perspective of the evolution of their level of consciousness and their evolving attitudes, in the context of recently developed discourse about the preservation of worldwide biocultural diversity. Linguists working on endangered languages often find themselves in challenging field situations that their academic training has done little to prepare them for.