An extinct language (also called a dead language) is a language which no longer has any native speakers. Normally this occurs when a language undergoes language death while being directly replaced by a different one, for example, Coptic, which was replaced by Arabic, and many Native American languages, whose languages were replaced by English, French, Spanish, or Portuguese.
A more controversial use of the term dead language, is to refer to an older language which changed significantly and evolved into a new language group. Latin, for example, is a dead language as it has no native speakers, but it is the base of the modern Romance languages. Likewise Sanskrit is the base of the modern Indo-Aryan languages and Old English is the base of Modern English. There are apparently children using Sanskrit as a revived language in Mathoor village (India) [1].
In some cases, an extinct language remains in use for scientific, legal, or ecclesiastical functions. Sanskrit, Latin, Old Church Slavonic, Avestan, Coptic, Old Tibetan and Ge'ez are among the many extinct languages used as sacred languages.
A language that does have living native speakers is called a living language. Ethnologue claims there are 6,912 living languages known.[2]
In at least one case, Hebrew, an extinct liturgical language has been revived to become a living language. There have been other attempts at language revival (such as Manx and Cornish), but the success of these attempts has been subject to debate, as it is not clear they will ever become the common native language of a community of speakers.
Recently extinct languages
Main article: list of extinct languages
With last known speaker and/or date of death:
- entire Alsean family
- Alsea: John Albert (1942)
- Yaquina: (1884)
- Apalachee: (early 18th century)
- Atakapa: (early 20th century)
- Atsugewi: (1988)
- Beothuk: Shanawdithit (white person name: "Nancy April") (1829)
- entire Catawban family:
- Catawba: before 1960
- Woccon
- Cayuse: (ca. 1930s)
- Chemakum: (ca. 1940s)
- Chimariko: (ca. 1930s)
- Chitimacha: Benjamin Paul (1934) & Delphine Ducloux (1940)
- entire Chumashan family: Barbareño language was last to become extinct.
- Barbareño: Mary Yee (1965)
- Ineseño
- Island Chumash
- Obispeño
- Purisimeño
- Ventureño
- Coahuilteco: (18th century)
- Cochimí (a Yuman-Cochimí language): (early 19th century)
- entire Comecrudan family
- Comecrudo: recorded from children (Andrade, Emiterio, Joaquin, & others) of last speakers in 1886
- Garza: last recorded in 1828
- Mamulique: last recorded in 1828
- entire Coosan family
- Hanis: Martha Johnson (1972)
- Miluk: Annie Miner Peterson (1939)
- Cornish: (1777)
- all Costanoan languages (which make up a subfamily of the Utian language family): (ca. 1940s)
- Karkin
- Mutsun
- Northern Costanoan
- Rumsen
- Soledad
- Cotoname: last recorded from Santos Cavázos and Emiterio in 1886
- Esselen: report of few speakers left in 1833, extinct before end 19th century
- Gabrielino (an Uto-Aztecan language): elderly speakers last recorded in 1933
- Galice-Applegate (an Athabaskan language):
- Galice dialect: Hoxie Simmons (1963)
- Juaneño (an Uto-Aztecan language): last recorded in 1934
- Kakadu (Gagadju): Big Bill Neidjie (July 2002)
- entire Kalapuyan family:
- Central Kalapuya:
- Ahantchuyuk, Luckimute, Mary's River, and Lower McKenzie River dialects: last speakers were about 6 persons who were all over 60 in 1937
- Santiam dialect: (ca. 1950s)
- Northern Kalapuya:
- Tualatin dialect: Louis Kenoyer (1937)
- Yamhill dialect: Louisa Selky (1915)
- Yonkalla: last recorded in 1937 from Laura Blackery Albertson who only partly remembered it.
- Kamassian: (1989)
- Karankawa: (1858)
- Kathlamet (a Chinookan language): (ca. 1930s)
- Kitanemuk (an Uto-Aztecan language): Marcelino Rivera, Isabella Gonzales, Refugia Duran (last recorded 1937)
- Kitsai (a Caddoan language): (ca. 1940)
- Kwalhioqua-Clatskanie (an Athabaskan language): children of the last speakers remembered a few words, recorded in 1935 & 1942
- Clatskanie dialect: father of Willie Andrew (ca. 1870)
- Kwalhioqua dialect: mother of Lizzie Johnson (1910)
- Lower Chinook (a Chinookan language): (ca. 1930s)
- Mahican: last spoken in Wisconsin (ca. 1930s)
- Manx: Ned Maddrell (December 1974) (but is being revived as a second language)
- Mattole-Bear River (an Athabaskan language):
- Bear River dialect: material from last elderly speaker recorded (ca. 1929)
- Mattole dialect: material recorded (ca. 1930)
- Miami-Illinois: (1989)
- Mohegan: Fidelia Fielding (1908)
- Molala: Fred Yelkes (1958)
- Munichi: Victoria Huancho Icahuate (late 1990s)
- Natchez: Watt Sam & Nancy Raven (early 1930s)
- Negerhollands: Alice Stevenson (1987)
- Nooksack: Sindick Jimmy (1977)
- Northern Pomo: (1994)
- Nottoway (an Iroquoian language): last recorded before 1836
- Pentlatch (a Salishan language): Joe Nimnim (1940)
- Salinan: (ca. 1960)
- entire Shastan family
- Konomihu
- New River Shasta
- Okwanuchu
- Shasta: 3 elderly speakers in 1980, extinct by 1990
- Siuslaw: (ca. 1970s)
- Susquehannock: all last speakers murdered in 1763
- Takelma: Molly Orton (or Molly Orcutt) & Willie Simmons (both not fully fluent) last recorded in 1934
- Tasmanian: (late 19th century)
- Tataviam (an Uto-Aztecan language): Juan José Fustero who remembered only a few words of his grandparents' language (recorded 1913)
- Tetete an Ecuadorian language.
- Tillamook (a Salishan language): (1970)
- Tonkawa: 6 elderly people in 1931
- Tsetsaut (an Athabaskan language): last fluent speaker was elderly man recorded in 1894
- Tunica: Sesostrie Youchigant (ca. mid 20th century)
- Ubykh: Tevfik Esenç (October 1992)
- all dialects of Upper Chinook (a Chinookan language) are extinct, except for the Wasco-Wishram dialect. The Clackamas dialect began extinct in the 1930s, other dialects have little documentation. (The Wasco-Wishram dialect is still spoken by 6 elders.)
- Upper Umpqua: Wolverton Orton, last recorded in 1942
- Vegliot Dalmatian: Tuone Udaina (Italian: Antonio Udina) (10 June 1898)
- Wiyot: Della Prince (1962)
- Yana: Ishi (1916)
See also
External links
Bibliography
