What is the Rarest Language on Earth?
If you’re interested in learning about the most endangered languages in the world, then you’ve come to the right place. The language that is most endangered is probably not the language you learned in school. Instead, you’ll learn about the language that is spoken by people in the wild. You might be surprised to learn that some of the rarest languages are not widely spoken at all.
Liki
There are only a handful of speakers of the rarest language on the planet. These people are typically older and have little or no practice speaking their native tongue. Even fewer children learn the language today, and there are very few educational resources for it. Because of these issues, many of these languages will become extinct in the next century.
Liki, also known as Moar, is an Austronesian language spoken on several small islands in the Papua region of Indonesia. While it was once used by the leaders of the local Indigenous churches, it is now almost entirely extinct, with fewer than five or ten speakers remaining. Likewise, Njerep, which is spoken on a small island in Cameroon, is becoming extinct. It is largely replaced by Bantoid languages, including French, which is the country’s official language.
Old Norse
Old Norse is an ancient Germanic language that was spoken by the people of Scandinavia during the Viking Age. It evolved from Proto-Norse around the eighth century. Today, Old Norse is classified as an archaic language with a rich set of declensions. The main literature written in Old Norse is the eddas of medieval Iceland.
Old Norse is phonetic, with many vowel phonemes that occur in pairs: long and short. The long vowel /ae/ is marked with a sharp accent in Old Norse orthography. The short counterpart /ae/ is not a phoneme, but an allophone of /e/ in classical languages. Old Norse also has a voiced fricative between vowels.
Taushiro
The language of the Taushiro people is spoken in the Loreto region of Ecuador near the Tigre River and Ahuaruna tributary. This language is one of the rarest languages on Earth and only about 20 people speak it. Its speakers count by counting with their fingers and count numbers over 10 with the word “ashintu.” The language is also unique in that it points to a specific toe in the foot to signify a particular number. However, despite its rarity, the language is rapidly fading away from the population, which is so small it is considered near-extinct.
Speaking this language is an extremely difficult task, as only a few people have the capability of learning it. It is also one of the most endangered languages in the world. Many Taushiro speakers are unable to read or write in English. This makes them highly vulnerable to extinction.
Q’anjob’al
Q’anjob’al is a language from the highlands of Guatemala, a region in Central America. The language has a rich vocabulary of many words, which are composed of syllables. Many of these words have multiple meanings, such as “old city” or “respect.” These words are also grouped together in phrasal units. These words are often used to convey messages, such as “get your vaccinated.”
Q’anjob’al is a Mayan language with more than a hundred thousand speakers. It is one of the twenty-one languages in Guatemala and is taught in public schools. It is considered a conservative language in the Mayan language family and has 26 consonant sounds and five vowels. The language is spoken in Santa Eulalia, San Miguel Acatan, San Pedro Soloma, and San Rafael La Independencia.
Ishkashimi
The Ishkashimi language is spoken in the Sanglech valley. It is intelligible with Dari, which is also spoken in the area. The Ishkashimi people have mixed feelings towards the other two languages, though many of them are proficient in Dari.
The Ishkashimi language is closely related to the Sanglechi language. In fact, many linguists consider the two languages to be one. Although these languages are similar in many ways, both have no written material and are spoken exclusively. The only other remaining dialect of the Mura language is the Piraha dialect, which is only spoken by a few hundred people in an isolated tribe.
Kawishana
Kawishana, a language from Brazil, is not on the UNESCO endangered language list but is still a living language. It belongs to the family of Arawakan languages and was once widely spoken among indigenous villagers. In the past, this language was spoken by about 400 people living near the river Japura. However, the language is now critically endangered and only four people are left who still speak it.
Kawishana is one of the few living languages in the world. It is not as endangered as some other languages on the list, but is still spoken by only a few individuals. The language has been recorded and studied by Margaret L. Press.