From day one, Jean Ntakirutimana consistently spoke to his two daughters in the language of his birthplace, Burundi.<\/p>\n
The Brock University linguist read them bedtime stories from the African country and regularly conversed with the girls. They would answer back in French, English and Kirundi while growing up in Quebec and Ontario.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy daughters are a living example of how important and valuable a mother tongue can be,\u201d says Ntakirutimana, adding that his daughters, now adults, often express how gratified they are to be able to speak, read and fairly write Kirundi.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s not just fatherly pride that pleases Ntakirutimana about his daughters\u2019 comments.<\/p>\n
\u201cLinguists agree that, in the world, we have around 7,000 living languages<\/a>,\u201d says the Associate Professor of Modern Languages, Literatures and Cultures. \u201cAnd every year, languages are disappearing because native speakers are not transferring the language to their children.\u201d<\/p>\n Worldwide, experts estimate that 1,500 known languages will disappear by the end of this century. Most of these are Indigenous languages.<\/p>\n