Skip to main content
Log in

MACROECOLOGY

Drivers of language loss

  • News & Views
  • Published:

From Nature Ecology & Evolution

View current issue Submit your manuscript

A macroecological view suggests some global drivers of language endangerment and continuity, but a focus on individual languages will be important to stem the tide of language loss.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1: Languages at risk.

References

  1. Nettle, D. Linguistic Diversity (Oxford Univ. Press, USA, 1999).

  2. Campbell, L. & Belew, A. Cataloguing the World’s Endangered Languages (Routledge, 2018).

  3. Bromham, L. et al. Nat. Ecol. Evol. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-021-01604-y (2021).

  4. Amano, T. et al. Proc. R. Soc. B 281, 20141574 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Austin, P. K. & Sallabank, J. The Cambridge Handbook of Endangered Languages (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2011).

  6. Kandler, A., Unger, R. & Steele, J. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 365, 3855–3864 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Kik, A. et al. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 118, e2100096118 (2021).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Lewis, M. P., Simons, G. F. & Fennig, C. D. Ethnologue: Languages of the World 17th edn (SIL International, 2013).

  9. Fischer, S. D. in The Routledge Handbook of Historical Linguistics (ed. Bowern, C. & Evans, B.) Ch. 20, 443–465 (CRC Press, Routledge, 2015).

  10. Hou, L. & Kusters, A. in The Routledge Handbook of Linguistic Ethnography (ed. Tusting, K.) Ch. 25 (CRC Press, Routledge, 2019).

  11. Turner, M. K. & McDonald, B. M. J. Iwenhe Tyerrtye: What it Means to be an Aboriginal Person (IAD Press, 2010).

  12. Hercus, L. A. & Sutton, P. This is What Happened: Historical Narratives by Aborigines (Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies, 1986).

  13. Meek, B. A. Annu. Rev. Anthropol. 48, 95–115 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Claire Bowern.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The author declares no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Bowern, C. Drivers of language loss. Nat Ecol Evol 6, 132–133 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-021-01621-x

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-021-01621-x

  • Springer Nature Limited

Navigation