Many smart phone applications intended for “indigenous language” use on iPhones, iPads and iPods abound, making such tools accessible to users worldwide – although their use require somewhat advanced computer literacy.
More than 3,000 languages around the world are facing extinction today. Aramaic, for example, the language that Jesus spoke, has been lost in the Middle East for long centuries. However, in two small villages in Israel/Palestine and in one in Syria Aramaic is still being taught to young children at schools. In desperate hope of saving, preserving and reviving Aramaic as a part of humanity’s cultural heritage, an Aramaic application has been launched. The app teaches the alphabets and their pronunciation, as well as, a few phrases.
Another example is the vulnerable Tamazight, the indigenous language of the Berbers of North Africa. The surviving Berber languages receive some official support from North African countries, and some of them have been made available through applications for smartphone and tablet users.
First People’s Cultural Council published a list of indigenous language learning apps; hundreds of these apps teach endangered languages through word games, interactive lessons, word lists, writing tools, flashcards, etc.
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