Languages and their geographic distribution
There are two parts of the assignment:
1. Languages and their geographic distribution
In this assignment, you will be using Ethnolog website: https://www.
This website is a collection of languages in the world.
(1). Click the continent of your choice on the home page of the website. You will see the regions and the boundaries of the countries that constitute these regions.
(2). Choose a country of your interest and click on it. A table with the country information will pop up. Examine the table. Note the language counts.
(3). If you click the Languages button, or any other buttons on the main menu of your page, you will get a message about subscription. Do not subscribe!
(4). Write 150 words about the languages in a country of your choice using available information.
2. Languages Debates
Debate continues over whether English should be the official language of the United States and whether schools should teach in language other than English. Give an argument for school being taught only in English, and one supporting teaching with other languages in our schools. Which argument do you support, and why?
Solution Preview
Languages and their Geographic Distribution
For this assignment, I selected Mexico, a country in North America that borders the United States to the south. According to the Ethnologue, the number of individual languages that are listed in the country amount to 292. Out of these, 287 are still living while five have become extinct. Out of the 287 living languages, 282 are indigenous while the other five are non-indigenous. Moreover, one language is institutional while 80 are still developing.
(322 words)