Multilingualism
A source of understanding cultural treasure of the world
‘If you talk to a man in a language he understands that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language that goes to his heart.’
‘Nelson Mandela
The above few lines exhibit the importance of multilingualism in people’s life. It emphasizes on sharing of feelings, emotions, and understandings which can be easily conveyed by using their own native language.
In today’s fast-stepping world, there are approximately 7106 languages spoken over the globe by people of different global communities according to Ethnologue. Because of these languages in the world leads to a phenomenon called multilingualism. Basically, multilingualism means an individual speaker or a community of speakers communicate in two or more languages in a globalized world. Multilingualism is not rare but a basic necessity for employment, education, understanding the variety of cultures, broadening of the understandings regarding faith or religion as well as understanding the emotions expressed by different peoples of different countries in the world in various circumstances. (Dutcher, 1994)
Multilingualism is significant in exposing people to other culture; mend cognitive skills, develop their mother tongue skills and a direct connection to employment opportunities in other member states. (Husaj, 2012). The barrier of the language exacerbates intercultural misunderstandings. Those employers want the jobs but don’t know their native language have the disadvantage like weak in communication with the buyer for a trade purpose. Therefore, multilingualism is the shower of contentment, success, and essence of communication. (Ribes-Gil, 2009)
A person has the high honor of degrees from renowned universities like Harvard, Cambridge etc. But that person doesn’t know to speak in the native language of the country where that person desire to work, then it becomes useless to come in that country for work or to live in. Multilingualism helps to understand and appreciate the people of another country by depleting the factors like xenophobia, intolerance, racism and discrimination. For example, professor of the university gave a group activity but the student of another country can’t contribute his/her feelings and notions due to the language barrier that would result into intolerance, xenophobia as well as discrimination. But multilingualism demotes these factors. In the globalized world, there is a demand of creative thinker and persons exposed to the multilingual environment are more viable in creative thoughts that lead to superior performance. Multilingualism will avoid misunderstanding behind the concepts, law, principle, logic, formula as well as the equation. The monolingual people of other country face difficulty in their academic life. For example, the professor teaching in native language would create difficulty in the understanding lecture by monolingual foreign people.
Learning multiple languages enables new conversation and new experiences. Especially, children who know multiple languages have highly developed cognitive skills like mental related activities (Katherine, 2016). Developing and training foreign and indigenous language teacher is the instrumental step for exploration of multilingualism in education. This can be accomplished when expert trained the foreign and indigenous language to teachers. In addition, flourishing language council and language research institute will enhance the multilingualism in the education sector. This would result in the increase in multilingual people who would lead to a better communicative society in the globalized world. Such productive step will increase multilingualism that would consequences into development of multiculturalism, pluralism, and plurilingualism (D. Bolinger, 1981).
Multilingualism assists children in flourishing superior writing and reading skill. Multilingual children will have better analytical, social and academic skill compare to monolingual peers. Children knowing multiple languages feel ease at different environments. Multilingualism creates a natural flexibility and adaptability and raises his/her self-esteem and self-confidence. Superior career opportunities will be multiplied many times to a person who knows many languages.
Furthermore, there are positive effects of the multilingualism on children’s linguistic and educational development. When children continue to develop their abilities in two or more languages throughout their primary school years, they gain a deeper understanding of language and how to use it effectively. According to the Dr. Elizabeth Lanza in (Jillo, 2003), children who know multiple languages or two languages have the great cognitive skill, creative thinking and one of the solutions to eradicate dementia in children.
On a social level, multilingualism exposes one to other cultures, which promotes acceptance, respect and embraces diversity. It promotes relations between different linguistic communities. Cultures are transmitted through languages and languages also reflect the history of the people who have used them. Hence, Multilingualism is the gateway into another culture. (Husaj, 2012). It is an open door to multiculturalism. With the help of multilingualism, one would know Muslim do fast for a month. So that people of Muslim religion would also experience the pity condition of poorer or needy people without water and food. Multilingualism is also blended to the understanding of different historic places of the world which are purely the indicator of ancient times. Hence, multilingualism indirectly used to understand the creativity of ancient peoples over the globe.
Multilingualism helps to understand the sayings as well as prayers of the different religions. Prayers are generally recited in different languages at different sites of the world. Thus, it becomes mandatory to learn multilingualism if one is curious to know about the variety of religions. In the certain country like India, language is the powerful indicator of religion. In India, people who speak Urdu or Arabic language are categorizing into Muslim religion. Those who speak the Hindi language are categorizing into Hindu religion (Banks., 2002).
In a recent global economic condition, multilingualism and economy are two sides of the coin. It means for economic benefits, both should exist together. For instance, big commercial trades or tenders are lost due to lack of skills in local languages. Multilingualism assists export benefits and better access to New Emerging Markets. Therefore, multilingualism is closely linked with economic competitiveness (Husaj, 2012).
In a contemporary generation, the world is multifaceted and rapidly changing. The government, business as well as community leader identify the significance of intercultural literacy. Now the days, monocultural and monolingual peoples are not employed in companies which leads to a global problem of any country. Such unemployment would lead to thousands of problem in any nation like terrorism, robbery, poverty etc. Generally, children are the real asset of any country because they are the future citizen of our globalised community. Younger generation exposure to multilingual peoples will bring togetherness between nation, harmony and cultural diversification between the nations. Multilingualism will remove the obstacles in the pathway of development of the nation. Thus, it is the source of the nation’s development and creates the transparency between the nations over the globe. Global and multilingual citizenship education promote social cohesion in the country. Schools are the most important foundation for the multicultural society. Every nation needs multilingual students for social cohesion and economic development of one’s nation. (Cummins, 2002).
Multilingualism is the central point through which a person can travel from unknown to the known world. Multilingualism helps the people to cross the way of acceptance in any countries of the world. Acceptance encourages tolerance and diversification of one’s vision of the world. (Husaj, 2012). For multilingualism, Frank Smith believes that
‘One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way.’
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