The diversity of Asia-Pacific language ecologies

Volker, Craig Alan

doi:10.1075/impact.35.01vol

In:Education in Languages of Lesser Power: Asia-Pacific Perspectives
Edited by Craig Alan Volker and Fred E. Anderson
[IMPACT: Studies in Language, Culture and Society 35] 2015
► pp. 1–11

Get fulltext from our e-platform

Download Book PDF

The diversity of Asia-Pacific language ecologies

Craig Alan Volker | Divine Word University, Papua New Guinea

Published online: 5 February 2015

https://doi.org/10.1075/impact.35.01vol

The Asia-Pacific region is culturally and linguistically extremely diverse. Many languages are spoken by indigenous or immigrant communities with little political power and some are in danger of becoming extinct in the near future. Government policies regarding the use of the languages of these communities of lesser power vary greatly, with an overall trend towards homogenisation and a strengthening of the nation-state and its language. Choices made about the place of languages of lesser power in education have a profound effect on the self-image and identity of the speakers of those languages. Failing to include them threatens the richness of the cultural diversity of the region.

References (15)

References

Anttila, R. 1989. Historical and Comparative Linguistics [Current Issues in Linguistic Theory 6]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Australian Human Rights Commission. 2001. Bringing them home—Frequently asked questions about the National Inquiry. [URL] (11 May 2013).

Blust, R. 2009. The Austronesian Languages. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University.

CIA. 2013. The World Factbook. [URL] (11 May 2013).

Coulmas, F. 1999. The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Writing Systems. Oxford: Blackwell.

Crowley, T. & Bowern, C. 2010. An Introduction to Historical Linguistics. Oxford: OUP.

Dreyer, S. & Juan, R. 2009. Le français, la francophonie et la francophilie en Asie-Pacifique. Paris: Harmattan.

Keira, M. 1995. Ainu no sekai. Tōkyō: Akashi Shoten.

Leach, M .n.d. Talking Portuguese: China and East Timor. [URL] (10 May 2013).

Lewis, M., Simons G.F. & Fennig, C.D. (eds). 2013. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, 17th edn. Dallas TX: SIL International. [URL] (10 May 2013).

Mühlhäusler, P. 1995. Linguistic Ecology; Language Change and Linguistic Imperialism in the Pacific Rim. London: Routledge.

Nunan, D. 2003. The impact of English as a global language on educational policies and practices in the Asia-Pacific region. TESOL Quarterly 37: 589–613.

Romaine, S. 1989. Pidgin and Creole Languages. London: Longman.

Sidwell, P. 2009. Classifying the Austroasiatic languages: History and State of the Art [Lincom Studies in Asian Linguistics 76]. Munich: Lincom.

Thurgood, G. & La Polla R.J. (eds). 2003. The Sino-Tibetan Languages. London: Routledge.

Cited by (2)

Cited by two other publications

Agnihotri, Rama Kant

2025. Educational Implications of Language Seen as Multilinguality. In The Palgrave Handbook of Decolonising the Educational and Language Sciences, ► pp. 107 ff.

Silva, Claudio de & Craig Alan Volker

2021. Indigenous knowledge and Language Revival in Post-colonial Education in Papua New Guinea. Journal of Asian Linguistic Anthropology 3:1 ► pp. 76 ff.

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 12 december 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.