From its homepage you can go to the Andes, to the center of the territory that once belonged to the Incas. Here you can find dances and riddles in Quechua, the language spoken by the Andean peoples. Terralingue keeps an eye on many parts of the planet and its global outlook sets it apart. Because areas rich in languages also tend to be rich in biodiversity.
Terrlingua is a non-profit organization committed to the safeguarding of endangered languages through the Internet. It was founded in 1996 by a group of professionals and enthusiasts from the most varied fields: anthropology, linguistics, biology and human rights. The common denominator is the conviction that the determination to protect and study linguistic and cultural biodiversity is a challenge that meshes with the determination to preserve ecosystems.
Above all the website is an unlimited source of news on unknown endangered languages and focuses on the relationship between linguistic, cultural and biological diversity. This relationship is even more visible in indigenous populations that have maintained strong bonds with the environment and territory in which they live. Traditional knowledge and the words to express and pass it on: this is what Terralingua highlights. Peoples that lose their languages and cultural identities risk losing respect and understanding for their surrounding nature. Their position on the environment and ecosystem is noticeable from the website, where you can download a valuable tool: Report on the Global Source Book on Biocultural Diversity.
According to the most pessimistic estimates of biologists, half of the world’s species will be extinct or close to extinction by the end of next century, even if a large part of the world’s biodiversity still hasn’t even been cataloged. The interesting thing is that observing the hotbeds of biodiversity you can see that areas rich in languages also tend to have the richest biodiversity. Complexity generates complexity and linguistic diversity is an important component of this model that sees richness and stability living side by side. Organisms as well as species can be considered systems that occupy niches.
