Session 3

Session 3: Language Growth and Decline

The first session ended in the area of the language garden. It said it was valuable to have a rich mix of languages, just as we have a rich mix of plants in a garden. This was not something which just happened on its own. It had to have some planning and commitment. This session takes this theme a little further and looks at the gloomier side of language - where it declines and dies. There are many circumstances which we know will contribute to the development of a language and other conditions which will reduce it. There are three tables in Baker - pages 60-62 These are quite important and worth studying.