1311: Counting Languages Jul 13, 2018

The vast majority of languages are undocumented, so not only are any estimates about the number of languages at best good guesses, but also, since languages change so much over time, by the time that any censuses may be completed, some may be dead, or morphed. This is certainly problematic for looking at languages with low populations of speakers, and or those in frequent contact with other languages, but this is especially difficult in regions wherein hundreds of languages are spoken. The 4 most linguistically diverse countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Nigeria, and India, and they have so many languages—both documented and undocumented—that it is even a challenge to know what is a dialect and what is a language. For more on looking at languages from all over the world, check out the newest Word facts Video: https://youtu.be/gXIq8o668Fw