Expert role for sociolinguist

Sociolinguist Professor Enam Al-Wer has been appointed to the Expert Committee of UNESCO’s World Atlas of Languages – which documents and captures our rich diversity of languages.

The World Atlas of Languages is an interactive and dynamic online tool that documents different aspects and features of language status in countries and languages around the world.

According to its methodology, there are 8,324 languages, spoken or signed, documented by the governments, public institutions and academic communities in UNESCO’s member states and around 7,000 languages are still in use.

Professor Al-Wer's specialism is in linguistic variation and change and the formation of new dialects. Her research, which spans over 35 years, focuses on modern Arabic dialects.

“I am looking forward to working with other colleagues on this important project which will provide accurate and reliable data on the world’s languages and understanding of linguistic diversity,” said Professor Al-Wer. “The World Atlas of Languages builds on the UNESCO Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger of Disappearing. The current project will be more comprehensive and inclusive and will incorporate a more interdisciplinary understanding of linguistic diversity.”

Her role on the Expert Committee will involve advising on general issues relating to the atlas, as well as overseeing the information about the MENA region (Middle East and North Africa). This region has always been extremely diverse, both linguistically and ethnically, but most of its population today speak dialects of Arabic as native languages.

On the World Atlas of Languages, every language is marked distinctly according to its type, structure and affiliation, its situation, state and status and, finally, their functions, users and usage.

Stressing the importance of protecting linguistic diversity, Professor Al-Wer, from the Department of Language and Linguistics, added: “There is a close connection between the loss of a language and the loss of the culture associated with that language. So, when we lament the obliteration of cultural diversity we should lament reduction in linguistic diversity.”