Language | Identity | Education | Cultural Heritage
Today’s focus: What disappears when children stop speaking the language of their grandparents?
Quote of the Day
“Cultural diversity is as necessary for humankind as biodiversity is for nature.” — Article 1, UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, adopted November 2, 2001.
Source: UNESCO — Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity.
When Grandma’s Stories Need a Translator
Imagine a grandmother sitting with her grandchildren during a family gathering.
She begins telling them a story she heard from her own grandmother.
It is a story about a stubborn child, a clever tortoise and a lesson about honesty.
She tells it in the language she has spoken all her life.
The younger children laugh when she makes funny gestures. But they do not understand most of her words.
One of the older children translates.
The grandmother continues, occasionally stopping to explain a proverb that has no simple equivalent in English or French.
Eventually, she gives up and tells the rest of the story in a language the children understand.
Everyone enjoys the moment.
But something has changed.
The story has survived. The language in which it was passed down has not.
This is becoming a familiar experience in many families.
Parents want their children to succeed at school. They encourage English or French because those languages open doors to education, employment and opportunities beyond their communities.
There is nothing wrong with that.
Children should have every opportunity to learn languages that will help them build their futures.
But must learning one language mean losing another?
A child can speak English fluently and still learn the language of their grandparents.
A family can embrace life in a new country without abandoning the words that once filled their home.
For many Cameroonian families, including those living abroad, the difficulty is not necessarily a lack of interest.
It is everyday life.
Parents are busy. Children spend most of their time at school. Their friends speak English or French. Even at home, it sometimes feels easier to use whichever language everyone understands.
Little by little, the family language becomes something children hear but rarely speak.
Then one day, a grandparent asks a simple question, and the child cannot answer.
That moment can be painful.
Not because the child has done anything wrong, but because a connection between generations has become harder to maintain.
Language carries more than information.
It carries humour, family memories, names, songs, greetings and ways of understanding the world.
When a language disappears from a family, some of those connections may become more difficult to pass on.
Of course, preserving a language does not mean forcing children to speak it perfectly or making them ashamed when they struggle.
It can begin with small things.
A greeting every morning.
A bedtime story.
A familiar song.
A conversation with grandparents.
Perhaps the greatest gift is allowing children to associate their family language with affection rather than correction.
We should want our children to speak the languages that will take them far in life. But we should also give them the chance to understand the language that tells them where they come from.
Did You Know?
Thousands of languages are spoken around the world, but very few are used in formal education.
According to UNESCO, approximately 7,000 languages are still spoken worldwide, yet only 231 are used in education systems.
The organization also reports that around 2,500 languages are listed in its Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger.
Africa is home to roughly one-third of the world’s languages, making it one of the most linguistically diverse regions.
But many children receive their education in languages different from those they speak at home.
In February 2025, UNESCO reported that fewer than 20% of pupils in Francophone Africa receive instruction in their mother tongue.
Research cited by UNESCO also indicates that African children taught in a familiar language are more likely to develop reading comprehension by the end of primary school.
This does not mean children should learn only their mother tongue.
It means that a language they already understand can help them learn other subjects and additional languages.
Cameroon offers an interesting example.
In March 2025, UNESCO participated in activities organized by Cameroon’s education ministries to promote national languages and multilingual education.
Students in Yaoundé performed sketches, recited poems and participated in language activities.
These efforts matter, but schools cannot preserve languages alone.
Families and communities also have a role.
Children need opportunities to hear their languages spoken naturally, not only during cultural celebrations.
A language remains alive when people continue using it in ordinary conversations, especially with the next generation.
Sources: UNESCO — Languages and multilingualism · UNESCO — Articles on multilingual education in Africa and Cameroon (2025).
For Discussion
Should parents make a deliberate effort to teach their children their mother tongue, even when the family lives in a country where that language is rarely spoken?
For Cameroonian families raising children abroad, what has helped you keep your family language alive?
Should schools in Cameroon give national languages a more prominent place in children’s education?
And if your children understand your mother tongue but cannot speak it, would you consider that a loss, or simply a natural part of growing up in a multilingual society?
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