Language and cultural diversity
“Linguistic diversity is a fundamental element of cultural diversity” (UNESCO Convention 2005), it protects and promotes cultural expressions, ideas and values of the communities. Different community languages not only provide alternative perspectives toward places and spaces of the city but it plays an important part in gaining awareness about diverse cultural heritage. This is a way to promote intercultural sensitivity, dialogue among communities and tolerance.
Language and culture have a complex, homologous relationship. Language is complexly intertwined with culture, they have evolved together, influencing one another in the process, ultimately shaping what it means to be human. Read more…
Understanding is a relation between the people, not between language systems. To understand other people is to “see” the world through their eyes, minds and senses.
Exercise: Uncover the linguistic diversity
When presenting a place for tourists, try to include in your story at least one of the local languages. It could be a local narrative, tale, song, anecdote etc. Use audio or video records, internet, social media as a sources.
- What is the history of the place that you know or you would like to visit?
- What are the key sites, representative for particular historical periods, included in official web pages, videos, blogs, and social medias, etc.
- What are the messages for the local and international tourist?
- Meet and talk to the people, trying to understand which communities are important for them?
- Be a good listener and try to understand the ways of expressing people’s’
- Try to identify the important places, which “keeps” the
- Try to identify the important events, individuals and institutions who provide a sense of belonging to the place of the people from the community/ies.
- Try to link the story of the local people from the community to the larger European Narratives.
- Try to find a way to present how the story sounds on the local language and than to provide translation of the cultural
- Try to find the universal elements of the story of the local people who can link the narrative to the experience of everyone.
Examples: Childhood plays, friends, Memories about sounds and flavors, migration from one place to another and etc.
