Buzz
Linguistic genocide has been a persistent tactic throughout history, employed to deliberately destroy languages for various motives. Whether it’s to assert political dominance, enforce cultural assimilation, or create linguistic homogeneity, this method has led to the decline of many languages over the last two centuries. This list does not concentrate on the complete annihilation of a language due to actual violence or extermination, but instead highlights historical moments when a language was targeted for eradication or replacement through other means.
10. Speak Mandarin Campaign
In 1979, the Singaporean government initiated the Speak Mandarin Campaign to encourage Chinese Singaporeans to speak Mandarin. The policy has faced considerable criticism, especially as the majority of Chinese Singaporeans come from southern China, where regional dialects are more common than Mandarin. As part of this campaign, the government prohibited non-Mandarin Chinese languages in media broadcasts and restricted foreign media in those languages. The campaign has had some success in increasing Mandarin usage while diminishing the use of other Chinese dialects, which has created communication challenges between younger and older generations.
9. Hawaiian
The Hawaiian language began to decline in the 1820s, largely due to the influence of missionaries. As more Hawaiians learned English, Hawaiian usage dwindled. However, it wasn’t until 1893, when the Provisional Government took control after the monarchy's fall, that an active campaign to replace Hawaiian with English began. This included a 1896 decree banning Hawaiian in public schools (though it remained permissible in other settings), a policy that persisted into the 20th century. The effects of this linguistic suppression are still evident today: only around 2,000 native speakers remain, though efforts to revitalize and teach Hawaiian are slowly gaining traction.
8. Ryukyuan languages
The decline of the Ryukyuan languages began after the Ryukyu Kingdom lost its independence to Japan in the late 19th century. The Japanese government severely suppressed these languages in schools. In Okinawa and other parts of Japan, students were punished for speaking anything other than Standard Japanese, often required to wear a “dialect card” around their necks as a mark of shame. From World War II onward, Japan has considered the Ryukyuan languages to be a mere “dialect” of Japanese, rather than distinct languages in their own right. Today, efforts are being made to preserve these languages, but the future looks bleak as most Okinawan children are now monolingual in Japanese.
7. Korean
Korea endured Japanese occupation from 1910 to 1945, which included a cultural genocide that sought to suppress the Korean language. In schools, Japanese was used as the language of instruction, with Korean relegated to an elective. Over time, this evolved into a full ban on speaking Korean during school hours. Korean was also prohibited in workplaces. As part of Japan's policy of cultural assimilation, Koreans were encouraged (and often forced) to adopt Japanese names, either voluntarily or under coercion. Although Japan’s occupation ended with its defeat in World War II, the legacy of this cultural repression continues to affect relations between the two countries.
6. Russification
“Russification” refers to the policies enacted by both Imperial Russia and the Soviet Union that sought to impose the Russian language upon the various ethnic minorities within their territories. This strategy was often employed to consolidate Russian authority, suppress separatist movements, and eliminate any potential rebellions. Particularly in regions such as Ukraine and Finland, Russification was a tool used to assert political control and dominance.
One of the most notable examples of Russification occurred in the 19th century when languages such as Ukrainian, Polish, Lithuanian, and Belarusian were actively suppressed. The use of these languages was prohibited in public spaces and schools, and these harsh policies only escalated following several uprisings in the region.
Under Soviet rule, the Arabic alphabet was abolished, and many languages were forced to adopt variations of the Cyrillic alphabet. Although minority languages were initially encouraged during the early years of the USSR, this policy eventually shifted towards Russian linguistic supremacy. As a result, many people began to favor Russian over their native tongues, and today, Russian remains widely spoken in many former Soviet republics.
5. The British Isles
The English domination over Wales, Scotland, and Ireland brought with it the widespread use of the English language, but this led to the gradual extinction of the native languages. Welsh, Scottish Gaelic, Scots, and Irish were all banned in schools at different points, which greatly contributed to the decline in their use. In Wales, the Welsh Not—a piece of wood marked with “WN” that was hung around the neck of children who spoke Welsh—was used as punishment in the 1800s. Beatings for speaking non-English languages were common across the British Isles. Welsh, Scots Gaelic, and Irish were considered inferior to English, while Scots was not even regarded as a distinct language, all of which led to their suppression. It wasn’t until the 20th century that the British government began taking steps to protect these languages, though their success has been limited. Today, the native languages are spoken by only a minority and remain secondary to English in all of these countries.
4. La Vergonha
“La vergonha” (Occitan for “the shame”) describes the discriminatory policies the French government imposed on minority languages. Speakers of these languages were often marginalized and humiliated in schools, society, and the media. In the late 18th century, the French government banned all non-French languages from administration and education, with the intention of achieving linguistic unity. By the late 19th century, severe punishment for speaking regional languages became widespread in schools. Those caught speaking a “patois,” a term used by the French government to suggest backwardness, were made to wear a symbol around their necks. Discrimination against non-French languages persists today and remains a sensitive issue. Recently, French President Nicolas Sarkozy has refused to ratify the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, a treaty aimed at protecting regional languages.
3. Kurdish
The Kurdish people have long faced discrimination in several countries. Even when not the target of genocide, their language has been systematically oppressed. Iraq stands out for being one of the most tolerant countries toward its Kurdish population. Kurdish is an official language there, and it is used in education, administration, and media. Sadly, this is not the case in many other nations.
In Turkey, efforts to assimilate non-Turkish speakers began in the 1930s, with a ban on the Kurdish language and culture. The Kurds were regarded as primitive and uneducated, and expressing a distinct Kurdish identity was considered a criminal act. This changed in 1991 when Turkey legalized the private use of spoken Kurdish. Over time, restrictions have loosened: Kurdish is no longer banned in education, and there are fewer limitations on Kurdish-language television broadcasts. Despite these improvements, discrimination against the Kurdish language continues in Turkey.
A similar situation unfolded in Iran, where the government enforced a policy of “Persianization” during the early 20th century. Kurdish was prohibited in schools and government institutions, and eventually, a total ban was placed on the language. In some countries, this policy still persists. In Syria, for instance, Kurdish is banned in most public contexts.
2. Francoist Spain
During Francisco Franco's regime from 1939 to 1975, Spain's regional and minority languages were systematically suppressed in order to elevate Spanish as the dominant language. Franco's language policies were closely tied to his efforts to foster nationalism, making Spanish the sole official language of the country. Public use of any other language was either prohibited or heavily discouraged, varying by region and time period, and non-Spanish names were banned. The most repressive measures occurred in the early years of Franco's rule in the 1940s and 1950s, but they relaxed somewhat in the later years of his reign. To further undermine these languages, they were often dismissed as mere dialects of Spanish, with the notable exception of Basque, which is significantly distinct from Spanish.
The main regional languages affected by Franco's policies included Basque, Catalan, and Galician, though all regional languages faced discrimination. Catalan provides a clear example: it was forbidden in government institutions, public events, advertisements, and the media, yet it was still spoken in some informal settings. Despite this, publishing in Catalan continued throughout Franco's dictatorship, and speaking it in public or in business was not strictly prohibited. From the 1950s onward, Catalan was allowed in theater performances, and by the end of the regime, certain public celebrations in Catalan were tolerated.
1. Chinese in Indonesia
Indonesia's Chinese community suffered intense persecution under President Suharto, who held power from 1967 until his resignation in 1998. This discrimination included the extreme suppression of the Chinese languages, which were banned from almost all public life. Chinese-language newspapers were shut down, with only one allowed to remain in circulation, and all Chinese schools were closed. Public use of Chinese script was prohibited, and those caught using it were subjected to police harassment. In addition, Chinese-Indonesians were forced to adopt Indonesian-sounding names, a form of cultural erasure. These harsh policies, combined with the social stigma attached to being of Chinese descent, led to the gradual loss of the language among younger generations. It wasn’t until Suharto’s resignation that President Abdurrahman Wahid lifted the bans on Chinese languages, allowing for a revival of cultural expression.
