Researchers are rushing to document three dying languages in Sierra Leone and Guinea. Most linguists put the number of languages spoken across Africa at about two thousand. Some consider about 300 of those endangered because they are spoken by fewer than 10 thousand people. Scholars say losing them would mean losing culture, traditions and knowledge about issues such as medicinal herbs.
VOA's Bart Childs recently accompanied a small group of researchers who went to Sierra Leone to document three languages on the verge of disappearing: Kim, Bom, and Mani.
The team was made up of research assistant Hanah Sarvasy, Ali Turay of the University of Njala in Sierra Leone, master facilitator Curtis Peku and, in the lead, Professor Tucker Childs of Portland State University. He is the brother of reporter Bart Childs.
Reaching their destination in western Sierra Leone took planning and perseverance.
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Childs carried a camera, solar charger and other technical equipment in a bag he called "fat boy." Porters were hired to carry it.
The team started its excursion in the capital, Freetown. From there, they drove to the market town of Bunapea, where they boarded a riverboat for a six-hour trip to the village of Tei.
They visited sites where the languages are in decline. Bart Childs captures the experience with video diaries, or vlogs.
They document local traditions, including Bom-speaking Sampor, where villagers are filmed harvesting a popular food, palm nuts.
The team also explore Kim-speaking Nyandehun. Villagers there value drumming, not only for pleasure, but alsofor mourning the deceased. And they use song, dance and storytelling to instill values and good behavior in their children.
Using audio and video recordings, Professor Tucker Childs plans to create an alphabet for Kim and use it to produce teaching materials for the community, scholars and future generations.
In the Mani-speaking village of