World Endangered Writing Day

Language as Culture: Adam Levy Unpacks the Chokri Language at Patna Women’s College on World Endangered Writing Day
Patna, India – January 23, 2024 – The Department of English and Lexicon Language Club of Patna Women’s College, an autonomous institution under Patna University, celebrated World Endangered Writing Day with an engaging and insightful session titled “Chokri Language of Nagaland: Fieldwork Experience and Findings.”
The session started with a welcoming the guest speaker by the Head, Department of English Dr. Sahar Rahman and Dr. Devina Krishna, Coordinater of Lexicon Language Club. The speaker Mr. Adam Levy, a distinguished Ph.D. scholar from La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia, shared his fieldwork experiences and findings about the Chokri language—a significant yet lesser-known language spoken in the state of Nagaland, India.
The event underscored the importance of preserving endangered languages as part of cultural heritage and provided an interactive platform for students to discuss linguistic diversity and field research methodologies. It also taught us to be prepared and well equipped for revival of languages in case of language death, as we know that one language dies every two weeks.
Mr. Levy talked about his research process which included word lists, stories, sentences, morphosyntactic paradigms, obtained from the native Chokri language speakers. He went across ten different villages to collect similar data in order to make comparisons for a better understanding of the language.
The programme ended with the projection of a series of photos taken by Mr. Levy during his fieldwork and also a folksong called “Seasons”through which he teleported the audience to Nagaland. Along with his knowledge and experience he also added a personal touch to his presentation by reading a message sent by one of the native Chokri language speaking Phd. students which stated that the “People from Nagaland are direct and straightforward” unlike their complex language system.
The programme attracted language enthusiasts, researchers, and students passionate about the field of linguistics and cultural studies. By spotlighting endangered writing systems, Patna Women’s College reaffirmed its commitment to promoting academic exploration and cultural preservation.