“Language is an essential driver of societal development. It serves as the primary medium through which individuals perceive the world, collective consciousness is shaped, and cultural and historical memory is transmitted across generations. Consequently, the extinction of a language inevitably leads to the disappearance of its corresponding culture.

Global awareness regarding the threat of language extinction grew toward the end of the last century. Since then, documenting endangered languages has been a priority for UNESCO. Current data indicates that out of approximately 7,000 languages spoken worldwide, 2,467 are considered endangered. This global challenge directly affects Georgia, which is home to several threatened languages from the Kartvelian, Caucasian, Indo-European, Turkic, and Semitic families—specifically Megrelian, Laz, Svan, Abkhazian, Tsova-Tush, Udi, Neo-Aramaic, Ossetian, Pontic Greek, and Urumi.”

The upcoming lecture will focus on the Udi language, an endangered language spoken in Georgia. The speaker will explore the historical and contemporary sociolinguistic situation of the Udi community, alongside prospects for the revitalization of their native language.