Measuring linguistic diversity on the Internet
04-01-2006 (Paris/Montreal)
Front cover of the publication
© UNESCO
Hundreds of local languages may be sidelined in the drive to bridge the digital divide because of technological oversight and political inertia, according to a new UNESCO publication entitled “Measuring Linguistic Diversity on the Internet”.
UNESCO is calling for new ways to monitor information societies which go beyond a techno-centric view to consider the social impact of the Internet.
According to the new publication that was prepared under the auspices of the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, there are no accurate figures concerning language use on the Internet. For example, there have been claims that diversity is increasing because of soaring numbers of non-native English speakers (mostly Chinese). Indeed, it has been estimated only 36% of actual Internet users are anglophone.
However, this is an estimate based upon other estimates produced largely by a marketing company. “Absent from the data is any kind of actual survey of Internet users,” says the UIS publication. There is no indication of the language these people actually speak or use on the Internet.
Given the complexity involved, no single organization could develop a standard methodology which would accurately reflect Internet users around the world. So the UIS is proposing the creation of a network of regional initiatives, whose studies could then be combined in an overall global perspective.
The new UIS publication presents key findings of these research initiatives. While debating the predominance of English, the authors all stress that computers were originally designed with English in mind and therefore have inherent technological biases.
Bibliographic reference:
Measuring linguistic diversity on the Internet. A collection of papers by: John Paolillo, Daniel Pimienta, Daniel Prado, et al. . - Edited with an introduction by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics Montreal, Canada . - Montreal: UNESCO, 2005 (CI.2005/WS/06)
According to the new publication that was prepared under the auspices of the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, there are no accurate figures concerning language use on the Internet. For example, there have been claims that diversity is increasing because of soaring numbers of non-native English speakers (mostly Chinese). Indeed, it has been estimated only 36% of actual Internet users are anglophone.
However, this is an estimate based upon other estimates produced largely by a marketing company. “Absent from the data is any kind of actual survey of Internet users,” says the UIS publication. There is no indication of the language these people actually speak or use on the Internet.
Given the complexity involved, no single organization could develop a standard methodology which would accurately reflect Internet users around the world. So the UIS is proposing the creation of a network of regional initiatives, whose studies could then be combined in an overall global perspective.
The new UIS publication presents key findings of these research initiatives. While debating the predominance of English, the authors all stress that computers were originally designed with English in mind and therefore have inherent technological biases.
Bibliographic reference:
Measuring linguistic diversity on the Internet. A collection of papers by: John Paolillo, Daniel Pimienta, Daniel Prado, et al. . - Edited with an introduction by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics Montreal, Canada . - Montreal: UNESCO, 2005 (CI.2005/WS/06)
Related themes/countries
· Supporting Research
· Languages in Cyberspace celebrated on the International Mother Language Day
· Multilingualism in Cyberspace: News Archives 2006
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