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Linguistic diversity index

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World map of linguistic diversity index (linearly proportional to the shading intensity). Data is from the 18th edition of Ethnologue: Languages of the World.

Linguistic diversity index (LDI) may refer to either Greenberg's (language) Diversity Index[1] or the related Index of Linguistic Diversity (ILD) from Terralingua, which measures changes in the underlying LDI over time.[2]

Greenberg's Diversity Index (LDI) is the probability that two people selected from the population at random will have different mother tongues; it therefore ranges from 0 (everyone has the same mother tongue) to 1 (no two people have the same mother tongue).[3] The ILD measures how the LDI has changed over time; a global ILD of 0.8 indicates a 20% loss of diversity since 1970, but ratios above 1 are possible, and have appeared in regional indexes.[4]

The computation of the diversity index is based on the population of each language as a proportion of the total population. The index cannot fully account for the vitality of languages. Also, the distinction between a language and a dialect is fluid and often political. A great number of languages are considered to be dialects of another language by some experts and separate languages by others. The index does not consider how different the languages are from each other, nor does it account for second language usage; it considers only the total number of distinct languages, and their relative frequency as mother tongues.[5]

A few examples may be helpful in understanding these caveats.

Are Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese considered the same language for this survey? A footnote in the UNESCO report says only "Country for which a comparison between Ethnologue’s official language designation and IBE’s coded timetable information was possible, the result of which highlighted certain inconsistencies."

Haiti is listed with an index of 0.000, despite having both French and Haitian Creole as official languages.

The United States is listed with an index of 1/3, which mechanically implies that if you pick two people at random, at least 1/3 of the time one of them won't have English as their Mother tongue -- but that is very different from saying that they are not fluent in English.

Rankings by country

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The UNESCO report cites an earlier (2005) edition of the Ethnologue as its own source for this particular data. The UNESCO report remains a useful independent source and benchmark year because of its wider availability. Footnotes do warn that the precise numbers should be used with some skepticism.

SIL International (2017)[6] UNESCO (2009)[7]
Rank Country / region LDI
1  Papua New Guinea 0.988
2  Cameroon 0.974
3  Vanuatu 0.973
4  Solomon Islands 0.968
5  Central African Republic 0.959
6  Democratic Republic of the Congo 0.948
7  Benin 0.933
8  Chad 0.933
9  South Sudan 0.929
10  Uganda 0.929
11  Kenya 0.927
12  Mozambique 0.926
13  Liberia 0.917
14  India 0.914
15  Togo 0.905
16  Ivory Coast 0.900
17  Nigeria 0.890
18  Mali 0.873
19  South Africa 0.871
20  Tanzania 0.871
21  Ethiopia 0.862
22  Guinea-Bissau 0.859
23  Ghana 0.858
24  Gabon 0.846
25  Philippines 0.842
26  Sierra Leone 0.841
27  Zambia 0.830
28  Bhutan 0.827
29  Qatar 0.825
30  Republic of the Congo 0.821
31  East Timor 0.819
32  Indonesia 0.816
33  Sint Maarten 0.816
34  Afghanistan 0.790
35  Madagascar 0.789
36  Namibia 0.779
37  Senegal 0.778
38  The Gambia 0.776
39  Iraq 0.761
40  Singapore 0.761
41    Nepal 0.755
42  Pakistan 0.752
43  Thailand 0.752
44  Micronesia 0.751
45  New Caledonia 0.750
46  Angola 0.748
47  Guinea 0.748
48  Guam 0.736
49  Malaysia 0.735
50  Belize 0.721
51  Burkina Faso 0.721
52  Israel 0.719
53  Northern Mariana Islands 0.719
54  Suriname 0.709
55  Caribbean Netherlands 0.707
56  United Arab Emirates 0.707
57  Belgium 0.700
58  Oman 0.698
59  Laos 0.697
60  Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.694
61  Malawi 0.692
62  Saint Martin 0.689
63   Switzerland 0.683
64  Tokelau 0.679
65  Eritrea 0.672
66  Andorra 0.671
67  Bahrain 0.658
68  Monaco 0.652
69  Iran 0.638
70  Fiji 0.632
71  São Tomé and Príncipe 0.630
72  Luxembourg 0.622
73  Kuwait 0.605
74  Canada 0.603
75  Trinidad and Tobago 0.599
76  Zimbabwe 0.597
77  Yemen 0.581
78  Niger 0.571
79  Brunei 0.570
80  Bolivia 0.565
81  Comoros 0.551
82  Georgia 0.550
83  United States Virgin Islands 0.550
84  French Guiana 0.549
85  Wallis and Futuna 0.548
86  Libya 0.538
87  Latvia 0.526
88  Myanmar 0.522
89  China 0.521
90  Guatemala 0.518
91  Antigua and Barbuda 0.515
92  Guyana 0.514
93  Kazakhstan 0.514
94  Egypt 0.512
95  Gibraltar 0.511
96  The Bahamas 0.509
97  Djibouti 0.504
98  Albania 0.503
99  Barbados 0.500
100  British Virgin Islands 0.500
101  Jordan 0.498
102  North Macedonia 0.495
103  Taiwan 0.489
104  Ukraine 0.489
105  Nauru 0.487
106  Cayman Islands 0.475
107  Estonia 0.473
108  Palau 0.470
109  Uzbekistan 0.466
110  French Polynesia 0.463
111  Morocco 0.461
112  Italy 0.460
113  Kyrgyzstan 0.459
114  Marshall Islands 0.457
115  Turkmenistan 0.457
116  Réunion 0.452
117  Sri Lanka 0.446
118  Cyprus 0.444
119  Mayotte 0.438
120  Aruba 0.429
121  Saudi Arabia 0.427
122  Belarus 0.411
123  Netherlands 0.405
124  Lithuania 0.404
125  Botswana 0.397
126  Moldova 0.389
127  Syria 0.363
128  Algeria 0.360
129  Somalia 0.350
130  Turkey 0.345
131  Peru 0.339
132  Germany 0.336
133  United States 0.333
134  Norfolk Island 0.325
135  Bangladesh 0.318
136  Dominica 0.313
137  Sudan 0.307
138  Palestine 0.303
139  New Zealand 0.291
140  Panama 0.287
141  Curaçao 0.285
142  Equatorial Guinea 0.284
143  Russia 0.283
144  Spain 0.276
145  Tajikistan 0.276
146  Australia 0.274
147  Vietnam 0.267
148  Malta 0.255
149  Macau 0.253
150  France 0.252
151  Slovakia 0.247
152  Montenegro 0.244
153  Saint Barthélemy 0.244
154  Austria 0.234
155  Cook Islands 0.232
156  Mauritania 0.228
157  Bulgaria 0.226
158  Sweden 0.226
159  Serbia 0.224
160  Mauritius 0.216
161  Paraguay 0.215
162  American Samoa 0.210
163  Swaziland 0.209
164  Hong Kong 0.205
165  Azerbaijan 0.202
166  Lebanon 0.198
167  Greenland 0.196
168  Niue 0.192
169  Ecuador 0.182
170  Mongolia 0.179
171  Samoa 0.174
172  Finland 0.172
173  Slovenia 0.167
174  Argentina 0.165
175  United Kingdom 0.154
176  Romania 0.153
177  Turks and Caicos Islands 0.146
178  Anguilla 0.141
179  Jersey 0.136
180  Greece 0.123
181  Tunisia 0.122
182  Ireland 0.118
183  Seychelles 0.116
184  Uruguay 0.111
185  Saint Pierre and Miquelon 0.110
186  Mexico 0.106
187  Croatia 0.102
188  Cambodia 0.101
189  Brazil 0.099
190  Liechtenstein 0.092
191  Lesotho 0.091
192  Denmark 0.089
193  Rwanda 0.089
194  Guadeloupe 0.083
195  Bermuda 0.076
196  Czech Republic 0.072
197  Norway 0.067
198  Portugal 0.066
199  Grenada 0.064
200  Puerto Rico 0.060
201  Armenia 0.053
202  Nicaragua 0.052
203  Montserrat 0.050
204  Poland 0.050
205  Martinique 0.043
206  Dominican Republic 0.040
207  Venezuela 0.040
208  Honduras 0.039
209  Chile 0.036
210  Costa Rica 0.036
211  Japan 0.035
212  Hungary 0.033
213  Tonga 0.029
214  Saint Lucia 0.020
215  Tuvalu 0.020
216  Colombia 0.019
217  Kiribati 0.019
218  Jamaica 0.017
219  Saint Kitts and Nevis 0.012
220  Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 0.010
221  South Korea 0.010
222  Burundi 0.007
223  Guernsey 0.007
224  Iceland 0.007
225  El Salvador 0.003
226  Cuba 0.001
227  Haiti 0.000
228  Isle of Man 0.000
229  San Marino 0.000
230  Vatican City 0.000
231  British Indian Ocean Territory 0.000
232  North Korea 0.000
Rank Country / region LDI
1  Papua New Guinea .990
2  Vanuatu .972
3  Solomon Islands .965
4  Tanzania .965
5  Central African Republic .960
6  Chad .950
7  Democratic Republic of the Congo .948
8  Cameroon .942
9  India .930
10  Mozambique .929
11  Uganda .928
12  Gabon .919
13  Côte d'Ivoire .917
14  Liberia .912
15  Angola .901
16  Kenya .901
17  Togo .897
18  Timor-Leste .897
19  Mali .876
20  Nigeria .870
21  South Africa .869
22  Zambia .855
23  Guinea-Bissau .853
24  Philippines .849
25  Bhutan .846
26  Indonesia .846
27  Ethiopia .843
28  Republic of the Congo .820
29  Sierra Leone .817
30  Namibia .808
31  Ghana .805
32  Iran .797
33  Micronesia .792
34  Suriname .788
35  Benin .785
36  United Arab Emirates .777
37  Burkina Faso .773
38  Senegal .772
39  Pakistan .762
40  Malaysia .758
41  Thailand .753
42  Eritrea .749
43  Gambia .748
44  Guinea .748
45  Singapore .748
46    Nepal .742
47  Belgium .734
48  Afghanistan .732
49  Kazakhstan .701
50  Trinidad and Tobago .696
51  Belize .693
52  Oman .693
53  Guatemala .691
54  Bolivia .680
55  Laos .678
56  Kyrgyzstan .670
57  Jordan .666
58  Israel .665
59  Bahrain .663
60  Norway .657
61  Madagascar .656
62  Niger .646
63  Mauritius .641
64  Saudi Arabia .609
65  Qatar .608
66  Fiji .607
67  Nauru .596
68  Latvia .595
69  Italy .593
70  Djibouti .592
71  Moldova .589
72  Sudan .587
73  Yemen .579
74  Georgia .576
75  Andorra .574
76  North Macedonia .566
77  Kuwait .556
78  Comoros .551
79  Canada .549
80   Switzerland .547
81  Cayman Islands .547
82  Austria .540
83  Zimbabwe .526
84  Monaco .521
85  Myanmar .521
86  Malawi .519
87  Egypt .509
88  Syria .503
89  Luxembourg .498
90  Gibraltar .498
91  San Marino .494
92  Ukraine .492
93  China .491
94  Iraq .484
95  Tajikistan .482
96  Estonia .476
97  Morocco .466
98  Brunei .456
99  Equatorial Guinea .453
100  Botswana .444
101  Spain .438
102  Uzbekistan .428
103  Bosnia and Herzegovina .416
104  Belarus .397
105  Netherlands .389
106  Sao Tome and Principe .389
107  Aruba .387
108  Bahamas .386
109  Turkmenistan .386
110  Cook Islands .379
111  Peru .376
112  Azerbaijan .373
113  Cyprus .366
114  Libya .362
115  Serbia .359
116  United States .353
117  Paraguay .347
118  Lithuania .339
119  Bangladesh .332
120  Mongolia .331
121  Panama .324
122  Dominica .313
123  Algeria .313
124  Sri Lanka .313
125  Slovakia .307
126  Turkey .289
127  Russia .283
128  France[note 1] .272
129  Netherlands Antilles .266
130  Ecuador .264
131  Lesotho .260
132  Albania .257
133  Vietnam .234
134  Swaziland .228
135  Bulgaria .224
136  Ireland .223
137  Argentina .213
138  Palestine .208
139  Germany .189
140  Somalia .179
141  Greece .175
142  Slovenia .174
143  Armenia .174
144  Mauritania .172
145  Romania .168
146  Sweden .167
147  British Virgin Islands .167
148  Lebanon .161
149  Hungary .158
150  Cambodia .157
151  Turks and Caicos Islands .145
152  Anguilla .140
153  Finland .140
154  Tuvalu .139
155  United Kingdom .139
156  Mexico .135
157  Liechtenstein .128
158  Australia .126
159  New Zealand .102
160  Uruguay .092
161  Barbados .091
162  Croatia .087
163  Nicaragua .081
164  Guyana .078
165  Palau .077
166  Niue .071
167  Cape Verde .070
168  Czech Republic .069
169  Seychelles .067
170  Grenada .064
171  Poland .060
172  Antigua and Barbuda .057
173  Honduras .056
174  Tokelau .054
175  Dominican Republic .053
176  Denmark .051
177  Costa Rica .050
178  Chile .034
179  Kiribati .033
180  Brazil .032
181  Colombia .030
182  Japan .028
183  Marshall Islands .027
184  Montserrat .026
185  Venezuela .026
186  Portugal .022
187  Saint Lucia .020
188  Iceland .019
189  Malta .016
190  Tonga .014
191  Tunisia .012
192  Jamaica .011
193  Saint Kitts and Nevis .010
194  Maldives .010
195  Saint Vincent and the Grenadines .009
196  El Salvador .004
197  Burundi .004
198  Rwanda .004
199  South Korea .003
200  Samoa .002
201  Cuba .001
202  Haiti .000
203  Saint Helena None
204  Vatican City None
205  Montenegro None
206  Bermuda None
207  Hong Kong None
208  Macau None
209  North Korea None

See also

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Notes and references

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Notes

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  1. ^ Including New Caledonia, a French Overseas Territory with a high level of Linguistic Diversity Index

References

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  1. ^ Greenberg, Joseph H. (1956). "The Measurement of Linguistic Diversity". Language. 32 (1): 109–115. doi:10.2307/410659. JSTOR 410659.
  2. ^ Harmon, David; Loh, Jonathan (2010). "The Index of Linguistic Diversity: A New Quantitative Measure of Trends in the Status of the World's Languages" (PDF). Language Documentation and Conservation. 4. nflrc.hawaii.edu/ldc: 97–151. hdl:10125/4474.
  3. ^ "Summary by country". Ethnologue. 1999-02-19. Retrieved 2013-09-05.
  4. ^ Harmon, David; Loh, Jonathan (2010). "The Index of Linguistic Diversity: A New Quantitative Measure of Trends in the Status of the World's Languages" (PDF). Language Documentation and Conservation. 4. nflrc.hawaii.edu/ldc: 106–107. hdl:10125/4474.
  5. ^ "overview of Linguistic Diversity". terralingua.org. Archived from the original on 2013-05-21. Retrieved 2014-11-18.
  6. ^ Data published in Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Twentieth Edition. Summary by Country | Ethnologue, SIL International. Accessed on 13 October 2017.
  7. ^ UNESCO World Report – Investing in Cultural Diversity and Intercultural Dialogue
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