题型:阅读理解 题类:常考题 难易度:普通
四川省成都市双流中学2018-2019学年高二下学期英语6月月考试卷
Many languages are disappearing and languages such as English, Spanish and Chinese are increasingly taking over. Yet Maori promises to have a rosy future given that New Zealanders are showing great enthusiasm for speaking this local language.
A "Maori renaissance (复兴)" blossomed in the 1970s as language activists championed their cause and Maori fought for greater political power. But until 2013, just 3.7 percent of New Zealanders spoke the language fluently, and many predicted it would soon die out. Now New Zealand's government is erasing prejudice and struggling to increase the percent of population who can speak basic Maori by 2040 to 20. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardem said last month that her newborn daughter would learn both Maori and English. "It's an official language, so why should we dismiss its universal availability and its much more common use?" said Ms. Ardem, adding that she also planned to study the language. Grassroots are also spreading it by word of mouth Answering the phone with the greeting "kiaora" (hello) or ending an email withunga mihi' (thanks) has become a fashion. Maori is gradually becoming part of New Zealand's mainstream popular culture.
Ajit Kumar Samah, a famous professor in Auckland University, published a book—Coniagious: why Maori catches on, where he introduces readers to the popularity of Maori and expresses his great anxiety for the lack of teachers who have the competence to teach the Maori language.
People are not on the same wavelength, however. Suggestions on officially replacing English-language place names with traditional Maori ones have been rejected. So when a police car was designed using Maori, it was condemned by some as ridiculous because of the higher Maori rates of arrest and imprisonment.
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