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You know I’ve had my head tilted up to the stars for as long as I can remember.

Arrival (2016) Dir. Denis Villeneuve

Learning a language from the same language family as your native tongue feels like reconnecting with an old cousin

Arrival /2016 Director: Denis Villeneuve Cinematography: Bradford Young

learning languages because i need to understand and be friends with every person on earth <3

The basic pleasure in the phonetic elements of a language and in the style of their patterns, and then in a higher dimension, pleasure in the association of these word-forms with meanings, is of fundamental importance. This pleasure is quite distinct from the practical knowledge of a language, and not the same as an analytic understanding of its structure. It is simpler, deeper-rooted, and yet more immediate than the enjoyment of literature. Though it may be allied to some of the elements in the appreciation of verse, it does not need any poets, other than the nameless artists who composed the language. It can be strongly felt in the simple contemplation of a vocabulary, or even in a string of names.

- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Monsters and the Critics and Other Essays    

So, Hannah…this is where your story begins. The day they departed. Despite knowing the journey and where it leads, I embrace it. And I welcome every moment of it

Arrival (2016) dir. Denis Villeneuve

Indo-european languages

Language is the foundation of civilization. It is the glue that holds a people together. It is the first weapon drawn in a conflict.

Arrival (2016) dir. Denis Villeneuve

The Countries with the Most Linguistic Diversity

Thousands of languages are spoken worldwide, but only a fraction are used widely. In fact, the speakers of 23 languages account for more than half of the total global population.

Despite this, there are still pockets around the globe that are rich in linguistic diversity.

Papua New Guinea is the most linguistically diverse country in the world, with approximately 840 different languages spoken across the islands. To put things into perspective, that’s almost 12% of the world’s languages spoken in an area that’s roughly the size of California. A likely reason for the country’s linguistic diversity is its isolation from modern life. Over 80% of Papua New Guinea’s population lives in rural areas and has minimal contact with external influences or other tribes.

In second place, Indonesia has around 711 different languages. Only 20% of the population speaks the national language of Bahasa Indonesian at home. Like Papua New Guinea, a major factor that could explain its language diversity is its geography—Indonesia is made up of around 17,500 islands (although more than 7,000 of them are uninhabited).

Here's a list of top ten countries with the most languages:

(These numbers include established and immigrant dialects.)