Paper short abstract:

The disappearance of any language occasions the loss of the world's priceless heritage .It is therefore necessary to avert the endangerment of indigenous languages in order to consolidate such invaluable indigenous knowledge.

Paper long abstract:

Having observed that indigenous languages in Cameroon just like those in other parts of Africa and the world at large are dying out, this study aims at investigating the rate of endangerment of some 16 indigenous languages spoken by 181039 people of the Manyu Division in the south West Region of the Republic of Cameroon so as to determine ways of revitalizing them such that knowledge of biodiversity by the indigenous people can be enhanced.The study hypothesizes as follows:language endangerment has a negative impact on knowledge of biodiversity, the use of indigenous languages will enhance knowledge of biodiversity and linguistic plurality enhances knowledge of biodiversity. In order to achieve its goal, the research will embark on a qualitative and quantitative design of inquiry, making use of 500 respondents randomly selected from speakers of all the 16 languages.The instruments for data collection will be questionnaires, interview and field observation.It is hoped that the findings from the study will not only provide the rate of endangerment of indigenous languages of the area, but also awareness of biodiversity and more specifically indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants.