Two languages worldwide are lost every week. Cherokee is a highly endangered Native American language. Currently, there are fewer than 2,000 speakers of the language remaining in the world, and the number is declining every year. Keeping a language alive can strengthen people's sense of identity and most importantly, lead to the preservation of a whole culture. The creation of an album of original songs performed in the Cherokee language is one of the most original methods.
Cherokee and non-Cherokee music artists decided to create a music album in the Cherokee language. This is part of a project to preserve this ancient, fading language. The album features a dozen Cherokee artists and includes a real variety of genres（类型） ranging from folk, country, and heavy metal to hip hop.
There are different ways to keep a language alive, and the album intends to bring a modern approach to the revitalization （复兴） of the Cherokee language. One promising strategy is to introduce it to young people, and what better route than to use the language of contemporary music to achieve such a meaningful goal.
"Wherever our kids are, our language needs to be there, too," the executive director of the Cherokee Nation Language Department, Howard Paden, explained. "Our belief is very simple. The Cherokee language is so powerful that people can enjoy using it very easily and are unable to stop using it. If we can get the language around to people and make the language enter their hearts at a very young age, then they will always be connected with who we are as a people."
Multilingualism（多语种主义） is very powerful since it provides a different way of understanding and perceiving the world. This can result in technological and scientific advancement for humankind. So preserving endangered languages like Cherokee is not only about helping specific communities affected but also about recognizing and celebrating diversity as one of humankind's greatest strengths.
