Language is a barrier to human communication.

Hello, everyone.

For effective communication to take place, both parties must understand each other; failure to understand each other simply means no communication was carried out. We have over 5,000 languages that are spoken in the world today; it is impossible to learn all of them, which makes language a barrier to effective communication. I have seen people who only understand their mother tongue, zero English, just their mother tongue, and me, on the other hand, don't understand their mother tongue, and they wanted to pass a message to me, but since there was no interpreter nearby, we had to let it go, and they left with whatever they intended to share.

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Language is said to be a means of communication, and information is passed through language, but for communication or for information to be passed, both parties must be able to speak or understand the language used to pass this information. Language is an integral part of our everyday lives; this language can be written, spoken, or even used in a song. There is no day that passes by that language does not play a role in our lives. As we go about our day-to-day activities, it is with the help of language that we get everything done.

I have seen a lot of people who are bilingual and how they brag about it. Nothing beats the feeling of knowing that even if you visit a country that's not yours, you won't have difficulties expressing yourself and finding your way around. Many people tend to just fall in love with those who speak their mother tongue but are not natives of the region. Being able to speak their language immediately buys you favor in their sight; some already see you as a brother or sister all because of the language. It is another way of identification; once it is heard, one can conclude the origin of the dialect spoken.

Our diversity in language is a beautiful thing, but it would have been more beautiful if only we could learn how to speak and understand all the languages in the world, which is impossible. This is why we owe it all to technology. Today, we don't need to really understand how to speak the language, but with just our computer or device, we can communicate effectively with people with different mother tongues. Technology has made life that easy; we do not need to carry an interpreter everywhere we go, as our phones can now do the job perfectly.

I was born and brought up in the northern part of my country, Nigeria. I hardly visited my hometown in the eastern part of the country because of the distance and the nature of my dad's job. I grew up knowing how to speak Hausa fluently, which is a language the northerners are known for, but I did not know how to speak my own mother tongue (Igbo). My parents tried all they could, but I was only able to understand a few things but couldn't speak, so they decided that after high school I would go back home for college. Since Igbo is the language mostly spoken in the east, there is no way I won't learn how to speak it fluently before I graduate.

The day I arrived in Abia State, it was exactly as they predicted: everyone only communicates with Igbo, including taxi drivers. Anyone I stopped, talked to me in Igbo language, and if I respond in English or I take time to respond, they just zoom off. I explained my problem to a shop owner I heard speak English with someone over the phone, and she helped me talk to a taxi driver that took me to school. Just like they predicted, now I can speak and understand my mother tongue, though not fluently, but better than before.

_{This is my entry for day 4 of the InLeo monthly prompt. You can join by clicking the above link.}

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