How languages like Bislama show us that borrowing words is a sign of strength, not weakness — and what the story of Lonwolwol teaches us about the fragility of this relationship

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Have you ever wondered why some languages seem to “borrow” so many words from others? Or why Bislama speakers say “intanet” instead of having a completely different word for the internet? The answer lies in understanding one of the most fascinating relationships in human communication: the dynamic dance between language and culture.

But this dance isn’t always graceful. Sometimes it’s tragically interrupted, as the story of Lonwolwol reminds us.

The Two-Way Mirror

Language and culture work together in two powerful ways:

Language as a Mirror: Language reflects what’s important to a culture. When you look at a language’s vocabulary, you’re seeing a snapshot of what that culture values, experiences, and needs to talk about. In Vanuatu, for instance, there are rich, detailed words for different sea conditions – a clear reflection of a culture deeply connected to the ocean and fishing.

Culture as a Shaper: Culture actively shapes and changes language over time. As cultures evolve, encounter new technologies, or face new challenges, they need new words – and language adapts to meet these needs.

But what happens when the culture that shapes a language suddenly disappears?

When the Dance Stops: The Story of Lonwolwol

In 1913, the volcano on Ambrym erupted violently, destroying the village of Lonwolwol and forcing its people to scatter across other islands like Epi, Santo, and parts of Ambrym itself. It wasn’t just their homes that were lost – the living environment where language and culture thrived together was destroyed.

Lonwolwol was more than just a language; it was a mirror reflecting how people lived with the sea, the gardens, and the land of Southwest Ambrym. It held words for fishing techniques, names of local plants, ways to speak to elders, and prayers for community gatherings. Every word carried a piece of identity, belief, and knowledge built over generations.

But when the people were displaced, the culture that shaped and needed Lonwolwol changed. New places, survival needs, and mixed communities meant children grew up speaking other local languages and Bislama for daily life. The environment that once demanded Lonwolwol no longer existed, and over decades, the language fell silent, living only in hymn books, a dictionary, and the memories of a few elders.

This tragic story illustrates a crucial truth: language loss is never just about losing words. It’s about losing the culture that gave those words meaning.

When New Meets Old: The Borrowing Process

For languages that survive cultural changes, adaptation becomes essential. When something completely new enters a culture – like computers, mobile phones, or the internet – the language faces a choice:

1. Create a completely new word from existing language elements
2. Borrow and adapt a word from another language
3. Extend the meaning of an existing word

Most languages, including Bislama, often choose option 2 – and there’s a perfectly good reason for this.

Bislama: A Success Story of Adaptation

Bislama, one of Vanuatu’s official languages, beautifully illustrates successful adaptation. Unlike Lonwolwol, Bislama has thrived by serving as a bridge between cultures and adapting to changing needs.

Traditional Vocabulary (Rich and Detailed)

• Sea conditions: Multiple specific words for different ocean states
• Weather patterns: Precise terms for seasonal changes
• Family relationships: Complex kinship terminology
• Traditional foods: Detailed vocabulary for local plants and preparation methods

Borrowed Vocabulary (Adapted for New Needs)

• Telefon (telephone) – simplified from English
• Kompiuta (computer) – adapted to Bislama sound patterns
• Ka (car) – shortened and simplified
• Intanet (internet) – consonant cluster simplified
• Televisen (television) – ending adapted to fit Bislama phonology
• Skul (school) – streamlined spelling

The Adaptation Magic

Notice something important about those borrowed words? They’re not just copied directly from English. Bislama takes the English words and adapts them to fit its own sound system and grammar rules:

• “Internet” becomes “Intanet” – removes the difficult “nt” consonant cluster
• “Television becomes “Televisen” – simplifies the ending to match Bislama patterns

This process, called phonological adaptation, shows that even when borrowing, languages maintain their own identity and structure.

Why Borrowing Makes Sense

Think about it practically: when smartphones first arrived in Vanuatu, people needed to talk about them immediately. They could either:

1. Spend years developing a completely new word from traditional elements
2. Adapt the existing international term that everyone already associated with the technology

Option 2 is simply more efficient – and it doesn’t make the language any less “authentic” or “pure.”

The Strength in Adaptation vs. The Fragility of Isolation

Here’s the crucial point that many people miss: borrowing words is not a sign of weakness – it’s a sign of a living, healthy language that serves its speakers’ needs.

The contrast between Bislama’s success and Lonwolwol’s fate shows us two sides of the same coin. Bislama thrived by adapting and serving diverse communities across Vanuatu. Lonwolwol, tied to a specific place and way of life, couldn’t survive the destruction of that environment.

Every major language in the world borrows words:

• English borrowed “café” from French, “pizza” from Italian, “karaoke” from Japanese
• Japanese borrowed “コンピューター” (konpyūtā) from English
• French uses “le weekend” borrowed from English

The Beautiful Balance – When It Works

What makes Bislama and similar languages so fascinating is how they maintain this beautiful balance:

• Deep, rich vocabulary for traditional concepts that matter to the culture
• Flexible adaptation for new concepts that enter the cultural sphere
• Consistent phonological rules that make borrowed words sound natural in the language

A Living Language Ecosystem

Language and culture create a continuous cycle:

Culture creates needs → Language adapts → New words reflect current priorities → Language shows cultural values → Culture continues to evolve

This cycle never stops – but it can be broken, as Lonwolwol’s story reminds us.

The Lessons for Today

In a world facing climate change, disasters, and migrations, the story of Lonwolwol warns us that protecting languages requires protecting the environments, practices, and community life that keep them alive. At the same time, Bislama’s success shows us that languages can adapt and thrive when they serve their speakers’ evolving needs.

The next time you hear someone say a language is “borrowing too much” from another language, remember both stories. The ability to adapt, borrow, and integrate new vocabulary while maintaining cultural identity isn’t a weakness – it’s a survival skill.

What We Can Do

The contrast between these two stories gives us a roadmap:

🪶 Document and celebrate local languages while they’re still alive 🪶 Support the cultural practices that give languages meaning 🪶 Encourage adaptation rather than demanding “purity” 🪶 Recognize that some language loss is inevitable, but much is preventable

The Takeaway

Languages like Bislama show us that successful communication isn’t about maintaining some mythical “purity.” It’s about serving the real, evolving needs of the people who speak it. But the story of Lonwolwol reminds us that this relationship is fragile – when cultures break, languages break too.

The dance between language and culture is beautiful, dynamic, and essential. Our job is to protect the conditions that let this dance continue.

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Languages are not museums – they’re living tools that grow and change with the people who use them. The story of Bislama’s vocabulary is the story of a culture confidently navigating between tradition and modernity. The story of Lonwolwol is a reminder that this navigation isn’t always successful – and that makes the languages we still have all the more precious.