"There are nine different words for the color blue in the Spanish/Maya dictionary but just three Spanish translations, leaving six [blue] butterflies that can be seen only by the Maya, proving that when a language dies six butterflies disappear from the consciousness of the earth."
—Earl Shorris, “The Last Word: Can the World’s Small Languages Be Saved,” Harpers, Aug., 2000
This quote is part of the preamble to The People’s Poetry Language Initiative: A Declaration of Poetic Rights and Values, which begins by stating, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all languages are created equal, endowed by their creators with certain inalienable meanings.” Read more here.
Or watch this terribly clever video:
