Feature: Linguists say Internet to help Italian language grow stronger

It is a common refrain to blame high-tech methods of communication for inflicting damage on the way languages are spoken. But some Italian linguists think digital technology may help the Italian language thrive.

As with most languages, the proliferation of e-mail, text messaging, tweets, and other digital constructs has created a kind of "cyber shorthand" in Italian -- the use of acronyms or abbreviations that substitute for specific words, phrases or ideas.

But while the use of "cyber shorthand" continues to spread, Italian linguists say the damage that trend causes is most likely overshadowed by the benefits the Internet offers for the language.

"The tendency for people to use shorthand in text messages and so on is a relatively small stenographic problem," Emanuele Banfi, a professor of linguistics at University of Milan Bicocca and president of the Italian Linguistics Society, said in an interview.

"The benefit of the Internet for a language like Italian is that the country's rich literary history is available, easily and instantly," Banfi went on.

Though Italian is considered one of the world's main languages, with a history dating back to its Latin roots in medieval times. But only around 85 million people (including native speakers and fluent non-native speakers) speak Italian, far fewer other major European languages like English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese.

Tullio De Mauro, a linguist and former Italian minister of education, captured a few local headlines earlier this month when he said that the Internet should be looked at as a tool that could help spread the Italian language and preserve its traditions.

"I think the Internet can help many people understand the written word better and help promote reading," De Mauro said.

Speaking at the Communications Festival in Gamogli, near Genoa, De Mauro invoked the name of Italy's most celebrated literary icon: "I think Dante would see the Internet as an ally," the linguist said.

Many historians call Dante Alighieri, the author of the classic epic poem "The Divine Comedy" who lived from 1265 to 1321, the "father of the Italian language" because he helped legitimize what was then seen as a vulgar street dialect at a time when Latin was still used by most intellectuals.

Banfi said he agreed with De Mauro's remarks, going to far as to say that if Dante were alive today, he would probably be sending text messages and tweets along with hundreds of millions of others.

"One of the things about Dante is that he was not writing from some ivory tower, he was completely connected to the real world," Banfi said. "That is the same reason why the Internet can help Italian become healthier. The Internet is the real world now." Endit