Jehad Ashraf is the first member of her family to grow up not understanding her mother tongue. “I lived in Aswan my whole life,” said the 29 year old, who was born and raised in Nubia, southern Egypt, “but none of my family spoke Nubian to me at home.”
In just two generations the language, once widely spoken, has almost vanished. In her village, a datefarming community on the Nile, “the youngest who speak Nubian are 61 or 62. It is becoming extinct,” said Ashraf.
It is the same throughout (Learn Nubian) to encourage young people to learn the language. It is one of a number of initiatives in recent years to reach young Nubians at home and abroad and keep the language and culture from dying out.
