Why should we learn languages in the age of AI and "brain rot"?

On 26th September, Europe will celebrate the European Day of Languages. This day was instituted in December 2001 by the Council of Europe, at the end of a year-long initiative called the European Year of Languages.

The goal of this initiative is to promote multilingualism and intercultural understanding, to highlight the cultural and linguistic diversity of Europe, and - of course - to encourage lifelong language learning in and out of school.

As a language nerd, one of the key moments where language learning becomes difficult is when I forget why I'm doing it.

With AI being more and more incorporated in the workplace and in our daily lives, it can be tempting to think that multilingualism has become an obsolete skill for us humans.

Actually, the current trends in our relationships with digital media and social media make language learning more relevan than ever. Here are a few reasons why you should learn languages.

Learning languages can save you from the so-called "brain rot"

The expression "brain rot" describes a state of perceived mental decay that we feel when we are endlessly scrolling through social media feeds and watching short-form videos for hours.

While our brains do not literally rot while doing so, studies have shown that an excessive social media consumpion leads to a shorter attention span, weaker memory, and even shrunk grey matter in the brain.

Using AI in academic tasks doesn't really help either. By now, we are all aware of the MIT study showing that people who use AI to write essays tend to have lower neural connectivity than those who don't.

However, do you know what actually helps with grey matter production and is considered a literal brain training? Learning a language!

If English is not your first language, chances are your English teachers (or your English professors) have shown you this video by Ted-Ed on the benefits of a bilingual brain at least once in your life while you were in school or at university:

Aside from these (already noteworthy) benefits, when you try to reduce your useless screentime and prevent cognitive decay (which is exactly what's happening, but I guess it's less scary to call it "brain rot"), one of the most common challenges is finding alternative ways to use your time.

From my personal experience, this feeling of void is a key point in "un-rotting" our brains, because this is the moment where we have to give ourselves proof that a different path is possible, that we actually enjoy other things besides doomscrolling, and that we will feel better if we do something else.

Learning a language can obviously help us by simply filling this "void" alone.

Learning a language can help you understand your favourite celebrities

"What a cringe take! Celebrity culture is dead!" Okay, but you'll be surprised at how many Korean learners, including me, started their language learning journey because of K-pop.

And, even before K-pop was mainstream, I had started learning German because of Tokio Hotel.

Some of my classmates in middle school took learning English very seriously because they were fans of One Direction, going even as far as "grounding themselves" if they didn't get the grade they wanted.

Learning a language because of celebrities is nothing new, and it's actually one of the most productive ways of fangirling.

There is a plethora of people who learned video editing, proofreading, basic graphic design and a bunch of other skills simply because they practiced by making fanfictions, fan edits and so on, and language learning is no exception.

Now, I'm talking about celebrities, but you could swap "celebrities" with any other motivation usually deemed as "cringe" and the result would not change. Sometimes we do not need deep motivation, just something that has value for us. My very first article here on Vocal talked exactly about this, and I still support my point to this day.

Will you still be as obsessed with your faves once you reach fluency? Maybe not. After some years of studying German, I was following Tokio Hotel more moderately than when I first started.

However, as I revisited this episode of Tokio Hotel TV, I realized that I could finally understand what they were saying without subtitles, and I genuinely teared up. I was proud of myself, and that's a satisfaction that AI and people mocking language learning will never take away from me.

If you're considering learning a language because of your faves, that's a valid reason and you should go for it. You'll feel an insane level of accomplishment once you reach your personal goal.

Not everyone speaks English as a second language

While many countries do use English as its main second language, or as a "lingua franca" to connect multiple populations living in the same territory, there are other countries where English does not play such a role.

For example, many Central Asian countries who were once part of the Soviet Union rank very low on English proficiency rankings. I have personally met an Uzbek person who did not speak English at all, but was fluent in Russian instead, because Russian is widely used for interethnic communication in the country.

One of the Central Asian countries I'd like to visit is Kazakhstan, where the situation is not that different from Uzbekistan: both countries rank very low in English proficiency.

Similarly to Uzbekistan, in Kazakhstan the amount of Russian speakers is similar to the amount of Kazakh speakers. Since I have already learned basic Russian at university, revamping my Russian skills is going to be my best bet to ensure that I encounter no language barriers during my trip.

Another pattern of low fluency can be observed in Northern African countries like Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria, where the most spoken European language was French due to colonialism. If you plan to visit these countries, learning a bit of French is great at increasing the chances of being understood by the local population, unless you want to learn Arabic, which is also a great idea.

Learning a language saves it from extinction

In 2010 UNESCO released an Atlas of Endangered Languages, where they were describing which languages were risking extinction across the globe. To assess this, they based their research on the number of speakers left, and the status that said languages had in their society (e.g. whether they are learnt as a first language at home and if it is getting passed on through generations, among other factors). You can read the full atlas here for free.

Some of these languages are getting progressively more endangered because they were made into minority languages during colonialism. Think about the languages of the Native Americans, like Navajo, or the Quechuan languages spoken in the Andes.

"But these are not European languages!" Well, among the endangered languages we can also find Irish, which lost its status as a first language during the British occupation of Ireland, and Faroese, whose state is a result of Denmark taking control of the Faroe Islands and imposing Danish as the primary language.

Considering that the number of speakers plays a key role in defining endangered languages, learning a language could help saving said language from extinction.

In the end, learning a language is still worth it

As a language nerd, I will always be in favor of taking up a new language, but there is actual proof that learning languages is still a profitable and enjoyable activity.

It benefits your brain and your target language itself, because by learning it, you're helping protect it from the threat of extinction.

And, most importantly of all, it's satisfying as hell. When you travel to a country where your target language is spoken, and you manage to communicate with the locals smoothly, or when you rewatch that interview of your celebrity crush and you manage to understand everything that they were saying, you'll ultimately know that yes, it was worth it.

So, whether you want to save a niche language from extinction, "un-rot" your brain, or just speak to your celebrity crush, go for it. It will be fun.

Instead, if you're already learning some languages, what's your reason? Would you add other reasons to learn a language besides the ones I mentioned? Feel free to tell us in the comments below!