Is speaking one language actually detrimental to us personally and as a nation? Professor Wendy Ayres-Bennett of Cambridge University described monolingualism as a disease with the possible side-effect of early-onset dementia, but proclaimed that it was curable.
Although the Brits seem less able to pick up languages, or confess to being too lazy, the academic surprised the Hay audience with the statistic that one in five children starting Primary School in Britain today have another language at home – which may be Bengali, Hindi, Polish or Cantonese.
While most young children have the opportunity to learn a second language, this is often restricted to half an hour a week, or taught by those who don't have a good grasp of the language themselves. This should be addressed in the curriculum, as there is alarming evidence that the number of pupils studying languages at A-level is falling rapidly.
When Ayres-Bennett started on an international project, MEITS, (Multilingualism: Empowering Individuals, Transforming Societies) she was astounded to find that we have no Museum of Languages – though we have one for dog-collars, and one for lawn-mowers. To rectify this, a pop-up museum will open next year.
She pointed to the cross-cultural benefits of being bi- or multi-lingual, and described a project in Northern Ireland, where the obstacle of the Irish language led to the Parliament at Stormont breaking up. By working with community and political leaders, the MEITS team is trying to convince all sides that the Irish language is part of everyone's heritage.
While she enthusiastically promoted multi-lingualism, the professor warned against gilding the lily, as in an ad on social media that announced, "People who are bilingual are smart, creative, and indeed better lovers."
She did not think there would be funding to carry on experiments to prove or disprove this.