Changing Identity and Linguistic Practices in Nubri: Veiled Language Endangerment in the Nepalese Tibetosphere

This chapter introduces the Nubri Valley – the people, the place, the language – presenting results from a recent sociolinguistic survey that establishes internal variation as well as external pressures on the language. As a community of ethnic Tibetans in Nepal, crossing the border has slowly resulted in a shift of focus towards Kathmandu in many ways. Changing attitudes and evolving social practices are resulting in a marked shift in language use in the younger generations. Superfijicially, the Nubri language appears quite vital within the valley. However, I show how an examination of diffferent borders in the sociolinguistic landscape helps us arrive at a much clearer understanding of the actual linguistic vitality, revealing a serious threat to its continued survival.