Heritage Minister Yumna Maumoon has said that there are children in the Maldives who do not know how to speak in Dhivehi at all, and noted that there was a risk of a potential disconnect between generations in the future.

The Minister made the remark while speaking at the event held at Villa International High to celebrate the Dhivehi Language Day.

Minister Yumna noted that the language had many dialects, and that there were many variations between those dialects as well. She highlighted that this showed great richness of the language. But expressed her disappointment since people using these dialects have become a rare occurrence in the capital region and some atolls. She even noted that some students, do not know about the variations of dialect even by the time they graduate school.

She noted that before, children who grew up in abroad had difficulties in talking in Dhivehi – and added that times have changed now. Minister Yumna said that there were some children who do not know how to speak in Dhivehi at all, which has in turn left them unable to interact with the elders in their respective families.

She noted that this creates a risk of disconnect between generations and expressed her concerns about it.