What determines if a language lives or dies?

A language lives or dies based on how much people use it and want to keep it around.

Imagine your favorite toy, if you play with it every day and tell your friends about it, it stays your favorite. But if you forget about it and start playing with a new toy instead, the old one might get left in the closet.

If a language helps people talk to each other easily, like when they go to school, play games, or tell stories, people will keep using it. That's why many languages stay strong even if they're not the only ones around.

Sometimes, a language might fade away because fewer people use it, maybe kids stop learning it at home or in school. If they start speaking another language more often, like when they make new friends who speak differently, that language might not be used as much anymore.

It's just like your toy, if you don’t play with it for a long time, it might feel less special and get forgotten.