Iwi Taketake - Language Revitalisation - Hōaka Pounamu - Subject Guides at University of Canterbury

First Nations Canada

Ten years of Mi’gmaq language revitalization work: A non-indigenous applied linguist reflects on building research relationships. (2017) by Mela Sarkar. Language revitalization work at one First Nation in eastern Canada has been ongoing for over two decades. Several approaches have been put in place: core teaching of Mi'gmaq as a primary school subject, language documentation and the creation of an online dictionary, and an Elders' focus group on language, as well other shorter-term projects. In 2006, a group of university researchers was invited to collaborate with local Mi'gmaq language instructors who were trying out an image-based way of introducing adult community members to their language. After 10 years of continuous community-university contact, from 2006 to 2016, a non-Indigenous researcher reflects on the involvement of the academic applied linguist outsider in a constantly changing learning process.
Beautiful words: Enriching and indigenizing Kwak’wala revitalization through understandings of linguistic structure. (2017) by Rosborough, T., Rorick, c. L., & Urbanczyk, S. British Columbia (BC), Canada, is home to 34 Indigenous languages, all of them classified as endangered. Considerable work is underway by First Nation communities to revitalize their languages. Linguists classify many of the languages of BC as polysynthetic, meaning that words are composed of many morphemes, or units of meaning. While strong fluent speakers and linguists who work with these languages have knowledge and appreciation of these units of meaning, those understandings are often not reflected in the approaches for teaching and learning BC languages. Drawing on examples from Kwak'wala, a language of coastal BC, we discuss how an Indigenized approach to language revitalization can recognize and respect the highly regarded ancestral origins and messages about identity that are reflected within the language. In developing understanding of the morphemes of the language, learners can grasp literal meanings and metaphors embedded in Kwak'wala words, leading to deeper understandings of Kwakwa̱ka̱'wakw worldview and appreciation of the beauty of the language. In addition, learners can be supported to use morphemes as building blocks in their language learning. Rather than memorizing words and phrases, learners can be encouraged to listen for and use the morphemes they know to understand and produce new words and phrases.
Government of Canada introduces historic legislation on Indigenous Languages.

Irish Gaelic

Origins of Irish-medium education: The dynamic core of language revitalisation in Northern Ireland. (2008) by Donall O'Baoill. The establishment and growth of Irish-medium education has been central to the revitalisation of the language in Northern Ireland in recent years. Historically, the struggle by the minority of Irish speakers in the region to provide all-Irish schools has been both the goal and the engine of renewal and expansion during a period of community and political conflict. The present paper analyses the growth in the sector from the initial campaign for resources and official recognition of the first all-Irish school in Belfast's Shaw's Road Gaeltacht. It documents the range of sociolinguistic and educational challenges faced by the earliest immersion schools, and the manner in which the response served to mobilise individual speakers and contributed to the emergence of the small but unique urban community of Irish speakers. Among the issues discussed are the early internal conflicts about the merits of independent all-Irish schools (as in the Republic) versus all-Irish units within English-medium schools, and the manner in which an accommodation was gradually achieved between a reluctant Department of Education and the growing immersion sector. This paper deals with a number of other issues that help to define immersion education in Northern Ireland, including differences in the organisation of the sector compared to the Republic and the continuing challenges faced in areas of research, planning and teacher training.
Exploring language attitudes and ideologies in university students’ discussion of Irish in a context of increasing language diversity (2016) by Atkinson, D., & Kelly-Holmes, H. The apparent gap between positive attitudes and low levels of everyday usage of the language is often cited as one of the greatest challenges facing Irish language revitalisation. In a context of increasing linguistic and cultural diversity in the Republic of Ireland, this article reports on a research project which set out to explore the attitudes of groups of Irish undergraduate students towards the languages which they come into contact with in their daily lives, in particular, the Irish language, using a focus group method. Four themes in particular emerge in the students' discussion of Irish as they encounter it in their everyday lives: "functionality," "a hidden agenda," "exclusivity," and "heightened culture." The metapragmatic comments of the respondents indicate deep ambivalence towards use of the Irish language, as well as complex language-ideological positions. The linguistic authority [Woolard, 2008. "Language and identity choice in Catalonia: The interplay of contrasting ideologies of linguistic authority." In K. Süselbeck, U. Mühlschlegel, & P. Masson (Eds.), "Lengua, nación e identidad. La regulación del plurilingüismo en España y América Latina" (pp. 303-323). Frankfurt am Main: Vervuert/Iberoamericana] of Irish as both an anonymous and authentic variety is contrasted negatively with that of allochthonous languages in Ireland, such as Polish. Our study suggests that a fuller understanding of this apparent paradox may be facilitated by qualitative approaches, which explore attitudes in depth.
From the Department of Communications, Climate Action & Evironment

Native American (American Indians, Indigenous Americans)

Designing indigenous language revitalization. (2012) by Hermes, M., Bang, M., & Marin, A. Endangered Indigenous languages have received little attention within the American educational research community. However, within Native American communities, language revitalization is pushing education beyond former iterations of culturally relevant curriculum and has the potential to radically alter how we understand culture and language in education. Situated within this gap, Mary Hermes, Megan Bang, and Ananda Marin consider the role of education for Indigenous languages and frame specific questions of Ojibwe revitalization as a part of the wider understanding of the context of community, language, and Indigenous knowledge production. Through a retrospective analysis of an interactive multimedia materials project, the authors present ways in which design research, retooled to fit the need of communities, may inform language revitalization efforts and assist with the evolution of community-based research design. Broadly aimed at educators, the praxis described in this article draws on community collaboration, knowledge production, and the evolution of a design within Indigenous language revitalization.
Reclaiming the gift: Indigenous youth counter-narratives on native language loss and revitalization. (2006) by McCarty, T. L., Romero, M. E., & Zepeda, O. In this article we explore the personal, familial, and academic stakes of Native language loss for youth, drawing on narrative data from the Native Language Shift and Retention Project, a five-year (2001-06), federally funded study of the nature and impacts of Native language shift and retention on American Indian students' language learning, identities, and academic achievement. Interviewing as qualitative research: A guide for researchers in education and the social sciences (2nd ed.). Teresa L. McCarty is the Alice Wiley Snell Professor of Education Policy Studies at Arizona State University and co-principal investigator on the Native Language Shift and Retention Project. Ofelia Zepeda (Tohono O'odham) is professor of linguistics and director of the American Indian Language Development Institute at the University of Arizona and co-principal investigator on the Native Language Shift and Retention Project.
U.S. Department of Indian Affairs

Sami

Strengthening indigenous languages in the digital age: Social media-supported learning in Sapmi. (2018) by Outakoski, H., Cocq, C. & Steggo, P. This article presents and discusses Sami social media initiatives for strengthening languages. The Sami are the Indigenous people of Europe. All Sami languages are endangered, and the lack of resources for maintaining, promoting and teaching the languages has been underscored on several occasions by the European Council and the Sami parliaments. Social media has become an arena where resources are created and shared, enabling communities of speakers to support each other and promote their languages. YouTube, blogs, Twitter and language learning applications are here discussed as public domains and community-grounded media. Based on a few examples and on our expertise as instructors within Sami studies, we suggest strategies for developing long-lasting and innovative models for revitalizing threatened languages and cultures, and for counteracting language loss through social media. This contribution shares examples of innovative uses of social media in Sami of relevance for other Indigenous contexts.
The ethnic revival, language and education of the Sami, and indigenous people, in three Nordic countries (Finland, Norway and Sweden). (2009) by Ulla Aikio-Puoskari. No abstract available but there is an introduction in the chapter (p.238). The abstract for the whole book is available: The principles for enabling children to become fully proficient multilinguals through schooling are well known. Even so, most indigenous/tribal, minority and marginalised children are not provided with appropriate mother-tongue-based multilingual education (MLE) that would enable them to succeed in school and society. In this book experts from around the world ask why this is, and show how it can be done. The book discusses general principles and challenges in depth and presents case studies from Canada and the USA, northern Europe, Peru, Africa, India, Nepal and elsewhere in Asia. Analysis by leading scholars in the field shows the importance of building on local experience. Sharing local solutions globally can lead to better theory, and to action for more social justice and equality through education.

Multisearch - keyword searching examples:

indigenous language revitalisation (or revitalization/revival/retention)

language revitalisation (or revitalization/revival)

Welsh language revitalisation (replace Welsh with your language)

Ireland AND language revival (replace Ireland with the country)

indigenous AND language revitalisation (or revitalization/revival/rentention)

Other places to looks:

Government websites

Official Language Acts

UNESCO

Some general resources on language revitalisation:

Hinton, L., Huss, L., & Roche, G. (Eds.). (2018). The Routledge Handbook of language revitalization. Routledge. https://go.openathens.net/redirector/canterbury.ac.nz?url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781315561271

McMonagle, S., Cunliffe, D., Jongbloed-Faber, L., & Jarvis, P. (2019). What can hashtags tell us about minority languages on Twitter? A comparison of #cymraeg, #frysk, and #gaeilge. Journal of Mutilingual and Multicultural Development, 40(1), 32-49. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2018.1465429

Galla, C. K. (2016). Indigenous language revitalization, promotion and education: function of digital technology. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 29(7), 1137-1151. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2016.1166137

Hornberger, N. H. (Ed.). (2008). Can schools save indigenous languages? Policy and practice on four continents. Palgrave Macmillan.

Hinton, L. & Hale, K. L. (Eds.). (2001). The green book of language revitalization in practice. Academic Press.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (First Australians)

Palawa Kani and the value of language in Aboriginal Tasmania. (2017) by Christopher D. Berk. Over the past forty years the Tasmanian Aboriginal people, long marked as an iconic case of extinction, have revitalized many elements of their 'lost' culture. Palawa kani, the constructed Tasmanian Aboriginal language, is an example of such efforts. The construction and utilization of palawa kani is one element of a broader Tasmanian Aboriginal cultural politics working to strengthen the Indigenous status, authenticity, and presence in Tasmania specifically and Australia more generally. In this article I recount the historical documentation of Tasmanian Aboriginal languages and analyze the process through which multiple historical languages were utilized in the construction and consecration of a single 'official' Tasmanian Aboriginal language. Rather than existing strictly as a tool for communication, I argue palawa kani is a cultural artifact that, like an emblem, works to distinguish the Tasmanian Aboriginal community, one that lacks many of the stereotypical components of Australian Aboriginality, within Tasmanian society. Ai such, it is best understood in relation to Clifford's 'indigenous articulations' (2001) and Cowlishaw's mythopoeia of Aboriginality in Australia (2010, 2011). I examine what palawa kani does for, and what it represents to, the larger Tasmanian Aboriginal community.
A community development approach using free online tools for language revival in Australia. (2018) by Smith, H. A., Giacon, J., & McLean, B. Australia is a 'hotspot' of Indigenous language endangerment, but has a growing number of language revival projects. We describe one such project which is using a community development approach for the revival of the Gamilaraay language in north-eastern New South Wales. As a result of colonisation there are now no fluent speakers of Gamilaraay and most use is restricted to formulaic phrases. However, there is community support for its revival, with courses being taught from pre-school to tertiary level. There is a lack of resources to support the revival, which this project seeks to address. A combination of free online tools is being used to develop digital-assisted language learning resources, through a partnership between academic researchers and Gamilaraay community members. We discuss issues relating to the context of the project and the pedagogies used in assessing whether this project is meeting the goals of an increase in Gamilaraay spoken in homes, schools, and the community, and conclude with the broader implications for language revival.
Australian Government Action Plan for the 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages

Welsh

Adult language learning: a survey of Welsh for adults in the context of language planning. (2011). Baker, C., Andrews, H., Gruffydd, I., & Lewis, G. This article discusses the importance of adult language learning when a minority language is threatened. Language acquisition planning attempts to reproduce the language across generations. The research context is Wales with its strong history of adults learning Welsh. The history of the Welsh language shows a decline in the last century, but increased emphasis on language acquisition planning, including adults learning Welsh, has halted the decline. Using a longitudinal design and a multi-method approach, the research aims to understand learners' expectations, experiences, outcomes and course issues such as retention and progression. The article reports the initial results from a sample of 1061 adults beginning to learn Welsh, obtained using questionnaire survey methodology. The results suggest that there is a match between the motivations and aspirations of adult language learners and the theory of language acquisition planning. Integrative motivation was stronger than instrumental motivation in commencing the Welsh language-learning course, although both motivations were present and can be regarded as conceptually but not necessarily psychologically separate. Managing the expectations of course members to enable higher retention rates was found to be important. Language acquisition planning depends on such learners moving to fluency in the language, and thereby to daily language use.
The lightening veil: Language revitalization in Wales (2014) by Colin H. Williams. The Welsh language, which is indigenous to Wales, is one of six Celtic languages. It is spoken by 562,000 speakers, 19% of the population of Wales, according to the 2011 U.K. Census, and it is estimated that it is spoken by a further 200,000 residents elsewhere in the United Kingdom. No exact figures exist for the undoubted thousands of other Welsh speakers beyond the United Kingdom who are able to communicate in Welsh as migrants to other European countries, members of the Welsh diasporas in North and South America, Australia, and Southern Africa; and language learners elsewhere. The subject of this chapter is a sometimes mysterious, often idiosyncratic process, which always involves struggle, sacrifice, and tension. Language revitalization is an attempt to counter trends that have influenced decline in the use and learning of the language. The pressures typically are a combination of historical conquest, political and economic control, and deep psychological hurt whereby a former relatively autonomous group are subjugated into a dependent people whose prime markers of distinction, such as language or religious differentiation, are eroded, made illegal, or otherwise eradicated from formal public life. At various periods in West European history, this has been the fate of Welsh, Irish, Gaelic, Breton, Basque, and Catalan, among others. Thus, at root, language revitalization speaks of a much deeper and significant historical trend, the attainment of an element of cultural and popular autonomy within salient historical domains such as public education, local government, and community development. Language revitalization is a conscious effort to change ideas, values, attitudes, and behaviors. The author of this article concludes that if the Welsh example of language revitalization teaches us anything, it is that stubborn collective action by the community must be stimulated before government language policy responds in a reactive manner, but having so responded, that community engagement must also be maintained, for fear of losing direction and long-term momentum (Williams, 2007a, 2007b).
Government of Wales - Welsh Language
UK Government - Welsh Language Scheme

Mexico

Bilingual rapping in Yucatan, Mexico: Strategic choices for Maya language legitimation and revitalisation. (2017) by Josep Cru. This paper explores the sociolinguistic practices of a group of young bilingual rappers in the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico. Against the background of ongoing language shift to Spanish in the region, the language choices of a group of Maya youths involved in Hip Hop culture and their agency as policy-makers at the grassroots level is analysed. While language mixing and hybridisation are everyday communicative practices for Maya speakers, rapping either completely in Maya or in a clear-cut alternation between Spanish and Maya is a conscious strategy for language promotion among these youths. I argue that the language choices in their music performances, which are underpinned by an essentialist outlook on language contact, accrue authenticity and legitimacy to Maya and can ultimately work towards the revitalisation of this language.
Bilingual-intercultural education for indigenous children: The case of Mexico in an era of globalization and uprisings. (2011) by Tinajero, G., & Englander, K. The past 25 years have brought upheaval to the indigenous people of Mexico due to two opposing forces: modernization and globalization, on the one hand, and indigenous uprisings on the other. Suddenly, the topic of indigenous languages and education was brought into official discussions at the national level. This paper examines the tensions that emerge between the political discourses which emanate from within the indigenous communities and from the national government, and the actual implementation of educational policy models. The political-educational discourse shifted from Spanishization [castellanizacion], assimilation, and integration to bilingualism, interculturalism, and participation. We demonstrate that this shift was not a smooth transition, but rather an abrupt change that occurred in the early 1990s. Further, despite the shift to new discourses that respected indigenous languages and cultures, institutional factors have not been altered sufficiently to improve the conditions of indigenous education or their well-being in Mexico. Thus, ultimately, the new discourse of bilingualism and interculturalism in education serves to obfuscate the socio-political-economic work that must be done to truly allow the indigenous people to participate in the nation's political life.

Hawaiian

Tutu's Hawaiian and the emergence of a Neo-Hawaiian language (2003) by Keao NeSmith. The article focuses on differences between Neo-Hawaiian language speakers (NEO) and Traditional Hawaiian language speakers (TRAD). NEO speakers acquire the language from educational institutions which employ other NEO speakers, while TRAD speakers acquire Hawaiian as a first language spoken in the home. This has resulted in differences in Hawaiian cultural values, and in different cultural identities, which have led to conflicts or misunderstandings between the two intersecting groups. NEO characteristics result from the fact that its speakers interact regularly with each other and not with TRAD-speakers. Hawaiian language is on a continuum between past and future.
Digital realities of indigenous language revitalization: A look at Hawaiian language technology in the modern world. (2018) by Galla, C. K. This paper discusses some barriers, complexities, and opportunities Indigenous peoples face when engaging in language revitalization efforts, and how those elements contribute to the adoption, adaptation, or abandonment of digital technology. I begin with framing the context of Indigenous languages in the United States and Canada to underscore the current realities in comparison to world languages. The next section introduces the uptake of digital technology for Indigenous language learning, based on the themes of equity, access, and engagement. I conclude with a case study of the Hawaiian language community as a potential model for Indigenous communities that choose traditional and contemporary pathways.
He kuleana kō kākou: Hawaiian-language learners and the construction of (alter)native identities. (2013) by Alicia Snyder-Frey. This article examines the various language ideologies and cultural models that inform Hawaiian-language learners' experiences, language practices, and socio-ethnic identity as they attempt to become speakers of their heritage language. While Hawaiian-language education is often noted as a revitalization success story, and certainly is in terms of its rapid growth and enrollment numbers, many broader outcomes remain unclear, despite their potentially enormous impact on the continued perpetuation of the Hawaiian language. In particular, I focus on the meaning that learning the Hawaiian language has for new speakers and learners, and the ideologies that influence these understandings. Because peoples' ideas about language and identity are so influential for the process and outcomes of language revitalization efforts, I examine the instances and effects of both Western and indigenous ideologies - specifically those authenticity and kuleana (or responsibility, right, and charge). This latter understanding of their relationship to the Hawaiian language and culture, wherein the perpetuation of their native language is both their right and charge, corresponds with their persisting indigenous model of identity as performative and, I argue here, may help to alleviate some potential conflicts in revitalization efforts that are often found with more common uses and interpretations of an ideology of authenticity, while motivating new speakers to learn and use the native language.
State of Hawaii
Hawaiian medium education preschool

Library Subject Guides

Hōaka Pounamu: Iwi Taketake - Language Revitalisation