Becoming “Fully” Hopi: the Role of the Hopi Language in the Contemporary Lives of Hopi Youth

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Becoming “Fully” Hopi: the Role of the Hopi Language in the Contemporary Lives of Hopi Youth Becoming "Fully" Hopi: The Role of Hopi Language in the Contemporary Lives Of Hopi Youth-- A Hopi Case Study of Language Shift and Vitality Item Type text; Electronic Dissertation Authors Nicholas, Sheilah Ernestine Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 11/10/2021 04:07:30 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/194190 BECOMING “FULLY” HOPI: THE ROLE OF THE HOPI LANGUAGE IN THE CONTEMPORARY LIVES OF HOPI YOUTH – A HOPI CASE STUDY OF LANGUAGE SHIFT AND VITALITY by Sheilah E. Nicholas ______________________ Copyright© Sheilah E. Nicholas 2008 A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the GRADUATE INTERDISCIPLINARY PROGRAM IN AMERICAN INDIAN STUDIES In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 2 0 0 8 2 THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA GRADUATE COLLEGE As members of the Dissertation Committee, we certify that we have read the dissertation prepared by Sheilah E. Nicholas entitled Becoming “Fully” Hopi: The Role of the Hopi Language in the Contemporary Lives of Hopi Youth—A Case Study of Hopi Language Shift and Vitality and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Dr. Tsianina Lomawaima Date: May 8, 2007 Dr. Teresa McCarty _________________________________________ Date: May 8, 2007 Emory Sekaquaptewa Date: May 8, 2007 Dr. Yetta Goodman Date: May 8, 2007 Dr. Mary Jo Tippeconnic Fox Date: May 8, 2007 Final approval and acceptance of this dissertation is contingent upon the candidate’s submission of the final copies of the dissertation to the Graduate College. I hereby certify that I have read this dissertation prepared under my direction and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement. _Dr. Tsianina Lomawaima _________________________ Date: May 8, 2007 Dissertation Director: _Dr. Teresa McCarty ______________________________ Date: May 8, 2007 Dissertation Director: 3 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This dissertation has been submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for an advanced degree at the University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the copyright holder. SIGNED: _Sheilah E. Nicholas ___ 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS “Hak so’on naala hiita ang mongvasiwmangwu.” “No one accomplishes something worthwhile, or of benefit alone.” There are many who have assisted me in bringing this dissertation to completion. Foremost, I acknowledge the Hopi youth and their families who are at the heart of the dissertation. Their cooperation and willingness to share their personal cultural and linguistic life histories lay the foundation for the work and scholarship I will pursue. Special acknowledgement goes to the late Emory Sekaquaptewa and Dr. Teresa McCarty. As both my mentor and clan uncle, Emory cultivated within me the same passion for and commitment to the Hopi way of life that he held and demonstrated through his efforts to maintain, revitalize as well as preserve the importance and integrity of the Hopi language. I will continue his legacy to best of my ability. Terri McCarty has served as chair for my master’s thesis and doctoral dissertation and has essentially nurtured my long and transforming journey through academia with conviction and unwavering patience. I benefitted greatly from Emory’s and Terri’s guidance grounded in their areas of expertise, Emory’s extensive knowledge of Hopi culture and Terri’s understanding of and experience with ethnographic research methods. I am indebted to both. I also acknowledge the support and assistance of the other members of my doctoral committee: Dr. Tsianina Lomawaima, Dr. Yetta Goodman, and Dr. Mary Jo Tippeconnic Fox in reviewing the drafts of the dissertation manuscript. Their suggestions for revisions, offered from their respective fields of study, contributed significantly to the final manuscript. I also extend sincere thanks to Dr. Dorothy Washburn, whose interest in the study of the Hopi language allowed her to recognize and point out the influence of Hopi, my first language, on my writing style. This understanding of my writing style has proved invaluable to me. My friends, many of whom are also my colleagues, figure tremendously in the completion of the dissertation. Their constant words of encouragement and abiding belief in my potential to make a contribution to my community of Hopi and other Indigenous communities will continue to inspire my work. Finally, my heartfelt thanks to my husband, Joseph, our children, Sarah, Seth, and Zoe, and my mother, Laura, whose support of my journey was demonstrated in so many ways. Most of all, they allowed me the time and space to pursue my destiny. 5 DEDICATION For the Hopi people who have maintained a firm belief in and adherence to the Hopi way of life in order that succeeding generations of Hopi will remain a distinct people. 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES . 15 LIST OF FIGURES . 16 ABSTRACT. 17 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION. BECOMING “FULLY” HOPI: THE ROLE OF THE HOPI LANGUAGE IN THE LIVES OF CONTEMPORARY HOPI YOUTH—A HOPI CASE STUDY OF LANGUAGE SHIFT AND VITALITY. 19 The Purpose of the Research . 21 Research Questions . 22 Significance of the Study . 23 The Contemporary Hopi . .26 Hopisinom , The Hopi People . 27 Hopitsàatsayom , Hopi Youth . 29 Hopilavayi, The Hopi Language . 31 “Itàalavayi Sulawiwma.” “Our Language is Disappearing.” . 32 Community Perceptions . 32 Hopi Ways of Knowing as Orienting Framework . 36 Emergence: The Hopi Theory of Life . .38 “Landmarks”: Hopi Terms and Concepts . 42 Literature Highlights . 43 Language Loss; Language Shift . 43 Creating a “Minority” Population . 45 Ogbu’s Culture Model . 46 Hall’s “Transcending” Culture . 48 Language Socialization . 50 Indigenous Language Revitalization; Language Planning . 51 Language revitalization . 51 Positive language shift . 53 Language planning . 55 Organization of the Study . 57 CHAPTER 2 METHODOLOGY . 62 Multiple, Intergenerational Case Study Approach . 62 Research Methods . 63 Focused, In-Depth, Life History Interviews . 64 Participant Observations . 65 7 TABLE OF CONTENTS – Continued Page Selecting the Data Sources . 67 Permission to Conduct Research . 68 Interviews . 69 Identifying Participants . 69 Participant Consent . 72 Developing Interview Questions . 75 Respecting Interview Structure . 83 Technical Problems and Unanticipated Surprises . 84 Transcribing the Interview Tapes . 86 Data Analysis . 87 Studying and Reducing the Interview Text . 87 Managing the Data . 88 Analyzing and Interpreting the Interview Material . 89 Summary . 91 CHAPTER 3 PORTRAITS: CONTEMPORARY HOPI YOUTH . 93 Dorian . 93 Life History . .. 94 Tutuqayto, Going to School . 95 Miss Indian Arizona . 97 Aspirations . 100 The Hopi Language . .102 Jared . 103 Life History . .. 103 Tutuqayto, Going to School . 106 Pahanqatsi, The Mainstream World . 108 Aspirations . 110 The Hopi Language . 112 Justin . 112 Life History . .. 113 Tutuqayto, Going to School . 114 Aspirations . 115 The Hopi Language . 116 Summary . .. 116 CHAPTER 4 HOPI.
Recommended publications
  • American Sign Language and the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
    University of Northern Iowa UNI ScholarWorks Presidential Scholars Theses (1990 – 2006) Honors Program 2005 Using space to describe space: American Sign Language and the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis Cindee Calton University of Northern Iowa Let us know how access to this document benefits ouy Copyright ©2005 - Cindee Calton Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.uni.edu/pst Part of the American Sign Language Commons Recommended Citation Calton, Cindee, "Using space to describe space: American Sign Language and the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis" (2005). Presidential Scholars Theses (1990 – 2006). 56. https://scholarworks.uni.edu/pst/56 This Open Access Presidential Scholars Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Honors Program at UNI ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Presidential Scholars Theses (1990 – 2006) by an authorized administrator of UNI ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Using Space to Describe Space: American Sign Language and the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis Cindee Calton University of Northern Iowa Undergraduate Research April 2005 Faculty Advisor, Dr. Cynthia Dunn - - - -- - Abstract My study sought to combine two topics that have recently generated much interest among anthropologists. One of these topics is American Sign Language, the other is linguistic relativity. Although both topics have been a part of the literature for some time, neither has been studied extensively until the recent past. Both present exciting new horizons for understanding culture, particularly language and culture. The first of these two topics is the study of American Sign Language. The reason for its previous absence from the literature has to do with unfortunate prejudice which, for a long time, kept ASL from being recognized as a legitimate language.
    [Show full text]
  • The Language of Humor: Navajo Ruth E. Cisneros, Joey Alexanian, Jalon
    The Language of Humor: Navajo Ruth E. Cisneros, Joey Alexanian, Jalon Begay, Megan Goldberg University of New Mexico 1. Introduction We all laugh at jokes, exchange humorous stories for entertainment and information, tease one another, and trade clever insults for amusement on a daily basis. Scientists have told us that laughing is good for our health. But what makes something funny? Prior definitions of humor, like this one by Victor Raskin (1985), have categorized humor as a universal human trait: "responding to humor is part of human behavior, ability or competence, other parts of which comprise such important social and psychological manifestations of homo sapiens as language, morality, logic, faith, etc. Just as all of those, humor may be described as partly natural and partly acquired" (Raskin 1985: 2). The purpose and end result of humor, much like that of language, is the externalization of human thought and conceptualization. This externalization carries multiple meanings, partly as an outlet to express certain emotions, partly as a social device, and partly as an exercise of the intellect. The active engagement of this human ability allows some to earn their livelihood from a career in making jokes. Thus, there is the possibility in a culture to broadcast one’s own personal opinion and world view in a series of jokes. Chafe explains that this is an intrinsic attribute of Homo sapiens; it is "The essence of human understanding: the ability to interpret particular experiences as manifestations of lager encompassing systems" (1994: 9). Humor acts to level the field, allowing people who identify with each other to create social groups.
    [Show full text]
  • Number U8 - Whorf, Benjamin Lee
    NUMBER U8 - WHORF, BENJAMIN LEE THE HOPI LANGUAGE. 1935 THE HOPI LANGlTAOE by Benjamin Lee Whorf l?3r> MICROFILM COLLECTION OF MANUSCRIPTS ON MIDDLE AMERICAN CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY No. W UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO LIBRARY CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 1956 TA3LE OF CONTENTS Phonology 1 Claselfication of phonemes 1 Consonants 2 Consonant-clusters h Vowels k Vowel-length 5 Accent ' 6 Sandhi 6 II. Grammatical Operations 7 1. Pure Selection 7 Parts of Speech 7 Punctual and Tensive 3 Suppletion 9 2. Modulation: its phonology 10 3. Reduplication 11 h. Nexus 11 a. Prefixation 11 b. Suffixation 11 c. Annexation 12 Compounds 13 Incorporations 1^ Subnexation 1^ d. Context nexus 15 5. Pause Techniques 15 Sentences 15 A. Unifórmale l6 Biformals l6 Triformals l6 Copulative or nominal sentences .... 16 T^Ler...-• tives 17 Imperatives 17 III. Nouns nd Pronouns and their Syntax 17 1. Basic Pronouns 17 2. Use of the Cases 20 Basic Noun Inflections 2¿ Plurals 2j 5- Oblique Cases 2U 6. Postpositions or relationals 2k 7. Place Names 25 8. Various Pronouns 25 9. Numerals 26 TABLE OF CONTENTS ^cont'd.) 1. In general , 1'J Tht Hop i Ian ¿. Verb classes '¿'J 3. Voicer, jl northeastern Ar ¡4 . Aspeóte 3'.' •'"•. Number Uo sketch records 6 . Tenses ¡: i "'. The Modes and their Syntax :<2 Mr» Ernest Naqu °> . Address Forms 31 Iion-ac Lual Forms 32 the Uto-Aztooan ^. Inceptors 3j fleotive type* V. Invariants >3 I. Phonology VI. Deri vat i on '.A 1 A. Major co 1. Verbs [from verbs] 3' !+ 2. Verbs [from nouns] 5 aeries m, n, £, 3.
    [Show full text]
  • Place Names Describing Fossils in Oral Traditions
    Place names describing fossils in oral traditions ADRIENNE MAYOR Classics Department, Stanford University, Stanford CA 94305 (e-mail: [email protected]) Abstract: Folk explanations of notable geological features, including fossils, are found around the world. Observations of fossil exposures (bones, footprints, etc.) led to place names for rivers, mountains, valleys, mounds, caves, springs, tracks, and other geological and palaeonto- logical sites. Some names describe prehistoric remains and/or refer to traditional interpretations of fossils. This paper presents case studies of fossil-related place names in ancient and modern Europe and China, and Native American examples in Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Evidence for the earliest known fossil-related place names comes from ancient Greco-Roman and Chinese literature. The earliest documented fossil-related place name in the New World was preserved in a written text by the Spanish in the sixteenth century. In many instances, fossil geonames are purely descriptive; in others, however, the mythology about a specific fossil locality survives along with the name; in still other cases the geomythology is suggested by recorded traditions about similar palaeontological phenomena. The antiquity and continuity of some fossil-related place names shows that people had observed and speculated about miner- alized traces of extinct life forms long before modern scientific investigations. Traditional place names can reveal heretofore unknown geomyths as well as new geologically-important sites. Traditional folk names for geological features in the Named fossil sites in classical antiquity landscape commonly refer to mythological or and modern Greece legendary stories that accounted for them (Vitaliano 1973). Landmarks notable for conspicuous fossils Evidence for the practice of naming specific fossil have been named descriptively or mythologically locales can be found in classical antiquity.
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 1 Navajo and the Athabaskan Languages
    Chapter 1 Navajo and the Athabaskan Languages The Navajo language belongs to the Athabaskan/Dene language group. The Athabaskan language family stretches across Alaska and northwest Canada, with branches on the coast of California, Oregon, and Washington, and in the Southwest of the United States. Most Navajo people live in the southwestern parts of the United States in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. The Apaches in Arizona and New Mexico also belong to the Southern Athabaskans. The Navajo population today is approximately 300,000. The Navajo Nation covers approximately 25,500 square miles, about the size of West Virginia. 1. The Status of Navajo In 1951, Reichard recorded that Navajo was spoken by some 60,000 persons two-thirds of whom do not and perhaps never will speak English. We are at point where the opposite is true or worse. Estimates about the current number of speakers vary substantially, from 80,000 to 150,000 speakers. The Navajo language has a larger speech community than any other indigenous language in the United States, yet the language is in far greater danger than most linguists realize. Most Navajo men and women over the age of 50 speak Navajo fluently. Navajos in their thirties and forties have varying degrees of fluency. Some can understand the language fairly well but are not able to produce it accurately. There are fluent speakers who are in their twenties, but more know only a few common phrases. The vast majority of Navajos under age 20 speak only English. This decline has been well documented. Platero (2000) documents a sharp decline in the percentage of Navajo pre-school age children who speak Navajo, from 80% in his 1974 study, to about 45% in 1992.
    [Show full text]
  • Article Title
    Dennis L. Malone and Isara Choosri Stabilizing Indigenous Languages 1 Symposium Report Stabilizing Indigenous Languages Dennis L. Malone and Isara Choosri* A note from Pat Kelley, SIL International Literacy Coordinator Few of our field practitioners are strategically located for attending some of the conferences around the world that may be related to the work we do in literacy. Also, in many cases, especially if no paper is being presented, there may be limited funds available for transportation. Yet there is much to be learned from such conferences: for example, vocabulary and new terminology, current trends, what’s “out there” in the prominent theory and practice of related fields applicable to our work, current research, issues defined by the “voices” for literacy, etc. For that reason, when our SIL literacy personnel and national colleagues do attend or present at a conference, on occasion we’ll include a “Conference Report” … so that our field personnel may glean information from them. When possible, contact details will be provided in order to request additional information. These reports will reflect the growing trend in the Literacy domain for copresenting and coauthoring, which hopefully will continue as we determine to see capacity building in this area among our national colleagues. Dennis Malone (SIL International in Bangkok, Thailand), and Isara Choosri (Institute of Language and Culture for Rural Development at Mahidol University at Salaya, Thailand) coauthor this report of the Ninth Annual Symposium on Stabilizing Indigenous • Dennis Malone ([email protected]) is an International Literacy Consultant, serving with his wife Susan in the Asia Area. He is involved in minority language education projects in the Asia Area and also serves as a guest lecturer at the ILCRD.
    [Show full text]
  • Languages of the World--Native America
    REPOR TRESUMES ED 010 352 46 LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD-NATIVE AMERICA FASCICLE ONE. BY- VOEGELIN, C. F. VOEGELIN, FLORENCE N. INDIANA UNIV., BLOOMINGTON REPORT NUMBER NDEA-VI-63-5 PUB DATE JUN64 CONTRACT MC-SAE-9486 EDRS PRICENF-$0.27 HC-C6.20 155P. ANTHROPOLOGICAL LINGUISTICS, 6(6)/1-149, JUNE 1964 DESCRIPTORS- *AMERICAN INDIAN LANGUAGES, *LANGUAGES, BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA, ARCHIVES OF LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD THE NATIVE LANGUAGES AND DIALECTS OF THE NEW WORLD"ARE DISCUSSED.PROVIDED ARE COMPREHENSIVE LISTINGS AND DESCRIPTIONS OF THE LANGUAGES OF AMERICAN INDIANSNORTH OF MEXICO ANDOF THOSE ABORIGINAL TO LATIN AMERICA..(THIS REPOR4 IS PART OF A SEkIES, ED 010 350 TO ED 010 367.)(JK) $. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH,EDUCATION nib Office ofEduc.442n MD WELNicitt weenment Lasbeenreproduced a l l e a l O exactly r o n o odianeting es receivromed f the Sabi donot rfrocestarity it. Pondsof viewor position raimentofficial opinions or pritcy. Offkce ofEducation rithrppologicalLinguistics Volume 6 Number 6 ,Tune 1964 LANGUAGES OF TEM'WORLD: NATIVE AMER/CAFASCICLEN. A Publication of this ARC IVES OF LANGUAGESor 111-E w oRLD Anthropology Doparignont Indiana, University ANTHROPOLOGICAL LINGUISTICS is designed primarily, butnot exclusively, for the immediate publication of data-oriented papers for which attestation is available in the form oftape recordings on deposit in the Archives of Languages of the World. This does not imply that contributors will bere- stricted to scholars working in the Archives at Indiana University; in fact,one motivation for the publication
    [Show full text]
  • Language Communities in the Village of Tewa
    Language & Communication 38 (2014) 8–17 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Language & Communication journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/langcom Borders traversed, boundaries erected: Creating discursive identities and language communities in the Village of Tewa Paul V. Kroskrity* University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Anthropology, 341 Haines Hall-Box 951553, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1553, United States abstract Keywords: Today the Village of Tewa, First Mesa of the Hopi Reservation in Northern Arizona expe- Language Endangerment riences unprecedented linguistic diversity and change due to language shift to English. Linguistic Revitalization Despite a wide range of speaker fluency, the now emblematic Tewa language that their Languages as Emblems of Identity ancestors transported from the Rio Grande Valley almost 325 years ago, is widely valorized Language Ideologies within the community. However Language factions have emerged andtheir debates and Speech/Language Community Tewa contestations focus on legitimate language learning and the proper maintenance of their emblematic language. Boundary creation and crossing are featuresof discourses that rationalize possible forms of language revitalization and construct communities across temporal barriers. The theoretical implications of these discourseson both local and theoretical notions of language/speech community are explored. Ó 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction As in many communities faced with language endangerment, discourses of language and identity have been multiplied and magnified by contemporary transformations in the Village of Tewa. But this is a community wherein language and group identity have an especially long and rich history of linkage in actual practice and in indigenous metalinguistic commentary. Today the Arizona Tewas number around seven hundred individuals who reside on and near the Village of Tewa on First Mesa of the Hopi Reservation in NE Arizona.
    [Show full text]
  • MIXED CODES, BILINGUALISM, and LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requi
    BILINGUAL NAVAJO: MIXED CODES, BILINGUALISM, AND LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Charlotte C. Schaengold, M.A. ***** The Ohio State University 2004 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Professor Brian Joseph, Advisor Professor Donald Winford ________________________ Professor Keith Johnson Advisor Linguistics Graduate Program ABSTRACT Many American Indian Languages today are spoken by fewer than one hundred people, yet Navajo is still spoken by over 100,000 people and has maintained regional as well as formal and informal dialects. However, the language is changing. While the Navajo population is gradually shifting from Navajo toward English, the “tip” in the shift has not yet occurred, and enormous efforts are being made in Navajoland to slow the language’s decline. One symptom in this process of shift is the fact that many young people on the Reservation now speak a non-standard variety of Navajo called “Bilingual Navajo.” This non-standard variety of Navajo is the linguistic result of the contact between speakers of English and speakers of Navajo. Similar to Michif, as described by Bakker and Papen (1988, 1994, 1997) and Media Lengua, as described by Muysken (1994, 1997, 2000), Bilingual Navajo has the structure of an American Indian language with parts of its lexicon from a European language. “Bilingual mixed languages” are defined by Winford (2003) as languages created in a bilingual speech community with the grammar of one language and the lexicon of another. My intention is to place Bilingual Navajo into the historical and theoretical framework of the bilingual mixed language, and to explain how ii this language can be used in the Navajo speech community to help maintain the Navajo language.
    [Show full text]
  • 8. Classifiers
    158 II. Morphology 8. Classifiers 1. Introduction 2. Classifiers and classifier categories 3. Classifier verbs 4. Classifiers in signs other than classifier verbs 5. The acquisition of classifiers in sign languages 6. Classifiers in spoken and sign languages: a comparison 7. Conclusion 8. Literature Abstract Classifiers (currently also called ‘depicting handshapes’), are observed in almost all sign languages studied to date and form a well-researched topic in sign language linguistics. Yet, these elements are still subject to much debate with respect to a variety of matters. Several different categories of classifiers have been posited on the basis of their semantics and the linguistic context in which they occur. The function(s) of classifiers are not fully clear yet. Similarly, there are differing opinions regarding their structure and the structure of the signs in which they appear. Partly as a result of comparison to classifiers in spoken languages, the term ‘classifier’ itself is under debate. In contrast to these disagreements, most studies on the acquisition of classifier constructions seem to consent that these are difficult to master for Deaf children. This article presents and discusses all these issues from the viewpoint that classifiers are linguistic elements. 1. Introduction This chapter is about classifiers in sign languages and the structures in which they occur. Classifiers are reported to occur in almost all sign languages researched to date (a notable exception is Adamorobe Sign Language (AdaSL) as reported by Nyst (2007)). Classifiers are generally considered to be morphemes with a non-specific meaning, which are expressed by particular configurations of the manual articulator (or: hands) and which represent entities by denoting salient characteristics.
    [Show full text]
  • The Case of Navajo
    Language Documentation and Description ISSN 1740-6234 ___________________________________________ This article appears in: Language Documentation and Description, vol 6. Editor: Peter K. Austin Language management for endangered languages: the case of Navajo BERNARD SPOLSKY Cite this article: Bernard Spolsky (2009). Language management for endangered languages: the case of Navajo. In Peter K. Austin (ed.) Language Documentation and Description, vol 6. London: SOAS. pp. 117-131 Link to this article: http://www.elpublishing.org/PID/073 This electronic version first published: July 2014 __________________________________________________ This article is published under a Creative Commons License CC-BY-NC (Attribution-NonCommercial). The licence permits users to use, reproduce, disseminate or display the article provided that the author is attributed as the original creator and that the reuse is restricted to non-commercial purposes i.e. research or educational use. See http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ ______________________________________________________ EL Publishing For more EL Publishing articles and services: Website: http://www.elpublishing.org Terms of use: http://www.elpublishing.org/terms Submissions: http://www.elpublishing.org/submissions Language management for endangered languages: the case of Navajo Bernard Spolsky 1. Introduction In this paper I outline an approach to building a theory of language management and its application to endangered languages. As I see it, language management is one of the three interconnected components of language policy (see Sallabank, this volume): the other two are language practices and language beliefs. To clarify how this works, I will illustrate the model with the case of Navajo, which is the second largest Native American tribe (after Cherokee) in the United States but whose language is not unreasonably considered to be endangered (Lee and McLaughlin 2001).
    [Show full text]
  • Curriculum and Resources for First Nations Language Programs in BC First Nations Schools
    Curriculum and Resources for First Nations Language Programs in BC First Nations Schools Resource Directory Curriculum and Resources for First Nations Language Programs in BC First Nations Schools Resource Directory: Table of Contents and Section Descriptions 1. Linguistic Resources Academic linguistics articles, reference materials, and online language resources for each BC First Nations language. 2. Language-Specific Resources Practical teaching resources and curriculum identified for each BC First Nations language. 3. Adaptable Resources General curriculum and teaching resources which can be adapted for teaching BC First Nations languages: books, curriculum documents, online and multimedia resources. Includes copies of many documents in PDF format. 4. Language Revitalization Resources This section includes general resources on language revitalization, as well as resources on awakening languages, teaching methods for language revitalization, materials and activities for language teaching, assessing the state of a language, envisioning and planning a language program, teacher training, curriculum design, language acquisition, and the role of technology in language revitalization. 5. Language Teaching Journals A list of journals relevant to teachers of BC First Nations languages. 6. Further Education This section highlights opportunities for further education, training, certification, and professional development. It includes a list of conferences and workshops relevant to BC First Nations language teachers, and a spreadsheet of post‐ secondary programs relevant to Aboriginal Education and Teacher Training - in BC, across Canada, in the USA, and around the world. 7. Funding This section includes a list of funding sources for Indigenous language revitalization programs, as well as a list of scholarships and bursaries available for Aboriginal students and students in the field of Education, in BC, across Canada, and at specific institutions.
    [Show full text]