ABSTRACT Garifuna Waguia
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ABSTRACT Garifuna Waguia: Conservation and Revitalization of Garifuna Language in the Southern Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua The Garifuna Nation is an afro-indigenous ethnic group that can be found throughout Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the island of St. Vincent. This project outlines the current status and community efforts towards the revitalization of Garifuna language in the Southern Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua, specifically the town of Orinoco. While there are an estimated 100,000 speakers of Garifuna across the world, there are currently only two fluent speakers in Orinoco, both of whom are elderly. Although language classes are given at the Manuel Mongalo Elementary School in Orinoco, Nicaragua, language education is not provided to those who are not enrolled in school. My thesis reports on community demands towards the implementation of a language program for the adults of the community who may not have the opportunity to learn the language otherwise. In order to meet the community demands and needs, this work draws from two approaches: a comparison between other indigenous language revitalization efforts throughout Latin America and the United States and the development of a Pedagogical Grammar for Garifuna, the latter of which aids adult learners with second language acquisition. The overarching objective of this study is to contribute to the ongoing effort of the Garifuna community in order to achieve an accessible pathway to the revitalization and conservation of the language. Garifuna Waguia: Conservation and Revitalization of Garifuna Language in the Southern Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua Michele Margarita Cubillo Baltodano Senior Thesis Thesis Advisor: Esther Castro-Cuenca May 5th, 2017 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I want to thank my thesis advisor, Professor Esther Castro-Cuenca, for supporting me unconditionally, providing constructive feedback, and continuously encouraging me throughout this project. Thank you for being patient with me since the beginning and for always challenging me to be my best self. I also want to thank my thesis committee, Professors Mara Breen, Dorothy Mosby, Eleanor Townsley, and Luiz Amaral. Mara, I would like to thank you for the questions you raised, which helped me clarify terms and concepts to those who do not know about the subject area. Professor Mosby, thank you for providing me with the seeds for this project, the books on Garifuna history and culture that ignited my project. Professor Townsley, thank you for sitting with me and having challenging my notion of what it means to belong to a community as well as reclaiming a language. Professor Amaral, thank you for firstly accepting me into your graduate courses, as I gained so much knowledge that helped me throughout the project. Next, I want to thank my amigxs for their constant support. Mil gracias to all of my friends who took time from their busy schedules to listen to my rants and for providing me with the emotional support I needed when I felt like giving up. I couldn’t have done this without your chisme and chistes. I would like to thank the other students of color who wrote theses, such as Anqa Khan and Aria Pahari for being a support network as we understood the struggle of being some of the few students of color writing theses. V, thank you for your emotional support and for allowing me a space in your home to write the majority of my thesis. Melanie White, thank you for helping me create a network with Garifuna community members in the U.S. and in Nicaragua. My research in the homeland could not have been possible without your support! You all have reinforced the power of community. I would also like to thank Mount Holyoke College’s LYNK UAF for providing me with the needed funds in order to conduct my research in Nicaragua. Thank you Dean Hall and Drs. Vorwerk and Feldman for supporting me financially so I could present on my thesis at the 20th Workshop on Indigenous Languages at University of California Santa Barbara. Most importantly, I would like to thank the Garifuna community in the Southern Caribbean Coast for warmly welcoming me into the community and for agreeing to be part of this project. Thank you Elson for introducing me to the rest of the community and for also being involved in the conservation of our culture through your Master’s Thesis on Garifuna Agricultural Practices. As you taught me, Au bun, amürü nu! Thank you Kensy and Victorina for taking your time to introduce me to our culture and for sharing ancestral knowledge, as well as the demands of the community and how I could be of service. Seremein! Lastly, I thank my ancestors and mi familia for their everlasting love and support. Gracias mita, pito, Elvin y Graciela por siempre apoyarme en todos mis proyectos y por mostrar interés en mis intereses. Este proyecto es dedicado a ustedes y para la comunidad en Nicaragua. Gracias por siempre entablar conversaciones conmigo acerca de nuestras raíces. ¡Los amo mucho! 1 Table of Contents Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................................... 1 Table of Contents .......................................................................................................................................... 2 “Au bun amürünu” -Garifuna Proverb .......................................................................................................... 5 Garifuna Nuguya -We are Garifuna ............................................................................................................ 10 1.0 Arawak and West African Intermarriage .......................................................................................... 11 1.1 Population and Racial Categorization ............................................................................................... 12 1.2 Displacement..................................................................................................................................... 13 1.2.1 Belize .......................................................................................................................................... 13 1.2.2 Honduras .................................................................................................................................... 14 1.2.3 Guatemala .................................................................................................................................. 15 1.2.4 Nicaragua .................................................................................................................................. 15 1.3 Religion ............................................................................................................................................. 16 1.4 Culture............................................................................................................................................... 17 1.4.1 Gastronomy ................................................................................................................................ 17 1.4.2 Music and Dance ....................................................................................................................... 22 1.5 Relationship to the Environment....................................................................................................... 23 Uwala Uwala Busiganu -Don’t be ashamed of your culture ....................................................................... 27 2.0 Basic Language Overview ................................................................................................................ 28 2.0.1 Garifuna Alphabetic Inventory .................................................................................................. 28 2.0.2 Garifuna Phonemic Inventory .................................................................................................... 28 2.1 Language Endangerment Status ........................................................................................................ 29 2.1.1 Belize .......................................................................................................................................... 30 2.1.2 Honduras .................................................................................................................................... 30 2.1.3 Guatemala .................................................................................................................................. 30 2.1.4 Nicaragua .................................................................................................................................. 31 2.2 Linguistic Politics ............................................................................................................................. 32 2.2.1 Belize .......................................................................................................................................... 35 2.2.2 Honduras .................................................................................................................................... 35 2.2.3 Guatemala .................................................................................................................................. 36 2.2.4 Nicaragua .................................................................................................................................. 36 2.3 Bilingual Education .........................................................................................................................