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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 354 136 RC 018 975 TITLE Native American Languages Act of 1991. Hearings on S. 2044 To Assist Native Americans in Assuring the Survival and Continuing Vitality of Their Languages, before the Select Committee on Indian Affairs. United States Senate, One Hundred Second Congress, Second Session. INSTITUTION Congress of the U.S., Washington, D.C. Senate Select Committee on Indian Affairs. REPORT NO ISBN-0-16-039336-1; Senate-Hrg-102-809 PUB DATE 18 Jun 92 NOTE 256p.; Reprints contain small or light print. PUB TYPE Legal/Legislative/Regulatory Materials (090) EDRS PRICE MFO1 /PC11 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Alaska Natives; American Indian Culture; *American Indian Education; *American Indian Languages; American Indians; Elementary Secondary Education; *Federal Aid; Federal Legislation; Hawaiians; Hearings; Higher Education; *Language Maintenance; Language Role; Language Usage; Linguistics; *Native Language Instruction IDENTIFIERS *Cultural Preservation; *Native American Languages Act 1992; Native Americans ABSTRACT In June 1992, a Senate hearing received testimony on the need for federal aid for maintenance of Native American languages. Such aid would fund community language facilities and programs, training of Native speakers as teachers, development of instructional materials, and compilation of oral materials. A speaker from the Administration for Native Americans (DHHS), while supporting the preservation of Native languages, argued that existing federal grant programs are sufficient to meet these purposes. Representatives of American Indian tribes, Alaska Native villages, and organizations discussed the connection between language maintenance and cultural preservation, the importance of both language and culture to ethnic identity and self-esteem, and the status of Native language instruction and bilingual education in their areas. Linguists described the status and viability of Native languages in the United States, and discussed the importance of the existence of a broad range of living languages to the study of linguistics. Six papers from the journal "Language" discuss language loss and endangered languages worldwide; the Hualapai Bilingual/Bicultural Education Program in Peach Springs, Arizona; the Rama Language Project in Nicaragua; the collaboration of native speakers and professional linguists in Guatemala in developing Mayan linguistics; and the human value of linguistic diversity. Also included are many supporting statements and letters from organizations and individuals. (SV) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** S. HAG. 102-809 NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGES ACT OF 1991 cYz HEARING BEFORE THE Ce: SELECT COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS UNITED STATES SENATE 114 ONE HUNDRED SECOND CONGRESS SECOND SESSION ON S. 2044 TO ASSIST NATIVE AMERICANS IN ASSURING THE SURVIVAL AND CONTINUING VITALITY OF THEIR LANGUAGES JUNE 18, 1992 WASHINGTON, DC U.S. DEPARTM:941 OF EDUCATION OfIrce of Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) This document has been reproduced as recerved from the person or orOenizahOn Originating it Mmor changes have been made to improve reproduction Quality Points of new or opinions slated in ihis docu- ment do nol necessarily represent official OE RI position or policy NV 11.8. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 68-652 WASHINGTON : 1992 For sale by the U.S. Government Printing Office Superintendent of Documents. Congressional Sales Office, Washington. DC 20402 ISBN 0-16-039336-1 LIST MY AVAILABLE I SELECT COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii, Chairman JOHN McCAIN, Arizona, Vice Chairman DENNIS DECONCINI. Arizona FRANK H. MURKOWSKI, Alaska QUENTIN N. BURDICK, North Dakota THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi THOMAS A. DASCHLE, South Dakota SLADE GORTON, Washington KENT CONRAD, North Dakota PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico HARRY REID, Nevada NANCY LANDON KASSEBAUM, Kansas PAUL SIMON, Illinois DON NICKLES, Oklahoma DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii PAUL WELLSTONE, Minnesota PATRICIA M. ZE1.L, Staff Director/Chief Counsel DANIEL N. LEWIS, Minority Staff Director 3 CONTENTS Page S. 2044, text of 3 Statements: Akaka, Hon. Daniel K., U.S. Senator from Hawaii. 11 Anderson, Michael, Executive Director, National Congress of American Indians, Washington, DC 33 Downing, Carl, Director, Oklahoma Native American Language Issues Development Institute, Choctaw, OK 22 Farley, Jerry, Executive Vice President, Coquille Economic Development Company, Renton, WA 29 Funk, Karen, Legislative Analyst, National Indian Education Association, Washing- ton, DC 35 Hale, Kenneth, Department of Linguistics and Philosophy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 15 Inouye, Hon. Daniel K., U.S. Senator from Hawaii, Chairman, Select Committee on Indian Affairs 1 Krauss, Michael, Representing the Linguistic Society of America; President, Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas; Director, Alaska Native Language Center, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK 18 Mastrapasqua, Dominic, Deputy Commissioner, Administration fer Native Ameri- cans, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, DC 8 Murkowski, Hon. Frank II., U.S. Senator from Alaska 13 Simon, Hon. Paul, U.S. Senator from Illinois 12 Yazzie, Joe, Governing Board Member, Tolani Lake, AZ 30 Yazzie, Tommy C., Superintendent, Leupps Schools, Incorporated, Winslow, AZ 30 APPENDIX Prepared statements: Akaka, Hon. Daniel K., U.S. Senator from Hawaii 39 Anderson, Michael (with resolution) 136 Anderson, Troy, Coquille Indian Tribe (with attachments) 119 Downing, Carl (with attachments) 101 Funk, Karen (with attachments) 142 Hale, Kenneth (with attachments) 47 Mastrapasqua, Dominic 42 Yazzie, Joe (with attachments) 127 Yazzie, Tommy C. (with attachments) 127 Other material submitted for the record: Support letters for S. 2044 166 (HD 4 NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGES ACT OF 1991 THURSDAY, JUNE 18, 1992 U.S. SENATE, SELECT COMMIIILE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:30 a.m. in room 485, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. Daniel K. Inouye (chairman of the committee) presiding. Present:SenatorsInouye,Akaka, Simon, Murkowski, and McCain. STATEMENT OF HON. DANIEL K. INOUYE, U.S. SENATOR FROM HAWAII, CHAIRMAN, SELECT COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS The CHAIRMAN. This morning we convene to receive testimony on S. 2044, a bill to amend the Native American Programs Act to authorize the award of grants by the Administration for Native Americans to tribal governments and other native American orga- nizations to help them assure the survival and continuing vitality of their native languages. The policies of the United States that led to the destruction of Indian languages over the past century are well-known to the members of this committee. Together, we moved forward in 1989 tc approve a bill that repudiated the policies of the past. This meas- ure, which was signed into law as the Native American Languages Act of 1990, declared that "it is the policy of the United States to preserve, protect, and promote the rights and freedom of Native Americans to use, practice, and develop Native American lan- guages." Although the Native American Languages Act was largely a dec- laration of policy, the act did mandate that the President direct Federal agencies, first, to give support to the newly declared native languages policy; second, to evaluate their policies and procedures and the laws governing them to determine what changes might be required; and finally, to deliver their recommendations for changes to existing law within 1 year of the date of enactment of the act. I regret that I must report that there has been but little imple- mentation of this mandate. The Congress did not receive the pre- scribed report in October 1991. After much urging, the report we finally received was not a governmentwide report nor even a report from the Department of the Interior. Instead, it was a short report from the Bureau of Indian Affairs concluding that no amendments to existing law were required but that a revision to regulations should be considered. The proposed regulations, which were the subject 3f tribal consultation in January of this year, (1) ) 2 would require the teaching and maintenance of native languages, if desired by a tribal government. In contrast to the handling of the act at the Federal level, I am informed that the act has become a stimulus for change in some jurisdictions, owing largely to local commitment to the policies ex- pressed in the act as well as to local leadership. But absent anyfi- nancial resources, commitment and leadership may not be enough. To address that need is the purpose of the measure we consider this morning. In additior to inviting testimony on S. 2044 asintro- duced, we have invited witnesses to comment on a proposedamend- ment which was developed on the basis of arecommendation from the White House Conference on Indian Education. Theamendment would authorize tribal governments, at their discretion, toform partnerships with schools, colleges, or universities to conduct native American language programs with the assistance of the grants that would be provided under the authority ofthe proposed legislation. I have offered the amendment because of the encouragementI have received from tribal leaders in response to my letterearlier this year. Their responses will be made
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  • Diccionario Etnolingüístico Y Guía Bibliográfica De Los Pueblos Indígenas 1 Sudamericanos

    Diccionario Etnolingüístico Y Guía Bibliográfica De Los Pueblos Indígenas 1 Sudamericanos

    Alain Fabre 2005- Diccionario etnolingüístico y guía bibliográfica de los pueblos indígenas 1 sudamericanos. CHIBCHA [Última modificación: 04/09/20] CHIBCHA Varios autores han postulado un macrofilo chibcha, incorporando, además de una lengua aislada de Honduras, el paya, las siguientes familias lingüísticas: (1)grupo chibcha propiamente dicho, (2) grupo del istmo centroamericano, (3) grupo barbacoa y (4) grupo andino (guambiano-paez). En espera de un estudio comparativo global, el macro-chibcha queda a nivel de mera hipótesis. Los errores en que Greenberg (1987) incurre en cuanto a la clasificación y datos presentados sobre las lenguas chibcha y macrochibcha son tan burdos (segmentaciones morfológicas erróneas, nombres de lenguas que son nombres de lugares e incluso el nombre de un investigador presentado como glotónimo) que, al igual que en otros casos semejantes, dicha clasificación no puede ser tenida en cuenta. Ha sido debidamente criticada por Constenla (1993). Los estudios de este último autor (1981, 1985, 1989) han confirmado el parentesco genético del tronco (o microfilo) chibcha propiamente dicho con el paya y el grupo del istmo centroamericano. Para referirse al conjunto formado de estos tres últimos, Constenla utiliza el término microfilo paya-chibcha. Los otros grupos arriba citados, los considero aquí como grupos lingüísticos independientes. El conjunto guambiano-paez ha sido aquí tenta- tivamente partido en dos, en espera de estudios comparativos al respecto. Por consiguiente, estimo que no hay pruebas suficientes para postular la existencia de un filo macro-chibcha tal como ha sido propuesto. Para Constenla (1990), dado que el mayor grado de divergencia (ramas A y B del chibcha) se halla representado en una zona contenida dentro de la parte sudeste de Costa Rica y oeste de Panamá, esta área puede ser considerada como el territorio original protochibcha.