Revitalization

Language Maintenance and Revitalization

Language revitalization addresses the needs of an endangered speech community where language shift has already begun. Thus, language revitalization can be thought of as the process of reversing language shift or language decline. Speakers create opportunities to use the language, and address the social attitudes that triggered the abandonment of the language. Two highly successful examples of language revitalization programs are Hawaiian (spoken in the USA) and Maori (spoken in New Zealand).

Grassroots language revitalization movements in communities undergoing language shift are found around the world. The Enduring Voices Team visits these centers as a regular part of Language Hotspot Expeditions and provides Revitalizaion Toolkits to language workers in order to support revitalization efforts.

For more on the topic of revitalization see Leanne Hinton and Ken Hale (editors), The Green Book of Language Revitalization in Practice (New York: Academic Press, 2001). Leanne Hinton's introduction provides an overview of language revitalization, while the rest of the book provides fascinating case studies. For more on our involvement with revitalization, go here.

Many language groups are using technology, particularly the internet, to encourage interest in their language and culture. Some examples of these efforts from within Language Hotspots include:

• Northwest Pacific Plateau

  Canada: http://www.firstvoices.ca/

  Anishinaabe: http://www.anishinaabemdaa.com/index.htm

  Klamath: http://www.klamathtribes.org/language.htm

  Salish: http://salishworld.com/language.htm

  Siletz Dee-ni: http://ctsi.nsn.us/

• Southwest-Oklahoma

  North America: http://www.native-languages.org/vocabulary.htm

  California: http://www.aicls.org/

  Oklahoma: http://www.ahalenia.com/iws/index.html

  Cherokee: http://www.cherokee.org/home.aspx?section=culture&culture=language

  Cherokees of California: http://www.powersource.com/cocinc/

  Kanza: http://www.kawnation.com/langhome.html

  Lenape: http://www.turtleislandchautauqua.org/language.html

• Mesoamerica

  Nawat: http://www.compapp.dcu.ie/~mward/nawat.html

  Mixtec (in English and Spanish): http://mixtec.nativeweb.org/

• Northern South America

  Caribbean: http://www.centrelink.org/

  Guyana: http://www.sdnp.org.gy/apa/

  Carib: http://www.kacike.org/srcc/default.html

  Taino: http://www.taino-tribe.org/

  Wayuu Taya (in English and Spanish): http://www.wayuutaya.org/

• Central South America

  Aymara (in Spanish): http://www.aymara.org/

  Enlhet (Lengua) (in Spanish and German): http://www.enlhet.org/indice.htm

• Southern South America

  Chile (in English, Spanish, Aymara, Rapa Nui and Mapudungun): http://www.beingindigenous.org/

  Mapuche: http://www.mapuche-nation.org/

• West Africa

  N'Ko (alphabet used for Manden languages): http://www.fakoli.net/

• Southern Africa

  Shiyeyi: http://kamanakao.tripod.com/thekamanakaoassociation/index.html

• Northern & Central Australia

  Australia: http://www.fatsil.org/index.htm

  Victoria: http://www.vaclang.org.au/

  Katherine: http://www.kathlangcentre.org.au/index.htm

  Western Australia: http://acl.arts.usyd.edu.au/projects/wangkamaya/index.php

  Gumbaynggirr: http://www.muurrbay.org.au/

• Taiwan–Northern Philippines

  Taiwan: http://www.taiwanfirstnations.org/

• Eastern Siberia

  Alaska: http://www.uaf.edu/anlc/

• Eastern India & Malaysia

  Santal: http://wesanthals.tripod.com/index.html