From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Mon May 1 04:59:45 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2006 21:59:45 -0700 Subject: Dying Language Animals & Extinction Message-ID:  Last Words Can dying languages, like animals, be saved from extinction? That's the difficult question being debated in Maine, where the Penobscot Nation is waging a determined fight to keep its melodic language alive. By Stacey Chase | April 30, 2006 BEFORE BEGINNING TODAY'S lesson, teacher Roger Paul, a dark ponytail hanging straight down his back, pulls a blond sweet-grass rope, braided like a little girl's pigtail, out of his leather medicine bag and sets one end on fire. Gathered in a lopsided circle are two boys and seven girls in the after-school language program at the Penobscot Nation Boys & Girls Club on Indian Island, Maine. Paul instructs the pupils to cleanse themselves in the smoke, and they dutifully pass the smoldering, silky braid from one to the next, waving it over their bodies like a metal-detector wand. Afterward, they join hands and say a prayer using words that sound both unfamiliar and musical. Smudging ceremonies like this one open every session of "Penobscot Days," a new three-times-a-week initiative that teaches children to speak Penobscot by pairing instruction with traditional Native American activities like drumming, basket making, and snowsnake, a game in which players hurtle a carved stick or "snake" down an iced snow path. "Whenever we speak the language the ancestors taught us," Paul says, "it pleases them, and they come and listen in and guide us." The Penobscot Nation's struggle to reclaim its melodic, esoteric language - considered severely endangered by linguists - sparked public debate in the past several months after the tribe's state representative, Michael Sockalexis, introduced a bill in the Maine Legislature calling for taxpayer money to be used "to develop a program to maintain and preserve the Penobscot language." The drumbeat to save Penobscot that began in the 1980s has been growing louder from inside this insular community for five years now with the striking realization that the tribal elders were rapidly dying and, with them, the language. Of all the New England states, Maine is the only one to have any Native American languages from tribes recognized by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs that are still "living" - in other words, being spoken fluently. Moreover, the languages of all of Maine's recognized tribes are living. The Penobscot, Passamaquoddy, and Maliseet languages - from Maine's Penobscot Nation, Passamaquoddy Tribe, and Houlton Band of Maliseets, respectively - are mutually intelligible. The Micmac language, from the Aroostook Band of Micmacs, is discrete. While all these languages are in jeopardy, the threat to Penobscot, which has the fewest speakers, is especially dire. According to the best estimates, there are as few as five fluent Penobscot speakers among the nation's 2,261 members, about 60 percent of whom live in Maine. Fluency, though, is tough to measure. Some Penobscots, like Sockalexis, learned their native tongue as children but mostly forgot it; some can comprehend it but feel uncomfortable speaking the undulating, polysyllabic words themselves; some speak a grammatically tortured version of the language; and some know only a few words and phrases. "Now I've lost half of the Penobscot - I've been away so long," laments 94-year-old Valentine Ranco of Wells, Maine, the state's oldest Penobscot and a fluent speaker raised on the Indian Island reservation. "Fifty years! No one to speak to!" Ranco may feel alone, but in one respect she's not: Languages are disappearing around the world. "We are in a huge wave of linguistic extinction," says Norvin Richards, an MIT linguistics professor and an expert on obscure languages like Massachusetts's Wampanoag and Australian Aborigines' Lardil. "Something like 50 to 90 percent of the world's 6,000 languages are expected to die in the next century." We fight for animals, for the bald eagle and the giant panda and the blue whale, with such fervor, but should we fight to keep a dying language alive - even if few will ever use or hear it? Maine's language preservation bill, which was awaiting action by the Legislature's appropriations committee this month, is nothing short of a Penobscot rallying cry that forces everyone to ask: What's in a language? THE PENOBSCOT LANGUAGE IS PERCEIVED BYAN ENGLISH speaker, perhaps romantically, as a stream of unrecognizable rhythms that rise and fall effortlessly like chanting or singing. The stressed syllables are generally pronounced higher, not louder as in English, with the highest pitch typically falling three syllables from the end of polysyllabic words. In addition, Penobscot statements often rise at the end of a phrase - similar to the pronunciation of a question in English - and therefore produce a kind of lilt. "When I hear my native language, it puts me at ease. And it brings me back to a peaceful place where I feel like I'm part of something important," says Roger Paul, 44, a Passamaquoddy who speaks both Passamaquoddy-Maliseet and Penobscot. "I feel, I guess . . . like a small child who is just held and embraced." Though it is characterized by polysyllabic words, Penobscot can be brilliantly concise. An entire sentence in English can often be expressed by a single Penobscot word. For example,  we means "You are a very smart, intelligent, dependable person." "It gets you all at once. It all comes in one rhythmic unit," says Conor Quinn, a doctoral candidate in linguistics at Harvard University and a Maine native who has worked closely with the Penobscots. "That's the poetry of the language." Linguists consider a language to be living if there are people who canconverse fluently in it. But even dead languages - sometimes optimistically called dormant - can be resurrected, though not without recordings, a body of texts, or both. Modern Hebrew is one such success story. Richards and other linguists identify the region's federally recognized tribes with dead languages as the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head/ Aquinnah in Massachusetts, the Narragansett Indian Tribe in Rhode Island, and the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes in Connecticut. (There are no federally recognized tribes in New Hampshire or Vermont.) All are taking measures to bring their ancestral languages back to life. In 1990, Congress passed the Native American Languages Act to encourage the preservation of languages across the country, acknowledging that earlier federal policies helped exterminate some of them. Maine's Native American tribes speak closely related languages that derive from the Eastern Algonquian family of languages once widely used from Maine to Virginia. But a common misperception is that tribal languages are relics linguistically frozen in the 1600s, when they were first heard by missionaries and explorers, and they are missing words critical to communicating in today's culture. "It's entirely possible to talk about the stock market or auto racing in Penobscot if you want to," MIT's Richards says. "There's nothing inherent in the language that makes it unsuitable for modern use." Language, or what some linguists like to call "nonmaterial culture," is an artifact, like a sweet-grass basket or birch-bark canoe. "There's more to a language than simple communication," says former Penobscot chief Barry Dana, 47, of Solon, Maine. "With the Penobscot language - or Passamaquoddy, Abenaki, Maliseet, Navajo, Inuit, whatever - trapped in that language is the complete understanding of your culture." DRIVE ABOUT FIVE HOURS NORTH FROM BOSTON TO OLD TOWN, Maine, take the short causeway over the Penobscot River, and you'll come to the 315- acre island that, together with 146 other islands, make up the Indian Island Reservation. Roughly 30 percent of the state's Penobscots live on Indian Island itself. The Penobscots are wary of visitors from what members often refer to as the "dominant culture" - outsiders who sometimes view residents as history exhibits or mere curiosities. "We're sort of looked at in a fishbowl," says Linda McLeod, a Maliseet and principal of the Indian Island School, a public kindergarten through Grade 8 school on the reservation. "People come on the island wanting to see the `Indian children,'" she says. "They come on the island asking, `Where are the tepees?'" Penobscot was the first language for nearly every Indian Island resident into the 1940s. But with World War II, many Penobscots abandoned their language for the employment and educational opportunities that came with speaking English. At the same time, Penobscots say, the Catholic nuns who ran the island's school would punish children who uttered their native tongue. Over time, the language started disappearing from everyday use. Barry Dana's cousin Carol Dana, a fluent Penobscot speaker, learned the language from her grandmother and great-aunt growing up on Indian Island but says she also inherited feelings of inferiority about the Penobscot tongue that were imposed by non-Indians. "We've all been kind of educated out of who we are and pitted against who we are," says Dana, 53, who left the reservation but returned. The tribe took the first step toward stemming the precipitous language loss in 1985, when Barry Dana began teaching Penobscot as part of a native studies program introduced at the Indian Island School. Today, the school's 111 pupils get regular classroom instruction for two periods a week in Penobscot and occasionally Maine's other tribal languages. The emphasis is on speaking; indeed, as with numerous other indigenous languages with oral traditions, the vast majority of Penobscot speakers cannot read or write their own language. "That's the way everybody learns their language - speak it first, then you learn the written," says McLeod. (At the mainland public high schools where most of these students go after the eighth grade, second-language choices are French and Spanish.) Meanwhile, tribal leaders and ordinary Penobscots recognized that language studies also needed to happen outside the school. The Penobscot Language Revitalization Project was born, and in the last five years, the Penobscot Nation has received $308,605 from the federal Administration for Native Americans - and kicked in $90,411 in both cash and in-kind tribal support - to plan and implement a series of community initiatives. Among them are the after-school program at the Boys & Girls Club, storytelling at the reservation's day-care center, a master-apprentice language tutorial for young adults, the creation of the penobscotnation.org website, and weekend and weeklong camps where families are encouraged to speak nothing but Penobscot. Carol Dana, the tribe's so-called language master, is mentor to two apprentices: Gabe Paul, 20 (who is not related to Roger Paul), and Maulian Dana, 21 (who is the daughter of Barry Dana), both students at the University of Maine in nearby Orono. They and the younger children represent the tribe's best hope for reintroducing broadbased fluency in two or three generations. "There used to be a kind of shame in using the language. Now young people are taking ownership and have a sense of pride about the language," says Bonnie Newsom, director of the tribe's cultural and historic preservation department. "That has been very healing for us as a community." BACK AT THE BOYS & GIRLS CLUB, 11-YEAR-OLD Maya Attean is issuing commands to Roger Paul, the teacher, to "stand" (sèhken), "sit" (ápin), and "turn around" (). As long as she uses the Penobscot word for the action, Paul plays along, popping in and out of his seat and spinning like the marionette of a mad puppeteer. Maya and her classmates giggle themselves silly. Later, she and the other girls form a circle around a big drum on the basketball court and pound it while chanting "The Pine Needle Dance" of the Passamaquoddys and other songs. Maya's father is Penobscot; her mother is Passamaquoddy. The couple live on the reservation and are raising their daughter in a multilingual household, encouraging her to use second and third languages by labeling household items - the chair, the cupboard, the computer - with the appropriate Indian words. And why is a sixth- grader so interested? "So the Penobscot language will stay alive," Maya says brightly, "and I can teach it to my kids when I get older, and they can teach it to their kids." Instilling the language in the younger generation was exactly what Michael Sockalexis had in mind when he proposed his bill. In December, the tribe's state representative introduced Legislative Document 1807, "An Act to Establish the Penobscot Language Preservation Fund in the Department of Education," partly due to the sadness he feels over his own loss of conversational Penobscot. He wants things to be different for his six grandchildren, ages 2 to 12. "Speaking as a young kid, learning from my grandfather and my great- grandfather, I have that in my head now," says the 58-year-old Sockalexis. "To have that gone - call it like a song: It's like I know the music, but ... I've forgotten the lyrics." The bill, which the Maine House passed on March 16 and was before the Legislature's joint appropriations committee earlier this month, would deposit $300,000 into a newly created fund at the state Department of Education to be managed by the tribe's cultural and historic preservation department. Tribal leaders hope that the money would attract additional aid from groups like the National Endowment for the Humanities. (Sockalexis was unable to vote on his own bill, as he and the representative of the Passamaquoddy Tribe are considered intergovernmental liaisons with no voting rights in the Legislature.) But passage was far from guaranteed. The bill is vying against dozens of requests for new funding, and the appropriations panel, which doles out the state's limited resources, could opt to table it or send it on to the Senate for a decisive vote. "Heritage counts. And the tribe has been trying to teach its young people about their heritage," says state Representative Richard Blanchard, a Democrat from Old Town, Maine, who has co-sponsored the bill and whose legislative district encompasses Indian Island. "How advantageous the language is going to be to them, I don't know." When asked why Native American children - unlike those of, say, Polish descent - should be encouraged to learn the language of their ancestors, linguists tend to bristle. "Even if we don't teach Johnny Polish, Polish still exists," says Richards, the MIT linguist. "If we decide not to save these languages, there'll be no speakers of them at all." MORE THAN IDLE CHATTER, LANGUAGE IS INTRINSIC to our identity. Even if people don't look the same or share the same customs, a common tongue binds them together. And the very words used not only reveal the speaker's feelings and ideas but shape them. "When I hear English, I feel competitiveness," Roger Paul says. "Once I switch that worldview and start thinking in Indian, it's difficult to think back in English again." Language preservationists argue it's important to keep languages, like animals, from extinction for the sake of diversity. "Every language provides us with more knowledge about human thinking and behavior ... and a unique perspective. So, when we lose a language, we lose a lot of knowledge," says Pauleena MacDougall, associate director of the Maine Folklife Center housed at the University of Maine in Orono. "It's almost like losing an animal. So what? Why do we care about it? Because it's something missing that should be here." The loss of Penobscot has happened with such swiftness that it was almost gone before anyone knew it needed rescuing. The Penobscot Nation's eldest member, Valentine Ranco, was born in 1912 on Orson Island, next to Indian Island, and did not know how to speak English when her grandfather sent her off to the Indian Island School. Married in 1929, Ranco and her now deceased husband, Leslie, also Penobscot, left the reservation in 1942 when he took a job in a military parts factory in Springfield, Massachusetts. A decade later, they opened the Indian Moccasin Shop in Wells, Maine, now run by their daughter, June Lane. During the war years, "I stopped speaking [Penobscot] because I didn't have anyone to speak to," Ranco recalls. "Everybody stopped. Everybody!" While the Rancos, like other Native Americans, had to assimilate into the mainstream culture, they did so as if looking over their shoulders at the ghosts of old Penobscots whispering secrets in their native tongue. "Within our language, we can maintain who we are and remember our place in what part of the environment we belong in," Paul says after the smudging ceremony. "That's why I feel ... it's so important to maintain the language - because we'll be teaching the kids to look at the world through the eyes of our ancestors." (Speaking Penobscot) Before the 1930s, there was no offi cial Penobscot alphabet. But in that decade, the late pathologist and avocational linguist Frank T. Seibert Jr. used the International Phonetic Alphabet - a standardized notation system that represents the distinctive sounds used in all spoken language - to devise one. Unlike the 26-letter alphabet used in English, the Penobscot alphabet has 25 letters, counting double consonants and including special characters like the alpha and schwa. The following line comes from "The Wolverine," a Penobscot tale transcribed in the early 20th century by the late anthropologist Frank G. Speck and used by permission of the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. It was translated into the Penobscot alphabet by Pauleena MacDougall, Seibert's research assistant in the 1980s and now the associate director of the Maine Folklife Center. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: from_provider_globe.gif Type: image/gif Size: 1986 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: word.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 1228 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: word2.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 1030 bytes Desc: not available URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Mon May 1 05:10:15 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2006 22:10:15 -0700 Subject: Native Student Success Message-ID: Pathways for Indian Student Success American Indian students are the least likely of all college-goers to earn a degree, and they’re more likely than members of any other racial group to drop out, according to federal data. Research to date hasn’t been able to explain all of the hows and whys behind this phenomenon, but many student affairs professionals say that it’s time to tackle the problem. Leaders of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, an organization that represents about 11,000 student affairs officials in higher education, have taken note of the complex issues that face American Indian students. While the organization has been holding its annual convention for 88 years, this year, for the first time ever, addressing the recruitment and retention of American Indian students has played a substantial role at the meeting, due largely to the concerns of administrators who serve such students — both at mainstream institutions and at tribal colleges and universities. “We wanted to make sure that there was always a place for indigenous peoples in NASPA,” said Gwendolyn Jordan Dungy, executive director of the organization, at a special day-long “Summit on Serving Native American Students: From Discussion to Action,” which was held on Sunday. The forum highlighted the formation of a new NASPA-affiliated group called the Indigenous Peoples Knowledge Community, which is intended as a network for administrators nationwide to share best practices for serving Indian students. A new listserv is also in the works. “We are past the time for talking,” said Henrietta Mann, a professor emeritus in Native American Studies at Montana State University at Bozeman, during her keynote address. “We need to establish effective action plans to maintain our historical cultures and to shape the future for Native American students in higher education.” George S. McClellan, vice president for student development at Dickinson State University, in North Dakota, said that Indian students tend not to use student services, and that those services that they do use tend to be focused on financial aid. His findings came as a result of a recent study by researchers at the University of Arizona, which has one of the largest Indian populations of all mainstream institutions in the country. He said that colleges need to incorporate incentives for getting students to seek service. At the University of North Dakota, for example, a student must visit the Native student affairs at least two times a year in order to be eligible for tuition assistance programs “Both Native and non-Native professionals and professional associations must play a role in bringing about the needed changes in higher education with respect to better serving Native American students,” said McClellan. “A critical component in achieving the goal of increasing rates of participation and persistence is to recognize and act on the knowledge that building student success begins long before Native students arrive on campus.” Based on his own observations, he said that having American Indian faculty members and staff tends to help Indian students feel more connected to their campuses. Shelly Lowe, a student service provider at the University of Arizona, said that higher education professionals need to become aware of and make use of indigenous theories, models and practices in seeking to support Native American students, staff and faculty. She said that a book she co-authored with McClellan and Mary Jo Tippeconic Fox, Serving Native American Students, which is available online, provides several examples that have been helpful for some Indian students. “Footnotes indicating that findings on Native Americans are not statistically significant and so are omitted from the research are too often the only reference to Native Americans in much of the literature in higher education,” added Lowe. She suggested that although qualitative research is often more time-consuming than quantitative research that this methodology could be helpful. Ruth Harper, a professor of counseling and students affairs at South Dakota State University, said that qualitative research is one of the best ways to understand Indian students, even though one cannot make generalizations from it. She recently used the method to study several Lakota male students who attend Sinte Gleska University, in South Dakota. For these men, she said integrating aspects of American Indian culture with counseling was important to them, as were ways to address concrete issues, including travel, costs and child care. One man told Harper that the Lakota language courses he has taken at the university “mean my life.” Many administrators at the summit said they weren’t under the impression that forming an action-focused committee would be a magic bullet. With 562 federally recognized tribes and many state- recognized tribes — all with different cultures and languages, Indian students are one of the most heterogeneous groups around. Further complicating matters is that fact that some students are deeply concerned about making Native culture and language an integral part of their education, while others don’t hold this as a priority. Still, most said that focusing on culture is crucial — not only in helping Native students succeed, but also in fostering generations of students who are connected to their unique histories. Along these lines, Mann said that indigenous people have a right to their own identities, languages and cultures, but that mainstream institutions of higher education often have not provided students with avenues to achieve these rights. “Language is the lifeblood of our cultures and is rooted in the Earth,” she said. She added that no matter where an Indian student attends college, administrators have the obligation to honor students’ cultural heritage and spirituality, especially if they are expressing the desire for this kind of support. She said that her own institution has worked diligently to strengthen its Native American Studies program, which currently offers a minor and master of arts degree. “Cultural pluralism is a gift,” added Mann. “But too often we are left out of programs on campuses. We need to change that.” Several administrators who have collaborated with tribal colleges, said that such institutions are able to infuse language and culture into a student’s learning experience in ways that mainstream institutions often do not. Research indicates that tribal colleges have improved participation and persistence rates of American Indian students by creating culturally relevant learning environments. Still, because many tribal colleges are two-year institutions, there was a general concern that the institutions cannot meet the full educational needs of many Indian students. Student affairs professionals at the summit said that mainstream institutions must find ways to collaborate with tribal college officials to learn what works for their students, and to determine what actions can be taken on campuses nationwide to improve the experience for Indian transfer students. — Rob Capriccioso The original story and user comments can be viewed online at http:// insidehighered.com/news/2006/03/15/indians. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From HeitshuS at U.LIBRARY.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 1 16:16:20 2006 From: HeitshuS at U.LIBRARY.ARIZONA.EDU (Heitshu, Sara) Date: Mon, 1 May 2006 09:16:20 -0700 Subject: Native Student Success Message-ID: The University of Arizona Library has Serving Native American Students as may many other libraries. You need to look under the journal title New Directions for Student Services to find it in our online catalog. It is volume 2005, issue 109. Sara Sara C. Heitshu Librarian, Social Science Team American Indian Studies, Linguistics, Anthropology heitshus at u.library.arizona.edu 520-307-2781 fax 520-621-9733 University of Arizona Main Library PO Box 210055 Tucson, AZ 85721-0055 -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Andre Cramblit Sent: Sunday, April 30, 2006 10:10 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: [ILAT] Native Student Success Pathways for Indian Student Success American Indian students are the least likely of all college-goers to earn a degree, and they're more likely than members of any other racial group to drop out, according to federal data. Research to date hasn't been able to explain all of the hows and whys behind this phenomenon, but many student affairs professionals say that it's time to tackle the problem. Leaders of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, an organization that represents about 11,000 student affairs officials in higher education, have taken note of the complex issues that face American Indian students. While the organization has been holding its annual convention for 88 years, this year, for the first time ever, addressing the recruitment and retention of American Indian students has played a substantial role at the meeting, due largely to the concerns of administrators who serve such students - both at mainstream institutions and at tribal colleges and universities. "We wanted to make sure that there was always a place for indigenous peoples in NASPA," said Gwendolyn Jordan Dungy, executive director of the organization, at a special day-long "Summit on Serving Native American Students: From Discussion to Action," which was held on Sunday. The forum highlighted the formation of a new NASPA-affiliated group called the Indigenous Peoples Knowledge Community, which is intended as a network for administrators nationwide to share best practices for serving Indian students. A new listserv is also in the works. "We are past the time for talking," said Henrietta Mann, a professor emeritus in Native American Studies at Montana State University at Bozeman, during her keynote address. "We need to establish effective action plans to maintain our historical cultures and to shape the future for Native American students in higher education." George S. McClellan, vice president for student development at Dickinson State University, in North Dakota, said that Indian students tend not to use student services, and that those services that they do use tend to be focused on financial aid. His findings came as a result of a recent study by researchers at the University of Arizona, which has one of the largest Indian populations of all mainstream institutions in the country. He said that colleges need to incorporate incentives for getting students to seek service. At the University of North Dakota, for example, a student must visit the Native student affairs at least two times a year in order to be eligible for tuition assistance programs "Both Native and non-Native professionals and professional associations must play a role in bringing about the needed changes in higher education with respect to better serving Native American students," said McClellan. "A critical component in achieving the goal of increasing rates of participation and persistence is to recognize and act on the knowledge that building student success begins long before Native students arrive on campus." Based on his own observations, he said that having American Indian faculty members and staff tends to help Indian students feel more connected to their campuses. Shelly Lowe, a student service provider at the University of Arizona, said that higher education professionals need to become aware of and make use of indigenous theories, models and practices in seeking to support Native American students, staff and faculty. She said that a book she co-authored with McClellan and Mary Jo Tippeconic Fox, Serving Native American Students, which is available online , provides several examples that have been helpful for some Indian students. "Footnotes indicating that findings on Native Americans are not statistically significant and so are omitted from the research are too often the only reference to Native Americans in much of the literature in higher education," added Lowe. She suggested that although qualitative research is often more time-consuming than quantitative research that this methodology could be helpful. Ruth Harper, a professor of counseling and students affairs at South Dakota State University, said that qualitative research is one of the best ways to understand Indian students, even though one cannot make generalizations from it. She recently used the method to study several Lakota male students who attend Sinte Gleska University, in South Dakota. For these men, she said integrating aspects of American Indian culture with counseling was important to them, as were ways to address concrete issues, including travel, costs and child care. One man told Harper that the Lakota language courses he has taken at the university "mean my life." Many administrators at the summit said they weren't under the impression that forming an action-focused committee would be a magic bullet. With 562 federally recognized tribes and many state-recognized tribes - all with different cultures and languages, Indian students are one of the most heterogeneous groups around. Further complicating matters is that fact that some students are deeply concerned about making Native culture and language an integral part of their education, while others don't hold this as a priority. Still, most said that focusing on culture is crucial - not only in helping Native students succeed, but also in fostering generations of students who are connected to their unique histories. Along these lines, Mann said that indigenous people have a right to their own identities, languages and cultures, but that mainstream institutions of higher education often have not provided students with avenues to achieve these rights. "Language is the lifeblood of our cultures and is rooted in the Earth," she said. She added that no matter where an Indian student attends college, administrators have the obligation to honor students' cultural heritage and spirituality, especially if they are expressing the desire for this kind of support. She said that her own institution has worked diligently to strengthen its Native American Studies program, which currently offers a minor and master of arts degree. "Cultural pluralism is a gift," added Mann. "But too often we are left out of programs on campuses. We need to change that." Several administrators who have collaborated with tribal colleges, said that such institutions are able to infuse language and culture into a student's learning experience in ways that mainstream institutions often do not. Research indicates that tribal colleges have improved participation and persistence rates of American Indian students by creating culturally relevant learning environments. Still, because many tribal colleges are two-year institutions, there was a general concern that the institutions cannot meet the full educational needs of many Indian students. Student affairs professionals at the summit said that mainstream institutions must find ways to collaborate with tribal college officials to learn what works for their students, and to determine what actions can be taken on campuses nationwide to improve the experience for Indian transfer students. - Rob Capriccioso The original story and user comments can be viewed online at http://insidehighered.com/news/2006/03/15/indians . -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Tue May 2 22:46:15 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Tue, 2 May 2006 15:46:15 -0700 Subject: Saving Languages Message-ID: The Daily Californian Meet the Prof A Linguist’s Quest to Save a Dying Language BY Andrea Lu Contribution Writer Wednesday, April 26, 2006 Click to Enlarge photo/eli weissman Andrew Garrett studies the Yurok language of one Native American group. He hopes to help in preserving the rich language and its culture. There are currently 6,000 languages around the world. Fast forward 100 years, and there will only be 600 left-the rest will have disappeared and become dead languages. UC Berkeley linguistics professor Andrew Garrett is documenting the Native American Yurok language in hopes of chronicling their language for the future before it too vanishes, as there are only a half dozen elderly Yurok speakers remaining. "My purpose is to fill out our knowledge of that language, and it involves a lot of different things-recording different kinds of speech, vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, and trying to integrate that information with material that earlier linguists have collected," Garrett said. Garrett, a historical linguist who studies how languages evolve over time, turned his focus from Europe and the Middle East to study Californian Native languages in 2000. Since then, he has been working primarily on understanding and analyzing the Yurok language. The Yurok is the largest Native American tribe in California with currently 5,000 enrolled tribal members. Also known as the Klamath River Indians, the tribe resides north of the city Eureka. Garrett's interest in the Yurok language began "by chance, really" when he moved to California and agreed to work with a colleague who wanted to research it. "For me personally, it turned out to be a fortunate chance because for one thing the structure of that particular language is a little unusual among languages of California and Native American languages in general," he said. "While I was working on Yurok language I found aspects that cast interesting light on problems of Indo-European languages and vice versa." It was also the first language that Berkeley anthropology department founder Alfred Kroeber researched intensively starting from 1901. Kroeber left behind an archive stuffed with field notes and recordings on different aspects of the Yurok culture such as myths, ceremonies and narratives, yet most of the material was never published. "What I find interesting about it is the richness of the archive and the challenge of figuring out how the language as it was documented in 1905 is similar to or different from the language we can hear now," Garrett said. "The project is trying to pull all of that into one big picture of a single language." The database has allowed him to gain valuable insight into a language that now only few people can speak. One of his goals is to map the differences in people's speech by location to find patterns. "My work on the historical side really has focused on working with the archival material on Yurok," Garrett said. "One of the projects I've been doing lately is going through the archives because right now there are very few speakers, but in the old days there were thousands of speakers and apparently a lot of diversity in areas where the language was spoken." Garrett's ultimate goal is to establish in the linguistic archives the documentary material on Yurok that will be available to scholars and native people. Garrett also hopes to produce a comprehensive grammar reference, as well as a book featuring stories, myths and narratives in Yurok. His experience working with the Yurok has been enjoyable, says Garrett, and community members have been receptive to his research. However, working with the Yurok has not been completely stress free as the reality of the extremely small minority who can speak Yurok and their old age has been a depressing reminder for Garrett. "It is frustrating to work with a language where all the speakers are very elderly," Garrett said. "During the time I have been working on the language one very good speaker has died, and another came close to death but now is fine...it can be discouraging and a little scary. Also on a practical level, they're all sort of deaf so that's been an obstacle." The Yurok case represents the growing threat of languages around the world dying off at an incredibly rapid rate. "The field has collectively recognized in the last 10, 20 years what has been true for a long time but came into everyone's consciousness recently-that a huge amount of languages in the world are going to be dead in 50 to 100 years," Garrett said. According to Garrett, the cause of the language extinction resides primarily on social factors such as colonialism, imperialism, economic greed and oppression of native peoples. Also, the globalization of certain languages such as English and Spanish have contributed to the demise of many indigenous languages. "The root of the problem is really social because what society is doing to small communities and small groups of people has an effect on those people and thus has an effect on their languages," Garrett said. One of the causes that has produced a direct negative effect on indigenous languages in the United States is President George Bush's No Child Left Behind Act that has caused schools to adjust their curriculum to the English-based test. "The result of the intense orientation toward those English tests is that some schools that have or are near Native American communities are tending to drop native language programs because they feel they don't have the time or resources," Garrett said. While some linguists feel that they should actively revitalize threatened languages within respective communities, Garrett feels that the role of the linguists should be of a careful promoter, and should not intervene at will. "Personally, I don't see it as the white linguist's role to be an activist inside in the tribe," he said. "If (the tribes) want to use the language more, then we try to help them. For example, last year when I was on sabbatical I did a lot of workshops for the Yurok language program on the grammatical aspects of the language. But I don't think it would be appropriate for us to push it ourselves." A common misconception of linguists is that they can speak many different languages. Garrett's response to this stereotype is that linguists study languages, not speak them, and he himself is still far from becoming fluent in Yurok. "I'm at that foreign language learning stage where, when someone's talking, you recognize as it goes along that you know each of the pieces but they're going too fast for you to put it all together and you want to say 'No, no, stop, wait! Talk four times as slow!'" Garrett said. Contact Andrea Lu at science at dailycal.org. From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 3 16:53:57 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Wed, 3 May 2006 09:53:57 -0700 Subject: anthropology with no apology In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Thanks Jan For your reply,sure you can use it I have a few other stories I could share with you too. One little uncomfortable event could always have been just an archaeologists bad day. But I have several others which really make me wonder sometimes. A British-born archaeologist who freely ads to his own private collection To us Wendat/Wyandots he gives the mystic answer- ³because the spirits give pipes² to him. And another where Park Rangers ask children to actually police their parents for studying a pot sherd. The analytical dominant language of English creates thought patterns that are very different than our indigenous languages. ³TAKING² patterns ...Collecting and filing of data, charting and graphing even of spirituality to seek to Comprehend (based on its own limited presumptions) and it seeks to unravel, and control that which has always been utter mystery. When a pot sherd is taken by an archaeologist it is a sacred event...(because it is ³information²) when an artist (even a native artist) picks one up,to feel the past ,its a Federal violation of the Law. But foreign thought processes alter whatever is touched or taken...without possibly realizing it. Latin based language-thought-systems have created a yearning to define all that exists. It is a conquerors tongue...and still conquering, and will not stop its quest. Knowledge becomes supreme diety, (Gnosis) Information is salvation... Fortunately,of course, it can also be used (as I¹m doing here ) to question even itself. And it can create technologies which are tools we can use. But I¹m concerned about its own subtle prostlytizing effects And its unspoken claim to total objectivity And.... I¹ve noticed that converts seem to be increasing. Richard Zane Smith On 4/30/06 12:57 PM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > Richard, thanks for your story, I'd like to share it with my applied > anthropology class and race and ethnic relations class ....with your > permission of course. More of your perspective needs to be heard and this > story is a great way to share your perspective. I agree with you, and I can > certainly talk to some of your points, however since this is a language and > technology discussion group, I'm respectfully not going to. Let me however > apologize for those who aren't willing to even have dialogue and share this > quote by John Kenneth Galbraith Oct 15 1908-Apr 29th 2006. "The modern > conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; > that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness." and > "People of privilege will always risk their complete destruction rather than > surrender any material part of their advantage." > > Jan Tucker > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From jtucker at STARBAND.NET Wed May 3 16:12:19 2006 From: jtucker at STARBAND.NET (Jan Tucker) Date: Wed, 3 May 2006 12:12:19 -0400 Subject: anthropology with no apology In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Re: [ILAT] anthropology with no apologyRichard, Thank you for your insights and perspective again, I'd love to hear your other stories... I have one from a recent conference that I attended regarding a reference to ceremonial items as "trash". The conference was about Nature Culture and Religion, put on by a new organization with that focus. I listened to a speaker share a paper about the ecotourism of local a cenote by the indigenous people of the area and then about their own use of sacred caves for their spiritual ceremonies ( not used for ecotourism, private in other words). During the talk the indigenous people were critiqued for not picking up "trash" away from the trail to the cenote, but doing so along the "tourist" or public trail to the location. Then there were pictures of sacred offerings in plastic containers, and candles in caves which were then referred to "ceremonial trash". Indigenous people were then said to be damaging the ecology of their own sacred caves by leaving this "ceremonial trash". It was very unsettling and disturbing to hear "trash" and "ceremonial" offerings together and worries me about setting some kind of precedent for the taking of ceremonial locations to "preserve" them from indigenous "ceremonial desecration" . So what the archeologists have done in your examples is now being continued with words and talks like this one by those writing about ecological issues in indigenous environments and under their control. Jan -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Wednesday, May 03, 2006 12:54 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] anthropology with no apology Thanks Jan For your reply,sure you can use it I have a few other stories I could share with you too. One little uncomfortable event could always have been just an archaeologists bad day. But I have several others which really make me wonder sometimes. A British-born archaeologist who freely ads to his own private collection To us Wendat/Wyandots he gives the mystic answer- “because the spirits give pipes” to him. And another where Park Rangers ask children to actually police their parents for studying a pot sherd. The analytical dominant language of English creates thought patterns that are very different than our indigenous languages. “TAKING” patterns ...Collecting and filing of data, charting and graphing even of spirituality to seek to Comprehend (based on its own limited presumptions) and it seeks to unravel, and control that which has always been utter mystery. When a pot sherd is taken by an archaeologist it is a sacred event...(because it is “information”) when an artist (even a native artist) picks one up,to feel the past ,its a Federal violation of the Law. But foreign thought processes alter whatever is touched or taken...without possibly realizing it. Latin based language-thought-systems have created a yearning to define all that exists. It is a conquerors tongue...and still conquering, and will not stop its quest. Knowledge becomes supreme diety, (Gnosis) Information is salvation... Fortunately,of course, it can also be used (as I’m doing here ) to question even itself. And it can create technologies which are tools we can use. But I’m concerned about its own subtle prostlytizing effects And its unspoken claim to total objectivity And.... I’ve noticed that converts seem to be increasing. Richard Zane Smith On 4/30/06 12:57 PM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: Richard, thanks for your story, I'd like to share it with my applied anthropology class and race and ethnic relations class ....with your permission of course. More of your perspective needs to be heard and this story is a great way to share your perspective. I agree with you, and I can certainly talk to some of your points, however since this is a language and technology discussion group, I'm respectfully not going to. Let me however apologize for those who aren't willing to even have dialogue and share this quote by John Kenneth Galbraith Oct 15 1908-Apr 29th 2006. "The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness." and "People of privilege will always risk their complete destruction rather than surrender any material part of their advantage." Jan Tucker -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Thu May 4 20:19:31 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 13:19:31 -0700 Subject: No subject Message-ID: I am looking for some training for information on best practices for teaching two levels of Language in the same classroom. Do you have any ideas? thanks APC -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Thu May 4 23:09:29 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 16:09:29 -0700 Subject: FYI Message-ID: http://iallt.org/ Established in 1965, IALLT is a professional organization whose members provide leadership in the development, integration, evaluation and management of instructional technology for the teaching and learning of language, literature and culture. Its strong sense of community promotes the sharing of expertise in a variety of educational contexts. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 4 23:10:02 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 16:10:02 -0700 Subject: HLT at UofA Message-ID: We are very pleased to announce the start of a new Master of Science program in Human Language Technology (HLT) at the University of Arizona. This program is currently admitting students for fall 2006. SPECIAL DEADLINE FOR FALL 2006: The deadline for admissions is *May 20, 2006*. Due to restrictions on visas, for the fall 2006 term we can only consider US citizens, US residents, and foreign students already in the US. (Regular deadlines apply for the 2007-2008 school year -- see the website below for details. International applications will be considered for the 2007-2008 year) Details of the program can be found at http://hlt.arizona.edu Application materials and information about the Linguistics Department can be found at http://linguistics.arizona.edu Questions can be directed to Sandiway Fong (sandiway at email.arizona.edu) or Andrew Carnie (carnie at email.arizona.edu) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ / \ Andrew Carnie, Ph.D. / \ Assoc. Professor of Linguistics / \ Department of Linguistics / \ Douglass 200E, University of Arizona / \ Tucson, AZ 85721 / \ Tel: (520) 621 2802 Cell: (520) 971 1166 http://linguistics.arizona.edu/~carnie From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 4 23:46:01 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 16:46:01 -0700 Subject: UA launches Web site geared toward American Indians (fwd) Message-ID: UA launches Web site geared toward American Indians Go to the full story: http://wildcat.arizona.edu/home/ Date Posted: Wed, 26 Apr 2006 http://www.arizonanativenet.com/news/newsInfo.cfm?news_item=37 Watching speeches from tribal leaders, connecting through video conferences and accessing research on American Indians is now made possible by a new UA sponsored Web site. ArizonaNativeNet was launched last week and has the goal of connecting the research and resources available at various academic programs at the UA with American Indian nations throughout Arizona and the U.S., said Robert Williams Jr., a UA law professor and director of the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program at the James E. Rogers College of Law. The site is also dedicated to nation building and the higher educational needs of American Indians. The Web site, arizonanativenet.com, contains breaking news, simulcasts and videotaped lectures, workshops and conferences, up-to-date research, and resources on American Indian governance, law, health, education, language and culture. The site is targeted to tribal leaders, policymakers, students, educators and the general public, Williams said. "It can serve all audiences, from university students to high school teachers to tribal leaders," he said. It took more than a year to make the Web site, which was designed by a team of distinguished faculty, academic professionals, and information and technology specialists. It was made possible in part by a congressional grant. The creation and launch of the site has been a universitywide effort, Williams said. Two highly regarded UA Native American academic programs led the effort: the Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management and Policy and the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program. The vice president for Research Native Programs Collaborative, an effort to improve university services and outreach to American Indian communities, has provided and contributed to much of the educational and distance-learning content on the site, Williams said. The site features a lecture series made up of scholars, experts, policymakers and tribal leaders brought to the UA by several academic programs on campus. The site also features a database that will include information on grants, research and outreach programs benefiting American Indians. Louellyn White, an American Indian studies graduate student, begin working on the site in January and said the best thing about it is that there will be an abundance of material available in one place. "Tribal communities are often left behind when it comes to technology, information and research results," she said. "(The site) will help them stay informed on the issues that effect their lives." The digital divide may prevent many on the reservations from being able to regularly access the site, but Williams said many reservations have or will soon have such access. The committee that launched the site is also working on securing grants to help American Indian nations gain broadband access, Williams said. "The Internet can be a tool of tribal sovereignty," he said. "It can bring cutting edge research and information to the reservations." Although other groups, such as rural communities, are in need of a similar online resource, the UA decided to target the American Indian community because UA has a national reputation for research in that area, Williams said. So far the Web site has gotten a positive response, with hits coming from on and off campus. "It's a great resource up and down. There's really nothing like it anywhere in the world," Williams said. Ian Record of the Native Nations Institute agreed the Web site is the first of it's kind. He said there were several entities on campus doing proactive work on American Indian issues, but said the work was not being communicated to the nations. "The site addresses the unique challenges and unique circumstances of Native nations," he said. "Ideally it will be a two way street with native communities speaking to the university." Record said the Web site also has a goal of helping to recruit American Indian students and of improving their retention rates at the UA. The Web site is still being worked on, and Record said he envisions American Indian students one day being able to talk to their friends and family at home via videoconference. This will help with homesickness because many American Indians find the university atmosphere to be very different and sometimes overwhelming, he said. "We want them to become more comfortable and to not feel so far away from home," he said. Another benefit of the videoconferencing would be that tribal leaders would be able to access the indigenous law faculty in real time, saving time and money. Record said the Web site will not just feature UA research and projects but will have the best research and resources on American Indians regardless of where it comes from. "Knowledge will flow both ways," he said. "It'll be a hub for native people everywhere." From coyotez at UOREGON.EDU Fri May 5 00:29:47 2006 From: coyotez at UOREGON.EDU (David Lewis) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 17:29:47 -0700 Subject: No subject In-Reply-To: <0B3593EC-A8C4-4E25-9B82-C8E39A58B06E@ncidc.org> Message-ID: Hi Andre, I am not a language teacher but it seems to me that the more experienced students could become the instructors or leaders. This would allow the instructors to get better with their language because they have to think about it more and are responsible for getting it right. This worked in my Chinook Jargon clsses at Grand Ronde. I know this is not a complete solution but it still might work. David Andre Cramblit wrote: > I am looking for some training for information on best practices for > teaching two levels of Language in the same classroom. Do you have > any ideas? thanks > APC From deprees at U.ARIZONA.EDU Fri May 5 16:08:45 2006 From: deprees at U.ARIZONA.EDU (Depree ShadowWalker) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 09:08:45 -0700 Subject: Bridging Cultures: SchoolsMovingUp 5/17 Online Event Message-ID: YOU ARE INVITED TO AN ONLINE EVENT WestEd's SchoolsMovingUp Web site will feature another free Online Event, "Bridging Cultures," on Wednesday, May 17 from 10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Pacific Time (1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time). Participants in this interactive event will learn about the differences between more collaborative and individualistic cultures, and how some of those differences can show up in school settings. Using case material developed by the teacher action-researchers who originated the Bridging Cultures work, Noelle Caskey, Senior Research Associate at WestEd, will lead participants in an exploration of alternative ways of understanding the values and behavior of children and families from non-mainstream cultures that are collaboratively oriented. See the Online Events page on SchoolsMovingUp for further information, including specific topics to be addressed by this event, at http://www.schoolsmovingup.net/onlineevents. HOW IT WORKS The Online Event is a combined PowerPoint presentation and conference call. There are two ways to participate - by Web telecast or by teleconference. The Web telecast option requires that you have access to an Internet connection and a phone line at the same time. During the Web telecast, you will see slides displayed on your computer screen as you hear the presenter's voice over the phone line. You will be able to participate in online polls and questions, view related Web sites and resources, and ask questions by typing in the chat window. For the teleconference option, you'll download the PowerPoint presentation in advance and follow along while listening to the presenter over the phone. **Note: If you have special access needs (e.g., you have a hearing impairment and need special arrangements made to access the audio), please let us know ASAP so we can make the appropriate arrangements. REGISTRATION To sign up for this event, please visit http://www.schoolsmovingup.net/events/bridgingcultures and select "Sign Up." You will then be prompted to login or register for free on the site as needed. If you plan to participate via the Web telecast option, you will need to "Run the Wizard" to ensure that your computer can handle the Web telecast. If you would prefer to participate via teleconference, you can instead join the conference call and download the PowerPoint presentation, which will be available the day before the event. Registered participants will receive an email notification when the slide portion of the presentation is posted. The message will also contain further instructions for participating. If you are unable to participate in the live event, you may view an archive, which will be available beginning the day after the event. CONTACT We look forward to your participation. For more information, contact Julie Duffield at jduffie at wested.org or 415.615.3213. For technical questions, contact Dan Wilson at dwilson at wested.org or 510.302.4265. STAY INFORMED To be notified about our new Online Events each month, become a registered user of SchoolsMovingUp for free at http://www.schoolsmovingup.net/cs/wested/register. -------------------------- You have received this announcement because you are a registered user of SchoolsMovingUp. We hope you find this information useful. Unsubscribe from this announcement by sending an email to cs.unsubscribe.a.1 at email.schoolsmovingup.net. From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Fri May 5 16:34:33 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 09:34:33 -0700 Subject: Tech Chat Message-ID: LIVE CHAT TODAY "The Information Edge: Using Data to Accelerate Achievement" WHEN: Today, Friday, May 5, 2006, 3 p.m., Eastern time WHERE: http://www.you-click.net/GoNow/a15864a146633a235000156a1 How did your state do? The ninth annual edition of "Technology Counts 2006: The Information Edge: Using Data to Accelerate Achievement," grades the states on several school technology indicators, finding, for instance, that West Virginia leads the nation with an overall grade of "A," while Nevada trails with a "D-." A survey of state education officials conducted for the report finds that despite the federal government's push to make data central to instructional decisions, states are still far from putting their electronic information into a form that local educators can easily use. Join us this afternoon as we take your questions on "Technology Counts" and the states' use of technology and data. Submit your questions in advance here: http://www.you-click.net/GoNow/a15864a146633a235000156a0 Our chat guests: *Christopher B. Swanson, director, EPE Research Center; *Caroline Hendrie, project editor, "Technology Counts" For background, read the report here: http://www.you-click.net/GoNow/a15864a146633a235000156a2 then join our chat to get your questions answered today, at 3 p.m., here: http://www.you-click.net/GoNow/a15864a146633a235000156a0 No special equipment other than Internet access is needed to participate in this text-based chat. A transcript will be posted shortly after the completion of the chat. From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Fri May 5 20:42:44 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 13:42:44 -0700 Subject: Rosetta Stone Message-ID: HTTP://WWW.NATIVEVILLAGE.ORG/MAY%201%202006%20NEWS%20ISSUE%20167/MAY% 201,%202006%20I%20167%20V1.HTM ROSETTA STONE(R) RELEASES INTERACTIVE MOHAWK LANGUAGE SOFTWARE Virginia: Rosetta Stone has just released language-learning software for the Mohawk (Kanien'keha) language. Spoken by the Kanien'kehaka (People of the Flint) nation, Kanien'keha is among many of the world's Indigenous languages that are in danger of becoming extinct. Five hundred years ago, an estimated 300 languages were spoken across North America. Today, only about 25 are now spoken by children. The remaining languages are likely to disappear with their generation of speakers. "We believe the best way to preserve a language is through teaching and learning, keeping it a living language in the hands of the people to whom it belongs," says Ilse Ackerman from Rosetta Stone. "Technology can help with this task. Interactive language software is a great resource to support community language initiatives. It provides learners unlimited exposure to fluent speech, patient and tireless feedback, and an individually tailored learning pace." Software development for the Kanien'keha language was sponsored by the Mohawk language and cultural center of Kahnawake. This is the first endangered language software to be developed through Rosetta Stone, which currently teaches 30 other languages to people in over 150 countries. http://www.aborinews.com/contenu/bulletin/bulletin.asp? cat=CommuniquesEn&id=1529http://www.newswire.c -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From jeysargent at CALMAIL.BERKELEY.EDU Mon May 8 05:16:52 2006 From: jeysargent at CALMAIL.BERKELEY.EDU (=?windows-1252?Q?Jenny_Sargent?=) Date: Sun, 7 May 2006 22:16:52 -0700 Subject: Maori Radio Message-ID: I am doing research on the effectiveness on radio programs in achieving the objectives of language revitalization programs. Currently I am looking for information on the Maori radio stations. If anyone knows of studies, interviews, reports, government documents, or anything else which contains information concerning how Maori radio if affecting the language goals of the Maori community, please let me know. Thanks, Jenny Sargent-Smith From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 8 16:04:25 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 09:04:25 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) Message-ID: Unlocking the secret sounds of language: Life without time or numbers No one knew what the tiny Piraha tribe were humming to each other until one linguist really listened. What he heard is turning our understanding of language on its head By Elizabeth Davies Published: 06 May 2006 http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_technology/article362380.ece Deep in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, along the banks of the Mai ci river and shaded from the scorching sunlight by a verdant canopy of hanging branches, the linguist Dan Everett is going back to basics with his new class. "Um, dois, tres," he repeats in clearly enunciated Portuguese. "One, two, three." A row of blank faces greets his efforts. This was going to be harder than he had thought. More than 25 years ago, Professor Everett, then a missionary and now an ethnologist at the University of Manchester, decided to try to teach members of the obscure Pirahã tribe how to count. He would not succeed. Instead, he found a world without numbers, without time, one where people appeared to hum and whistle rather than speak. This isolated tribe of some 350 people in tiny villages in the depths of the Brazilian jungle could turn our understanding of language on its head and disprove the main work of one of the world's most celebrated intellectuals, Noam Chomsky. >From Professor Everett's first steps on Pirahã land in 1977, he knew the tribe was remarkable. Their language had no words capable of conveying numbers or of counting to even the most basic of figures. It could, he believed, be the world's only language without numbers. But he had to wait months before he could say for sure what made the Pirahã special, so indecipherable was their language, a kind of sing-song communication which has more in common with whistling and humming than the spoken word. During one of his first visits, in the late 1970s, he began to understand what the tribespeople were saying. It was a rude awakening. Eavesdropping one night, desperately trying to piece together what little he knew of their words, he realised with a shock that the warriors, marching along the banks of the river, were planning nothing less than to murder him by moonlight. Professor Everett ran back to the hut and locked his wife and three children inside. "I grabbed all their weapons, their bows and arrows," he says. It was an act of triumph; the outsider had caught them off guard and proved his worth. The tribe was so amazed he had actually worked out what they were saying to each other that they treated him with a cautious kind of respect. From then on, neither he nor his family had problems. In 1980, after many entreaties, Profesor Everett set about trying to teach the Pirahã. For eight months, he tried to explain rudimentary arithmetic to the more eager men and women keen to learn the skills needed to trade at fair prices with other indigenous tribes who arrived looking for brazil nuts. But after months of painstaking, often excruciatingly slow, evening classes, barely any of the Pirahã had managed to count to 10. Even one plus one had proved beyond them. "At first, they wanted to learn to read and write and count," he says. "But by the end, only a few could even manage to get from one to nine. I thought, 'This not working'." Not only did the Pirahã use no numbers in their incredibly sparse language, they also appeared unable to even conceive of them. During the seven years Professor Everett spent with them, he never heard them use words such as "all," "every" and "more". There is one word, "hoi," which comes close to the number one, but it can also mean "small," or a small amount, such as two small fish as opposed to one large one. Peter Gordon, a psycholinguist at New York's Columbia University who has also made the journey deep into the rainforest to explore the Pirahã's numerical skills, performed experiments with the tribespeople, with the bare materials the Pirahã were used to dealing with. He asked them to repeat patterns he created on the ground with batteries, or count how many brazil nuts he had in his hand. The results seemed to show the tribe simply did not understand the concept of numbers. But the tribe's almost total lack of enumeration skills is just one of the Pirahã's many traits which has so fascinated linguists for two decades. The tribe has survived, culture intact, for centuries. "I tried to transcribe everything I heard," says Professor Everett, now a fluent Pirahã speaker. "I tried desperately to find structures I thought every language had but I couldn't find them. I was sure it was my inexperience in not being able to see them, but actually it was that they just weren't there." He believes the Pirahã is the world's only people to have no distinct words for colours. They have no written language, and no collective memory going back further than two generations, meaning few can remember the names of all four grandparents. The members of the tribe, in villages along a 300-km stretch of the Maici, frequently starve themselves even when food is available. The concept of decorative art is alien; even the simplest of drawings provokes intense frustration. They are also believed to be the world's only society to have no creation myth; asked how their ancestors came into existence they say, "The world is created" or "All things are made". The Pirahã language is simple. For men, it can be pared down to just eight consonants and three vowels. Pirahã women have the smallest number of "speech sounds" in the world, with only seven consonants and three vowels. There is no perfect tense, no means of saying, for example, "I have eaten". The Pirahã are a unique people living without time or numbers, without colours or a shared past. And, until recently, that was more than enough to unite anthropologists in shared fascination at this obscure society which seemed to trump everything they thought they knew about language, and humans in general. Many, including Dr Gordon, interpreted the Pirahã's inability to learn to count as evidence for the theory that language shapes the way we think, that we are capable of creating thoughts only for which we already have words. In this theory, espoused initially by the Yale lecturer Benjamin Whorf in the 1930s, the Pirahã could not get to grips with numbers in another language, Portuguese, because their own language had no capacity for it. "A people without terms for numbers doesn't develop the ability to determine exact numbers," Dr Gordon said in Science magazine. "The question is, is there any case where not having words for something doesn't allow you to think about it? I think this is a case for just that." But Professor Everett did not leave it there. "You could say these features of the language, these absences, are all coincidences. I tried to find a common thread to explain why the Pirahã were the way they were." That factor, he found, was all around and yet its significance had never been noticed: the culture and unique way of life of the Pirahã. In a paper published last year, Professor Everett says this, not their language, prevents the Pirahã from counting. Because of their culture's ingrained emphasis on referring only to immediate, personal experiences, the tribesmen do not have words for any abstract concept, from colour to memory and even to numbers. There is no past tense, he says, because everything exists for them in the present. When it can no longer be perceived, it ceases, to all intents, to exist. "In many ways, the Pirahã are the ultimate empiricists," Professor Everett says. "They demand evidence for everything." Life, for the Pirahã, is about seizing the moment and taking pleasure here and now. "I suddenly noticed how excited they were whenever planes crossed the sky then disappeared. They just love sitting around watching people coming around the bend in the jungle. Whenever I came into the village then left, they were amazed." The linguistic limitations of this "carpe diem" culture explain why the Pirahã have no desire to remember where they come from and why they tell no stories. Other aspects of the culture have also had had an undeniable impact on the Pirahã language, Professor Everett says. They have a stubborn belief in their way of doing things that has arguably prevented them from doing things taken for granted in other countries. The Pirahã are capable of, for example, drawing a straight line when they want to make a stick figure to ward off evil spirits, but find writing the number one almost impossible. Actively resistant to Western knowledge, they dropped out of Professor Everett's reading and writing classes when they realised he was trying to write down their language, which had remained purely verbal. "We don't write our language," they said. They told him the reason they had come to the classes was simply that it was fun to all get together in the evening, and Professor Everett made them popcorn. It is easy to understand why the Pirahã have fascinated so many for so long. But what makes Professor Everett's theories so particularly stunning to the linguistic world is that they fundamentally contradict the theories that have dominated the sphere since the mid-20th century. The Pirahã language, Professor Everett claims, is the final nail in the coffin of Noam Chomsky's linguistic legacy, whose hugely influential theory of universal grammar dictates that the human mind has an innate capacity for language and that all languages share certain basic rules which enable children to understand the meaning of complicated syntax. At its core is the concept of "recursion", defined as the ability to build complex ideas by using some thoughts as subparts of others, resulting in subordinate clauses. The Pirahã language has none of these features; every sentence stands alone and refers to a single event. Instead of saying "If it rains, I will not go", the tribe says: "Raining I go not." Professor Everett insists the example of the Pirahã, because of the impact their peculiar culture has had upon their language and way of thinking, strikes a devastating blow to Chomskian theory. "Hypotheses such as universal grammar are inadequate to account for the Pirahã facts because they assume that language evolution has ceased to be shaped by the social life of the species." The Pirahã's grammar, he argues, comes from their culture, not from any pre-existing mental template. Some anthropologists claim Professor Everett attributes too much importance to a vague concept of "culture". Others suggest that, through centuries of inbreeding, the Pirahã are simply intellectually inferior, an argument ProfessorEverett says is baseless. "These people know the names of every species in the jungle. They know the behaviour of all the animals," he says. "They know their environment better than any American knows his. They know so many things we don't, but because we know a few they don't, they are somehow less intelligent. It's ridiculous. As a matter of fact, they think I'm dumb because I have a habit of getting lost in the jungle." Professor Everett's work is likely to be hotly debated. He will head back to Amazon this summer with a bevy of enthusiastic young PhD students to try to introduce others to the Pirahã and to prove his theories. A mark of how seriously the linguistic world takes his studies is that accompanying him will be W Tecumseh Fitch, one of the three architects of the original theory of universal grammar along with Chomsky and Dr Marc Hauser. The expert is keen to see whether the tribe does indeed refute their long-established theory. Professor Everett took almost three decades to solve the riddle of the mysterious Pirahã language, and it will be years before anyone else knows them enough to properly challenge his findings. For now, it seems, their secrets are safe in the heart of the rainforest. From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 8 16:10:54 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 09:10:54 -0700 Subject: Canoes still popular (fwd) Message-ID: Canoes still popular By JOHN EBY / Niles Daily Star Thursday, May 4, 2006 10:59 AM EDT http://www.nilesstar.com/articles/2006/05/04/news/ndnews2.txt DOWAGIAC - A “renaissance” in building birch bark canoes shows no sign of abating well into its second decade, a Pokagon Band member said Wednesday night at The Museum at Southwestern Michigan College. In fact, said John Low of Niles, “More and more people are engaging in a revival of traditional building. Individuals and small groups of Potawatomi, Ojibwe and Odawa Indians have initiated such projects. To Low, who traveled to Guam last summer to meet with master builders, a canoe is not only the “product of indigenous engineering genius,” but also a symbol, “a rich metaphor for carrying Great Lakes indigenous peoples into their futures on our terms.” An effort to collect and preserve the culture of indigenous peoples occurred “presumably because we were going to disappear,” Low said. “The delicious irony is that we did not disappear - nor did our traditions, although sometimes they were preserved in part by ethnologists. Indian peoples are cautiously appreciative of the attention paid to them and their cultures and indebted for what documentation and preservation were done by non-Natives. We recognize this. Had this not been done, much might have been lost during the last 500 years. “The canoe-building renaissance in the Great Lakes reclaims canoes as a part of Native heritage and inheritance,” he said. “It places the Indian centrally inside the canoe - both literally and symbolically. The 10-county Pokagon Band based in Dowagiac is part of the revival. The tribe applied for and was awarded a Michigan Native American Foundation mini-grant in 2003 to reach Native youth and to engage them in the process of gathering materials to construct a traditional 16-foot canoe. The project to complete two canoes is still under way. A language component will further help elders pass on their knowledge to younger generations. An instructional video will document the construction process and associated Potawatomi vocabulary. Building a birch bark canoe becomes “an effort to mark, re-establish and re-assert the uniqueness of a community's history and practices and the importance of that legacy to its future,” Low said. In the Three Fires Confederacy, the Potawatomi are the “Keepers of the Fire.” They refer to themselves as Anishnaabe, which roughly translated means “the original people” or “the true humans.” “They may have had the canoe since the beginning of time,” Low said. “Oral histories of our communities include references to a great flood” which creatures survived by clinging to a log or canoe. “Our migration west 500 years ago may have been based upon the search for food - wild rice that grows on water. Canoes were always important to us,” he said. “Birch bark canoes transport people and ideas. It's an important symbol of Great Lakes Indian identity. They have never ceased being built.” Non-Natives have also been “enamored” with canoes, Low said, from early eras of fur trade and exploration to romance, art, poetry and commerce. Low read Longfellow's “Song of Hiawatha” from 1855 as an “appropriate example of this embrace of canoes by non-Natives.” He showed examples of products canoes pushed, including locally, Round Oak stoves and Heddon's fishing lures, plus potables, candy, medicine, canned goods, fresh fruit, vegetables and even toothpicks on his “list of misappropriations” and a tacky toy canoe of the type sold in souvenir stands. “Canoes have become both Native icon and symbol of conquest by non-Native appropriation,” he said. “Native religion and ceremonies were often driven underground until the last decades of plurality. Our role in the narrative of America has too long been as a foil to the dominant non-Native. We're either colonized, devoid of our own culture, or as primitive peoples frozen in cultures on the margins of American history. As pressures to assimilate into the mainstream continue, Indians, including the Pokagon Potawatomi, are finding new ways and symbols for our reimagined indigenous identity.” Low's last installment in the museum's spring lecture series provided a prelude to an exhibit on Potawatomi Indians and the Dowagiac-based Pokagon Band running June 21 through December. July's brown bag lunch series may also focus on Native Americans, Director Steve Arseneau said. Low said he grew up on the St. Joseph River. He is a Turtle Clan member. His last talk was at an American Indian museum in Evanston, Ill. “I took this idea of lifelong learning to the extreme because I'm back in school,” he said. His first academic tour concluded with a law degree and practicing law. His second bachelor of arts degree was in American Indian studies from the University of Minnesota. “Then I got a scholarship to the University of Chicago,” Low said, “and I got a master's degree in social sciences, which is all about why people do the things they do. That has fascinated me since. I've carried that forward and it was the impetus of this project I've been working on for the last year or so - trying to think about why people in the Great Lakes,” including his tribe, “re-engage with the building of birch bark canoes. I may not have the answers, I may be completely off, but I toss off some ideas” as part of his Ph.D. program at the University of Michigan. Low introduced the topic by showing an excerpt from the 1994 WNIT program, “Keepers of the Fire,” featuring the late Mark Alexis and Mike Daugherty talking about canoe building. The clip also mentioned Dan Rapp and Greg Ballew. Ballew and Mike's son, Kevin Daugherty, were in the audience. From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 8 16:14:38 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 09:14:38 -0700 Subject: Immersion students get shuttle funding (fwd) Message-ID: Immersion students get shuttle funding By Paul C. Curtis - The Garden Island Posted: Tuesday, May 02, 2006 - 10:38:22 pm HST http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2006/05/03/news/news03.txt On the scale of the state’s multimillion-dollar budget, $40,000 is a pittance. But to Nolan Rapozo and the family of a child in Waimea Valley who commutes to the Kapa‘a Elementary School Hawaiian-immersion program, it’s huge. The money in the state budget will be matched by state Office of Hawaiian Affairs funds for a bus, or bus service, that will allow students outside of Kapa‘a to get to Kapa‘a Elementary, Middle and High schools, where the public-school immersion programs teach children the host language. “The bus is the beginning,” said Rapozo, a Lihu‘e resident whose two children will catch the bus for the 2006-07 school year if the funds are released in time. “We have to get the kids to the school.” Students from Ha‘ena to portions of Wailua whose home district isn’t Kapa‘a Elementary, for example, catch the Kapa‘a-bound school bus on a space-available basis. But there is nothing for those from Kekaha to Hanama‘ulu. ‘This is a start for us, a new beginning,” and the end of a 10-year battle to get funding for transportation for out-of-district students, Rapozo said. There are around 90 students in the Hawaiian-immersion programs at the three schools. He’d like to see the bus scheduled so that students can be picked up at their home public schools and transported to Kapa‘a, and is also hopeful that those immersion students who catch the bus back to their home schools after school will be able to enroll in the after-school programs at their home schools. “We’re really excited,” and scrambling to work to see if the funds can be released in time for the bus system to be in place by the time the 2006-07 school year begins in late July, said Rapozo, a retired Kaua‘i Police Department and state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement officer. The state budget is effective July 1. The transportation system is the first step in what might be many future moves for the public-school immersion program, where students are taught primarily in the Hawaiian language. “We’re a legitimate school. The kids love their language,” said Rapozo, president of the parent-support group of Ke Kula Kaiapuni o Kapa‘a. Rapozo said they are working on a plan to bring the Kapa‘a Middle School immersion students down to Kapa‘a Elementary School, as a teacher shortage has been hampering the program at the middle-school level. Further, there is movement afoot to totally relocate the public school immersion program to a new site near Kaua‘i Community College and the ‘Aha Punana Leo Hawaiian-immersion preschool. “Transportation is the issue,” said state Sen. Gary Hooser, D-Kaua‘i-Ni‘ihau. Those in the ‘Aha Punana Leo Hawaiian-immersion preschool in Puhi who want to continue in Hawaiian-immersion programs in public school don’t always have ways to get to the Kapa‘a campus if they live outside that district, Hooser said. State Rep. Bertha Kawakami, D-West Kaua‘i-Ni‘ihau, vice chair of the House Finance Committee, was instrumental in getting the funding placed in the state budget bill, Hooser said. For years, lack of bus transportation has been a deterrent for most out-of-district families wanting to enroll their keiki in the Kapa‘a-based Hawaiian-immersion program, said Alohilani Rogers, one of the teachers. For over a decade, several ‘Aha Punana Leo Hawaiian immersion preschool graduates (ages 3 to 5) who become fluent in the Hawaiian language at the preschool level did not continue to enroll in the Ke Kula Kaiapuni o Kapa‘a Hawaiian-immersion program due to lack of transportation, she said. With the success of passing of this appropriation, enrollment is expected to increase significantly, and the strength and support needed to survive will continue for the future of the Hawaiian language and culture, Rogers said. Opened in the fall of 1989, the state Department of Education’s Ke Kula Kaiapuni Hawaiian-immersion program is located at the three Kapa‘a public schools. Kula Kaiapuni’s Hawaiian-immersion program treats the indigenous language as primary and dominant in the school setting, Rogers explained. English is introduced as part of the curriculum beginning in grade five, to ensure bilingual ability at the high-school level, said Rogers. Rapozo said his younger children are already bilingual in English and Hawaiian. The Hawaiian-immersion program at Ke Kula Kaiapuni strives to provide a quality education based on knowledge of the Hawaiian language and culture as the foundation upon which individuals become responsible, sensitive and productive adults who contribute significantly to all levels of Hawai‘i’s community, Rogers said. All families on the island are eligible to attend Ke Kula Kaiapuni o Kapa‘a. For enrollment and other information about Ke Kula Kaiapuni o Kapa‘a, contact Rogers, 635-4839. • Paul C. Curtis, associate editor, may be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or pcurtis at kauaipubco.com. From rzs at TDS.NET Mon May 8 17:42:05 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Zane Smith) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 12:42:05 -0500 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) Message-ID: yes fascinating of course but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, some unexplored mental territory to seize to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories from within their lofty ivory towers of academia to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions yes very interesting critters these anthropologists i might have to get my own bug jar out and collect a few of these anthros. do a few experiments... hmm...what happens when you pull this? hmmm yes,very interesting... better write that one down... richard Richard Zane Smith 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. Wyandotte Oklahoma 74370 From hardman at UFL.EDU Mon May 8 20:02:32 2006 From: hardman at UFL.EDU (MJ Hardman) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 16:02:32 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <20060508174205.BHSB9045.outaamta01.mail.tds.net@smtp.tds.net> Message-ID: Definitely in the neighborhood of my reaction. Also -- what I call a 'deficit grammar'. By listing all the stuff a language does NOT have one learns precisely nothing. I kept wondering all through the article what the people *have*. At the very end there is just a hint that they do have all kinds of interesting stuff. But that is not where the interest is. In my teaching I prohibit 'deficit grammars'. E.g., what would we thing of English if we said that English has no data source marking, English doesn't have human/non-human, English doesn't have object incorporation, English doesn't have sentence suffixes ... They tend to get the picture. MJ On 05/08/2006 1:42 PM, "Richard Zane Smith" wrote: > yes fascinating of course > but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! > studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, > some unexplored mental territory to seize > to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, > to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing > and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories > from within their lofty ivory towers of academia > to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions > yes > very interesting critters these anthropologists > i might have to get my own bug jar out > and collect a few of these anthros. > do a few experiments... > hmm...what happens when you pull this? > hmmm yes,very interesting... > better write that one down... > richard > > Richard Zane Smith > 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. > Wyandotte Oklahoma > 74370 > From jtucker at STARBAND.NET Tue May 9 13:04:55 2006 From: jtucker at STARBAND.NET (Jan Tucker) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 09:04:55 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) In-Reply-To: <20060508174205.BHSB9045.outaamta01.mail.tds.net@smtp.tds.net> Message-ID: In this article what caught my attention was that the only reason that was given for attending the "night school" was said to be getting together and popcorn and the reason for not attending was the concern that Everett was writing down the language [apparently not approved of by the people]. A clear preference for not doing so seemed to be expressed here YET the "missionary" now "ethnologists" is going back to bring in other's to "collect, process, unravel, unlock". Everett has clearly suggested that the Pirahna stopped coming because of their concern for having the language written down. I think I'd take that as a serious determent against further "extractions". Jan -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Zane Smith Sent: Monday, May 08, 2006 1:42 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) yes fascinating of course but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, some unexplored mental territory to seize to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories from within their lofty ivory towers of academia to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions yes very interesting critters these anthropologists i might have to get my own bug jar out and collect a few of these anthros. do a few experiments... hmm...what happens when you pull this? hmmm yes,very interesting... better write that one down... richard Richard Zane Smith 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. Wyandotte Oklahoma 74370 From rzs at TDS.NET Tue May 9 16:23:05 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 09:23:05 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: These are really insightful responses I'm glad others are weighing these accepted practices of members from this intrusive academia I'm no linguist so I have a question. Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? Would people who have no words for past tense be forced to live in a collective amnesia? Will they then not "remember" the anthropologist when he visits again? Just because they don't use past tense verbal expression? If a child comes smiling and says: "you have popcorn?" Wouldn't this mean its another way of expressing memory or past tense? Maybe I'm not properly awed by Academia I guess I just wonder sometimes If the new sciences are not just refined systems of conquest and ultimately...control. richard On 5/9/06 6:04 AM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > In this article what caught my attention was that the only reason that was > given for attending the "night school" was said to be getting together and > popcorn and the reason for not attending was the concern that Everett was > writing down the language [apparently not approved of by the people]. A > clear preference for not doing so seemed to be expressed here YET the > "missionary" now "ethnologists" is going back to bring in other's to > "collect, process, unravel, unlock". Everett has clearly suggested that the > Pirahna stopped coming because of their concern for having the language > written down. I think I'd take that as a serious determent against further > "extractions". > > Jan > > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Indigenous Languages and Technology > [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Zane Smith > Sent: Monday, May 08, 2006 1:42 PM > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) > > > yes fascinating of course > but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! > studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, > some unexplored mental territory to seize > to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, > to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing > and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories > from within their lofty ivory towers of academia > to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions > yes > very interesting critters these anthropologists > i might have to get my own bug jar out > and collect a few of these anthros. > do a few experiments... > hmm...what happens when you pull this? > hmmm yes,very interesting... > better write that one down... > richard > > Richard Zane Smith > 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. > Wyandotte Oklahoma > 74370 From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 9 14:53:05 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 08:53:05 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi, Richard, I am selling some books on Amazon, and waiting for one of the pages to come up. The questions you ask remind me of the to-ing and fro-ing of discussions of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. :-) In my research, I started by developing a "sieve" of words in English and in Dine Bizaad to catch materials with mathematical concepts. I used some papers from the Mathematics and Literature conference in Mykonos, Greece, last summer. From a paper written by Zizzi on statistical terms in stories, I collected 35-40 conceptual words in English. I found matches to only 3 of these in my Diné Bizaad dictionaries. However, when I looked at Diné Bizaad directly, I found: 1) That math terms related to shape, count and frequency are embedded in the grammar; 2) That a mathematical process that is used in application systems development, commonly called cascading or waterfall, is embedded in the culture and ways of knowing. I also think 2 other things about "words": 1) Words exist if people use them; usage is group-related. This means that if I use the word onomatopoeia this DOES NOT mean that use of the word is endemic to a) my family; b) my friends; c) my community; d) my community at large. 2) No single person or even a group of people from the same locale (see item 1, above) knows all the words in a language. I believe that the beliefs in the general distribution of language concepts has mislead a great number of people studying language. I don't often see people talk about register. I do see people deprecate register as "jargon" however. 3) My own personal bias is about fluency: I don't believe that someone who can grunt "gimme 'nuther beer woodja!" should be considered "fluent". On that note . . . Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 10:23 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language These are really insightful responses I'm glad others are weighing these accepted practices of members from this intrusive academia I'm no linguist so I have a question. Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? Would people who have no words for past tense be forced to live in a collective amnesia? Will they then not "remember" the anthropologist when he visits again? Just because they don't use past tense verbal expression? If a child comes smiling and says: "you have popcorn?" Wouldn't this mean its another way of expressing memory or past tense? Maybe I'm not properly awed by Academia I guess I just wonder sometimes If the new sciences are not just refined systems of conquest and ultimately...control. richard On 5/9/06 6:04 AM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > In this article what caught my attention was that the only reason that was > given for attending the "night school" was said to be getting together and > popcorn and the reason for not attending was the concern that Everett was > writing down the language [apparently not approved of by the people]. A > clear preference for not doing so seemed to be expressed here YET the > "missionary" now "ethnologists" is going back to bring in other's to > "collect, process, unravel, unlock". Everett has clearly suggested that the > Pirahna stopped coming because of their concern for having the language > written down. I think I'd take that as a serious determent against further > "extractions". > > Jan > > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Indigenous Languages and Technology > [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Zane Smith > Sent: Monday, May 08, 2006 1:42 PM > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) > > > yes fascinating of course > but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! > studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, > some unexplored mental territory to seize > to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, > to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing > and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories > from within their lofty ivory towers of academia > to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions > yes > very interesting critters these anthropologists > i might have to get my own bug jar out > and collect a few of these anthros. > do a few experiments... > hmm...what happens when you pull this? > hmmm yes,very interesting... > better write that one down... > richard > > Richard Zane Smith > 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. > Wyandotte Oklahoma > 74370 From jtucker at STARBAND.NET Tue May 9 15:06:52 2006 From: jtucker at STARBAND.NET (Jan Tucker) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 11:06:52 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Richard, Great questions! I had problems too with the discussion of "past-tense" and the illustrations such as how thrilled the people are to see someone coming down the path as some kind of example of living in the present only. Then they do remember their parents, and grandparents. They certainly planned to kill the missionary in the future during the full moon didn't they? Jan -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 12:23 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language These are really insightful responses I'm glad others are weighing these accepted practices of members from this intrusive academia I'm no linguist so I have a question. Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? Would people who have no words for past tense be forced to live in a collective amnesia? Will they then not "remember" the anthropologist when he visits again? Just because they don't use past tense verbal expression? If a child comes smiling and says: "you have popcorn?" Wouldn't this mean its another way of expressing memory or past tense? Maybe I'm not properly awed by Academia I guess I just wonder sometimes If the new sciences are not just refined systems of conquest and ultimately...control. richard On 5/9/06 6:04 AM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > In this article what caught my attention was that the only reason that was > given for attending the "night school" was said to be getting together and > popcorn and the reason for not attending was the concern that Everett was > writing down the language [apparently not approved of by the people]. A > clear preference for not doing so seemed to be expressed here YET the > "missionary" now "ethnologists" is going back to bring in other's to > "collect, process, unravel, unlock". Everett has clearly suggested that the > Pirahna stopped coming because of their concern for having the language > written down. I think I'd take that as a serious determent against further > "extractions". > > Jan > > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Indigenous Languages and Technology > [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Zane Smith > Sent: Monday, May 08, 2006 1:42 PM > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) > > > yes fascinating of course > but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! > studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, > some unexplored mental territory to seize > to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, > to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing > and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories > from within their lofty ivory towers of academia > to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions > yes > very interesting critters these anthropologists > i might have to get my own bug jar out > and collect a few of these anthros. > do a few experiments... > hmm...what happens when you pull this? > hmmm yes,very interesting... > better write that one down... > richard > > Richard Zane Smith > 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. > Wyandotte Oklahoma > 74370 From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 9 16:12:39 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 09:12:39 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: On Tue, 9 May 2006, Richard Smith wrote: > I'm no linguist so I have a question. > Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? > I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed > (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? Lack of a word means that the concept isn't something speakers of the language talk about much. Your knee is something you need to talk about-- it gets bumped, you kneel on it, you break things over it, you use it to nudge doors open--but the back of the knee isn't something that comes up much in conversation, so there's no need for a word for it (as you say, unless you're an orthopedic surgeon of some such). For example--in a Himalayan language I'm studying I recently came across a word that means 'the feeling you have when you're on a crew or team and somebody else keeps slacking off and not pulling their weight'. Now, this, I'm sure, is a feeling we're all familiar with. But can you think of a word for it? We don't have one. English, compared with a lot of other languages, doesn't have a lot of vocabulary for feelings. Why? Well, it's not something we talk about. In fact, it's *notoriously* something we don't talk about, it's one of the things that speakers of other languages often comment on about English. Notice we do have ways of talking about the situation, but they're all about that guy. I've got plenty of names to call him (goof-off, goldbrick, slacker) and ways to refer to what he's doing (not pulling his weight, slacking off), but in English I don't have a word for how the situation makes me feel, because in English feelings aren't something we talk about. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 9 16:23:17 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 09:23:17 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: On Tue, 9 May 2006, Richard Smith wrote: > Would people who have no words for past tense > be forced to live in a collective amnesia? Except possibly for Whorf (depending on what you think he was actually saying) I don't think any serious linguist has ever suggested this. Whether a language has tense, or some other grammatical category, or not isn't a question of what you *can* say, so much as of what you *have to* say. For example, English "has" plural, while Chinese doesn't. This doesn't mean that Chinese speakers can't indicate the difference between one and more than one. What it means is that English speakers *must* indicate it, even when it's not really relevant--anytime you say an English noun, it's necessarily either in the singular or plural form, and you've committed yourself to one or the other. Same with tense--any English verb is unavoidably in the present or the past form (or one of the participles). Notice, though, that that's only loosely connected to our understanding of what we're talking about, since we regularly use the "present" form to talk about both past ("So this guy comes up to me and ...") and future ("We leave for Canada tomorrow") events. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From phonosemantics at EARTHLINK.NET Tue May 9 17:48:25 2006 From: phonosemantics at EARTHLINK.NET (jess tauber) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 13:48:25 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language Message-ID: What Scott said about English and relative lack of terms for feelings made me start thinking.... Yahgan has vast numbers of short, lexicalized terms for feelings, yet very few equivalently short terms to describe people who create such feelings in us (though you can create these by deverbalization and compounding). Yahgan is serializing, but case marking. The feeling terms are largely descriptive (like 'long face', 'pursed lips', etc.) of visible symptoms of internal states. So far as I know Yahgans did not generally use such terms pejoratively as was the fashion up in the Pacific Northwestern culture area. In Eurasia we see a large swath of languages which seem to have the English pattern of relatively few lexicalized feeling terms, but a very large number of short, lexicalized insulting descriptives. These languages are embedding. At first blush one would seem to have the makings of a pattern- the question is whether it is real, or merely a flight of fantasy. IF there is something going on more than one typological factor may weigh in on the patterning. But I had noticed for some time now that this kind of distribution within the lexicon seemed to be working in tandem with the distribution of ideophones and other forms of iconicity. It would be interesting to know whether some sort of 'general attitude' - empathetic versus adversarial- colored such lexicalization preferences. Even the sound symbolism seems slaved to such things- /m/ in root-final position often has the associated notion of cumulation, gathering. But in Chinese the implication is mostly that this is 'immoral'- that it is drawn without the approval of the previous holder, when considering the entire set. Yet in Austroasiatic one sees instead approval in the same types of situations- tacit allowance of the same act. Someone rummaging through your fridge as either unwelcome theft versus host-sanctioned midnight snack. I would venture that where insults are common generosity may be partly self-promotional, and theft reacted to with viciousness. Where insults are uncommon perhaps generosity is just par for the course, and one earns no special credit for it, and theft would be just another fact of life. Protocapitalist versus protocommunist tendencies. So the question would be whether insulting behaviors are part of a larger strategy of building barriers between individuals and groups, both emotional and economic, leading to stratifications which then show up in the very structure of the language (and/or vice versa). It would also be interesting to know whether other behaviors go along with this- for instance clothing used to demarcate rank, earned merits, etc. (just as accents are in language). Yahgans used very little clothing, which was largely functional except for the occasional decorative trinket- but they had a large repertoire of body and face painting motifs, the latter denoting their feelings. Lack of permanent goods made cumulations of wealth and power impossible, very few specialists as well. It may be that as languages evolve their larger mix evolves too- clothing is becoming more expressive with time in our culture, and less so a mark of class and job. Body decoration is becoming more common and diverse- often expressing emotional state (look at use of makeup). Clothing is literally a barrier, the skin and hair literally an externalization of the body. Similarly I'd expect more emotion terms are on their way- though they may have to be fed from more concrete physiological ones. Well, too much to look at closely in a single lifetime- maybe someone will be motivated to take a stab at it. Jess Tauber From rzs at TDS.NET Tue May 9 19:50:42 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 12:50:42 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Great example,I like that one! Hey Scott you're a good teacher! Mia, you reminded me of something that happened in the 80s when my wife and I lived on the Navajo Res. for 8 years ...how one word said it all... My Navajo brother and I had been riding out by Ganado Lake checking on cows, when off in the distance, we saw a familiar old Ford Mustang make a turn and cross the cattle guard to our place. Carol, my wife was teaching at Ganado Primary School so no one was home. Daniel and I nudged our horses into a comfortable lope. It was Gus a Comanche friend coming for a visit, whose girlfriend was also a teacher at the school there in Ganado in '81. He probably was coming to inspect my new milk-goat i'd told him about. I bought her from Pastor Musgrove who was president of the mission school at Cornfields. When I went to pick her up, I'd asked him if he had learned any Navajo in all his years here on the rez. He told me that he would not let kids even speak Navajo there at the mission school. His idea of school was to educate students so that they would leave the reservation and get good money making jobs in Phoenix or Albuquerque. I noticed the more he spoke, the more his Navajo housekeeper started slamming things as she was dusting and looking agitated...but that was a few days ago and I bought the goat. We rode up. The first thing i noticed was the gate to the pen was ajar and the goat was gone! I dismounted and headed for the pen, noticing sheep tracks all over the place...and in the sandy soil were the clear footprints of an adult that led right into the pen! Someone had stolen my goat! I was furious and I had a good notion who it was. When we had first moved to that old stone house I'd found a guy and his girlfriend sitting beneath the windmill that supplied the water to our house. They were splashing their hot feet in the tank to cool off while out herding sheep. They seemed suprised that we drank that water. Well, Gus and Daniel decided they'd track the sheep, while I rode straight towards his "family camp". I dug my heels in the horse, flew over the sandy hills ,lunging across the washes, slapping past the sagebrush and pinions...I was a warrior, and I had fire in my veins! I paid good money for that goat. I paid 70 dollars, the exact amount I had just pawned my wedding ring for. I never wore it anyway and figured a goat was alot more practical and Carol didn't mind. The more I raced the more furious I became. I was young and ready for war! I came over a rise and past the empty sheep pens and rode straight up to the hogan where cedar smoke was curling from the stove pipe. Culturally it was rude to walk up and start knocking on a door, but i was mad, I knocked, and an old grandmother came to the door. My Navajo wasn't that great, but I said Yah'at'eeh shi mah ...uhh... shi t'lizi jadii usteen! I greeted her and told her my t'lizi jadii "goat-antelope",(Navajo word for milk-goat) was missing. It was an old word and she looked suprised that a non-Navajo was now using it. I heard some dogs barking someone was coming behind the hogan so I left her and got back on the horse and went to meet 'the thief'. He came walking up alone kinda slowly and i rode up charging, "Did you steal my goat?!" "No..."He sounded insulted," I didn't steal your goat!" But i had the evidence! "I saw your tracks all over and even in the pen!" He was upset,"that goat kept jumping on the fence crying when he saw the sheep, and he just pushed the gate open. So I grabbed her horns and put him back in and shut the gate...but he kept doing that, all the time! Then when I took the sheep away over the hill...here he comes, running again!" So i just let her stay with the sheep. I was going to bring him back in the pick-up tonight, when i put the sheep in our pen. (Navajo is not gender specific..."his, her" ...so a traditional speaking the foreign english sometimes will use both terms in the same sentence) I felt like a deflated balloon because I knew he was telling the truth...and I was the fool here now. Oh yeah...why else would his tracks be INSIDE the pen? We went together to find the sheep and there was Gus and Daniel with the goat on a rope. They had tried to chase her home but it would not leave the herd. She was still fighting! We untied her and let her run with the angoras and sheep. That evening I drove up to the hogan. They had her tied up and she was calmly waiting outside. I was invited in. The whole family was watching quietly in the dim light of the kerosene lamp. I apologized and thanked them for taking care of it...As i was heading for the door the old grandma spoke with a twinkle in her eye, "t'lizii jaadi" (goat-antelope) we all laughed But her word was more than just a little playful tease, it was a way of erasing tension that might linger Between any of us...and it was a peace that stayed. Richard On 5/9/06 9:12 AM, "Scott DeLancey" wrote: > On Tue, 9 May 2006, Richard Smith wrote: > >> I'm no linguist so I have a question. >> Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? >> I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed >> (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? > > Lack of a word means that the concept isn't something speakers of the > language talk about much. Your knee is something you need to talk about-- > it gets bumped, you kneel on it, you break things over it, you use it > to nudge doors open--but the back of the knee isn't something that comes > up much in conversation, so there's no need for a word for it (as you > say, unless you're an orthopedic surgeon of some such). > > For example--in a Himalayan language I'm studying I recently came across > a word that means 'the feeling you have when you're on a crew or team > and somebody else keeps slacking off and not pulling their weight'. > Now, this, I'm sure, is a feeling we're all familiar with. But can you > think of a word for it? We don't have one. English, compared with a lot > of other languages, doesn't have a lot of vocabulary for feelings. Why? > Well, it's not something we talk about. In fact, it's *notoriously* > something we don't talk about, it's one of the things that speakers of > other languages often comment on about English. > Notice we do have ways of talking about the situation, but they're > all about that guy. I've got plenty of names to call him (goof-off, > goldbrick, slacker) and ways to refer to what he's doing (not pulling > his weight, slacking off), but in English I don't have a word for how > the situation makes me feel, because in English feelings aren't something > we talk about. > > Scott DeLancey > Department of Linguistics > 1290 University of Oregon > Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA > > delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu > http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 9 18:12:07 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 12:12:07 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: What a great story! I had to remind myself at several places that this was you writing, because it seemed like a fiction novel. :-) Super storytelling. But your story reveals an assumption most people just slide over, one that says, In order to get good jobs, you have to speak English and live in a big city. With the internet, and with the improving awareness of the importance and value of language and culture, this is no longer true :-) Great story, Richard! T'lizii jaadi. Actually, though, I don't think that t'lizii has much to do with the English "goat"; but it has everything to do with the English "dark brown". Barred-l-izhin is black. :-). This is another way in which words have deep relational connections. mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 1:51 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language Great example,I like that one! Hey Scott you're a good teacher! Mia, you reminded me of something that happened in the 80s when my wife and I lived on the Navajo Res. for 8 years ...how one word said it all... My Navajo brother and I had been riding out by Ganado Lake checking on cows, when off in the distance, we saw a familiar old Ford Mustang make a turn and cross the cattle guard to our place. Carol, my wife was teaching at Ganado Primary School so no one was home. Daniel and I nudged our horses into a comfortable lope. It was Gus a Comanche friend coming for a visit, whose girlfriend was also a teacher at the school there in Ganado in '81. He probably was coming to inspect my new milk-goat i'd told him about. I bought her from Pastor Musgrove who was president of the mission school at Cornfields. When I went to pick her up, I'd asked him if he had learned any Navajo in all his years here on the rez. He told me that he would not let kids even speak Navajo there at the mission school. His idea of school was to educate students so that they would leave the reservation and get good money making jobs in Phoenix or Albuquerque. I noticed the more he spoke, the more his Navajo housekeeper started slamming things as she was dusting and looking agitated...but that was a few days ago and I bought the goat. We rode up. The first thing i noticed was the gate to the pen was ajar and the goat was gone! I dismounted and headed for the pen, noticing sheep tracks all over the place...and in the sandy soil were the clear footprints of an adult that led right into the pen! Someone had stolen my goat! I was furious and I had a good notion who it was. When we had first moved to that old stone house I'd found a guy and his girlfriend sitting beneath the windmill that supplied the water to our house. They were splashing their hot feet in the tank to cool off while out herding sheep. They seemed suprised that we drank that water. Well, Gus and Daniel decided they'd track the sheep, while I rode straight towards his "family camp". I dug my heels in the horse, flew over the sandy hills ,lunging across the washes, slapping past the sagebrush and pinions...I was a warrior, and I had fire in my veins! I paid good money for that goat. I paid 70 dollars, the exact amount I had just pawned my wedding ring for. I never wore it anyway and figured a goat was alot more practical and Carol didn't mind. The more I raced the more furious I became. I was young and ready for war! I came over a rise and past the empty sheep pens and rode straight up to the hogan where cedar smoke was curling from the stove pipe. Culturally it was rude to walk up and start knocking on a door, but i was mad, I knocked, and an old grandmother came to the door. My Navajo wasn't that great, but I said Yah'at'eeh shi mah ...uhh... shi t'lizi jadii usteen! I greeted her and told her my t'lizi jadii "goat-antelope",(Navajo word for milk-goat) was missing. It was an old word and she looked suprised that a non-Navajo was now using it. I heard some dogs barking someone was coming behind the hogan so I left her and got back on the horse and went to meet 'the thief'. He came walking up alone kinda slowly and i rode up charging, "Did you steal my goat?!" "No..."He sounded insulted," I didn't steal your goat!" But i had the evidence! "I saw your tracks all over and even in the pen!" He was upset,"that goat kept jumping on the fence crying when he saw the sheep, and he just pushed the gate open. So I grabbed her horns and put him back in and shut the gate...but he kept doing that, all the time! Then when I took the sheep away over the hill...here he comes, running again!" So i just let her stay with the sheep. I was going to bring him back in the pick-up tonight, when i put the sheep in our pen. (Navajo is not gender specific..."his, her" ...so a traditional speaking the foreign english sometimes will use both terms in the same sentence) I felt like a deflated balloon because I knew he was telling the truth...and I was the fool here now. Oh yeah...why else would his tracks be INSIDE the pen? We went together to find the sheep and there was Gus and Daniel with the goat on a rope. They had tried to chase her home but it would not leave the herd. She was still fighting! We untied her and let her run with the angoras and sheep. That evening I drove up to the hogan. They had her tied up and she was calmly waiting outside. I was invited in. The whole family was watching quietly in the dim light of the kerosene lamp. I apologized and thanked them for taking care of it...As i was heading for the door the old grandma spoke with a twinkle in her eye, "t'lizii jaadi" (goat-antelope) we all laughed But her word was more than just a little playful tease, it was a way of erasing tension that might linger Between any of us...and it was a peace that stayed. Richard On 5/9/06 9:12 AM, "Scott DeLancey" wrote: > On Tue, 9 May 2006, Richard Smith wrote: > >> I'm no linguist so I have a question. >> Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? >> I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed >> (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? > > Lack of a word means that the concept isn't something speakers of the > language talk about much. Your knee is something you need to talk about-- > it gets bumped, you kneel on it, you break things over it, you use it > to nudge doors open--but the back of the knee isn't something that comes > up much in conversation, so there's no need for a word for it (as you > say, unless you're an orthopedic surgeon of some such). > > For example--in a Himalayan language I'm studying I recently came across > a word that means 'the feeling you have when you're on a crew or team > and somebody else keeps slacking off and not pulling their weight'. > Now, this, I'm sure, is a feeling we're all familiar with. But can you > think of a word for it? We don't have one. English, compared with a lot > of other languages, doesn't have a lot of vocabulary for feelings. Why? > Well, it's not something we talk about. In fact, it's *notoriously* > something we don't talk about, it's one of the things that speakers of > other languages often comment on about English. > Notice we do have ways of talking about the situation, but they're > all about that guy. I've got plenty of names to call him (goof-off, > goldbrick, slacker) and ways to refer to what he's doing (not pulling > his weight, slacking off), but in English I don't have a word for how > the situation makes me feel, because in English feelings aren't something > we talk about. > > Scott DeLancey > Department of Linguistics > 1290 University of Oregon > Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA > > delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu > http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 9 19:39:06 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 12:39:06 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <32227285.1147196905717.JavaMail.root@elwamui-mouette.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Message-ID: On Tue, 9 May 2006, jess tauber wrote: > It would be interesting to know whether some sort of 'general attitude' - > empathetic versus adversarial- colored such lexicalization preferences. Indeed it would, but it's pretty tricky business, trying to say stuff like this about a language or culture that you know only from the outside. It's very easy--way too easy--to speculate about such stuff, very very hard to say anything that's substantial and not just circular (i.e. "they have a word for it so it's important to them, so that's why they have a word for it"). That's why, encountering something like the difference between English and Kurtoep that I mentioned before, I feel on much stronger ground thinking about what it says about English, where I know the language and culture as thoroughly as anyone, and a lot shakier trying to say anything about Kurtoep culture. That would be easy, too, from this one fact we could go off on wild flights of fancy about their attitude toward cooperation and responsibility, and differences in where Kurtoep and English speakers locate blame, and all kinds of stuff. But the fact is, I don't know Kurtoep, I've never been there, I've only ever met one speaker of the language, I really don't have any business telling a lot of tall tales about them. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From jenn2b4 at HOTMAIL.COM Tue May 9 21:35:31 2006 From: jenn2b4 at HOTMAIL.COM (Jennifer Henderson) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 15:35:31 -0600 Subject: Indigenous math In-Reply-To: <39a679e20604220651x5008a78ak9639cab0dccbe125@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: As I continue to teach elementary Native students (on the rez) in a public school setting. My students struggle with some of the basic westernized numeric operation. Most of my students had a 20% chance of solving a double digit muliplication problem by traditional forms. But this year we introduced an Egyptian method of solving multiplication. And now most of my students have a 98% change of solving the problems correctly. Pro: alternative non-westernized methods do help native students as developing learners. Con: The No Child Left Behind Law has left little opportunity for experimentation with various methods of teaching curriculum. NCLB states that curriculum must be "research based". I am seeing less qualitative research backing our curriculum and most quantifiable data driven curriculum. So the school are buying "packaged" curriculum developed by publishing companies with billion dollar marketing power. Our school (3,4,5,6 grades) tries to appliy the same reading, math, and writing curriculum programs to all the students. Layer that with frequent computerized monitored assessments, then we are seeing some potentially bright native students falling through the cracks at an earlier age. >From: Susan Penfield >Reply-To: Indigenous Languages and Technology >To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU >Subject: Re: [ILAT] Indigenous math >Date: Sat, 22 Apr 2006 06:51:22 -0700 > >Thanks Rudy, Jess and Mia >This discussion is very interesting but, to me, what it underscores is the >need to have more fluent, trained Native teachers involved in curriculum >development. (an old refrain...) > >Years ago, I was heavily involved with training teachers for public schools >which served tribal communities. These cullturally-appropriate math stories >were shared, and may have served to raise awareness, but did little to >really change the way math was taught overall. The only places where real >active involvement and inclusion of culturally grounded math activities >happened were in the rare classrooms where the teacher was a member of the >community. > >Although the numbers of certified Native American teachers have increased >since then, there are still not nearly enough and it is still such an up >hill battle for them to make substantial changes to established and, now, >standardized test-driven curricula of most schools. > >Certainly, the charter school movement offers more potential for the >inclusion of culturally-appropriate and guided math activities and >certainly >there are some such curricula developed for non-public schools serving >reservation communities, but it is still a difficult task to lay out more >than a few isolated lessons, i.e., establish a complete set of lessons, >which reflect a range of culturally-grounded math activities. > > >Susan > > >On 4/22/06, jess tauber wrote: > > > > With regard to Rudy's post and mine, just wondering whether language >TYPE > > might also have any relevance as to what kind of mathematical knowledge >and > > operations might be found, statistically, in a normal cultural setting >(that > > is unmodified by formal Western-style or other imposed-from-outside > > training)- how much does level of culture influence? > > > > Jess Tauber > > > > > >-- >Susan D. Penfield, Ph.D. > >Faculty Affiliations: > Department of English (Primary) > American Indian Language > Development Institute > Department of Linguistics > Second Language Acquistion and > Teaching Ph.D. Program > Dept. of Language,Reading and Culture > >Phone for messages: (520) 621-1836 From rzs at TDS.NET Tue May 9 23:58:02 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 16:58:02 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <003701c67394$17f787d0$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: Mia, Yeah that guy at that mission really got under my skin too Plus he didn't even mention to me that the goat always had birthing troubles.... (slash l)izhin... It never dawned on me that the name for "goat" might be related to the color we call "black" t'oh daaht'si (maybe!) And as the descriptive words for coins, like: (slash-l)ichiiegii' (the red one) "penny" Or the geometric: Hoghan nimazii (house-the round kind) It might be Navajo slang...but I like the word used for "elephant" which I guess roughly translates as "the one who ropes his food" Or one slang used for balogna : "ghámalii bi kwos" (mormon neck) I like the Navajo tongue twisters the best But I'd have one heck of a time spelling them Without being able to type slashed ls ! richard On 5/9/06 11:12 AM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > What a great story! I had to remind myself at several places that this was > you writing, because it seemed like a fiction novel. :-) Super storytelling. > > > But your story reveals an assumption most people just slide over, one that > says, In order to get good jobs, you have to speak English and live in a big > city. With the internet, and with the improving awareness of the importance > and value of language and culture, this is no longer true :-) > > Great story, Richard! T'lizii jaadi. Actually, though, I don't think that > t'lizii has much to do with the English "goat"; but it has everything to do > with the English "dark brown". Barred-l-izhin is black. :-). This is another > way in which words have deep relational connections. > > mia From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 9 22:56:45 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 16:56:45 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Do you have Outlook? If you do, I can fix the slash-l problem. And the nasalized, rising tone vowels, also. . . . Plus we could test the fonts as an email option. That would certainly help me a lot. :-) Whatcha think? -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 5:58 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language Mia, Yeah that guy at that mission really got under my skin too Plus he didn't even mention to me that the goat always had birthing troubles.... (slash l)izhin... It never dawned on me that the name for "goat" might be related to the color we call "black" t'oh daaht'si (maybe!) And as the descriptive words for coins, like: (slash-l)ichiiegii' (the red one) "penny" Or the geometric: Hoghan nimazii (house-the round kind) It might be Navajo slang...but I like the word used for "elephant" which I guess roughly translates as "the one who ropes his food" Or one slang used for balogna : "ghámalii bi kwos" (mormon neck) I like the Navajo tongue twisters the best But I'd have one heck of a time spelling them Without being able to type slashed ls ! richard On 5/9/06 11:12 AM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > What a great story! I had to remind myself at several places that this was > you writing, because it seemed like a fiction novel. :-) Super storytelling. > > > But your story reveals an assumption most people just slide over, one that > says, In order to get good jobs, you have to speak English and live in a big > city. With the internet, and with the improving awareness of the importance > and value of language and culture, this is no longer true :-) > > Great story, Richard! T'lizii jaadi. Actually, though, I don't think that > t'lizii has much to do with the English "goat"; but it has everything to do > with the English "dark brown". Barred-l-izhin is black. :-). This is another > way in which words have deep relational connections. > > mia From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 10 04:25:48 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:25:48 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <005801c673bb$dc4cff30$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: No... I don't have Outlook ...shucks I'm on an iMac10 I use Entourage...its kinda like Outlook... ? For my Wyandot writing I do have a special keyboard installed for nasal hooks and rising tones ...we have glottal stops too but always after vowels unlike Navajo consonant stops k'a t'a ts'a Is there really a font I can install for emailing Dinéh Bizaad ? yeah lets try to figure this out! Do you have the huge Navajo dictionary "ALCHINI BI NAALTSOOSTSOH" ? It was published 1983 Alice Neundorf its great with all those hundreds of hand drawn illustrations I love to sit with Shi Mah Hubbard in Ganado and go through it with her She gets a real good laugh from those drawings Haagoshiláh rz On 5/9/06 3:56 PM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > Do you have Outlook? > > If you do, I can fix the slash-l problem. And the nasalized, rising tone > vowels, also. . . . > > Plus we could test the fonts as an email option. That would certainly help > me a lot. :-) Whatcha think? From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 10 04:44:12 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:44:12 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: yeah Jan, You found some I missed! Yes,planning does take some projection - using present tenses even I could do that "Ok we take this guy out and put some arrows in him. we show the moon he traps our words on white bark" rzs On 5/9/06 8:06 AM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > Richard, > > Great questions! I had problems too with the discussion of "past-tense" and > the illustrations such as how thrilled the people are to see someone coming > down the path as some kind of example of living in the present only. Then > they do remember their parents, and grandparents. They certainly planned to > kill the missionary in the future during the full moon didn't they? From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 04:35:00 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:35:00 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: After reading the article, I have to root for the Pirahã here as I am ever more convinced that as more and more indigenous languages become documented that the natural genius of human language will become evident.  With 6,000 (est.) languages in the world we seem to know so little about how or why a language should be in our mouth making sounds but we do pretty good when it does.  Too it seems most appropriate now that it takes a fairly remote indigenous speech community to revolutionize the way we think about language!  I do hope that the Pirahã continue to remain Pirahã as I do not wish them to be like us even though Universal Grammar says it should be so and linguists labor to make it so.  Phil Cash Cash ....>~~~@>.... -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From phonosemantics at EARTHLINK.NET Wed May 10 06:48:11 2006 From: phonosemantics at EARTHLINK.NET (jess tauber) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 02:48:11 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language Message-ID: Universal Grammar? UG(h)! There may be a universal supergrammar, but my own guess is that it will be quite a bit vaster than Chomsky envisions, with myriad typological interconnections, not merely linear, but some cyclic as well (thus no particular origin point). Chomsky has nothing to say about how sound symbolism, ideophones, etc. are to be dealt with, or much about pragmatics, or grammaticalization, etc. The situation reminds me very much of that of physics before the discovery of radioactivity, which opened up a whole new world. So sure were physicists that they had discovered all that there was to discover that prospective students were being warned off. The story of the drunk looking for his keys under the lamp also comes to mind... In a cyclic system, utilizing fixed processing resources, no language is more or less advanced than any other- just at different points in a hierarchical chain that only SEEMS linear when you don't look at the entire picture. I'm sure both structuralists and functionalists will object to different parts of this scenario. So language A doesn't seem to have trait B- so what? It may have trait C which language D lacks. Maybe speakers of D overvalue its traits and assume universality, and try to force square pegs into round holes by various means. So everyone has to be just like us? Sounds like the UG-ly American syndrome to me. Jess Tauber From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Wed May 10 14:00:22 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 08:00:22 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <20060509213500.v8usssw808oosc4g@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: * even though Universal Grammar says it should be so and linguists labor to make it so If you look at the exceptions to the UG rules, and the exceptions to the exceptions, and the general applicability of UG to PIE languages, and you incorporate the understanding that Chomsky wanted to be a programmer, the “Rules” of UG become very suspect. Story: Chomsky was speaking at UNM in Albuquerque here in NM, and he was saying that all languages contain all the words that describe the world. It was a pretty sweeping statement, and a person in the audience asked, Does that mean that every language has words for ‘carburetor’? , the implication being of course that since words needed to be invented, they couldn’t all be encapsulated just waiting to be activated or awakened. :-) And OF COURSE PIE languages are going to look similar in UG: They are all derived from the same root :-) ‘Course, people don’t tell you this. Everyone is so baffled by Chomsky and his metanarrative, that they don’t feel that what they see is worth putting forth. ‘Cept of course for little renegades like me, who have actually BEEN to MIT, who actually KNOW Minsky, and Yngve, and lots of other people involved in the various projects. Although I haven’t actually had the misfortune of having to deal with Chomsky face to face. People put him in a building far, far away. The man is driven, and I think between him and the one-armed man, they have done more damage to indigenous languages than maybe even religion. Good morning everyone, guess I’m feeling feisty in the beautiful cool air. But like Mihesuah writes, someone has to start telling the truth. The upshot of UG, by the way, is that it doesn’t work. UG was supposed to process language for the military. And the military actually CARE whether stuff works or not. NOT. :-) Mia _____ From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of phil cash cash Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 10:35 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language After reading the article, I have to root for the Pirahã here as I am ever more convinced that as more and more indigenous languages become documented that the natural genius of human language will become evident. With 6,000 (est.) languages in the world we seem to know so little about how or why a language should be in our mouth making sounds but we do pretty good when it does. Too it seems most appropriate now that it takes a fairly remote indigenous speech community to revolutionize the way we think about language! I do hope that the Pirahã continue to remain Pirahã as I do not wish them to be like us even though Universal Grammar says it should be so and linguists labor to make it so. Phil Cash Cash ....>~~~@>.... -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Wed May 10 15:37:48 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 08:37:48 -0700 Subject: Indigenous math In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Check Out Chisenbop from Korea http://www.cs.iupui.edu/~aharris/basicComputing/bc5a.html On May 9, 2006, at 2:35 PM, Jennifer Henderson wrote: As I continue to teach elementary Native students (on the rez) in a public school setting. My students struggle with some of the basic westernized numeric operation. Most of my students had a 20% chance of solving a double digit muliplication problem by traditional forms. But this year we introduced an Egyptian method of solving multiplication. And now most of my students have a 98% change of solving the problems correctly. Pro: alternative non-westernized methods do help native students as developing learners. Con: The No Child Left Behind Law has left little opportunity for experimentation with various methods of teaching curriculum. NCLB states that curriculum must be "research based". I am seeing less qualitative research backing our curriculum and most quantifiable data driven curriculum. So the school are buying "packaged" curriculum developed by publishing companies with billion dollar marketing power. Our school (3,4,5,6 grades) tries to appliy the same reading, math, and writing curriculum programs to all the students. Layer that with frequent computerized monitored assessments, then we are seeing some potentially bright native students falling through the cracks at an earlier age. > From: Susan Penfield > Reply-To: Indigenous Languages and Technology > > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Indigenous math > Date: Sat, 22 Apr 2006 06:51:22 -0700 > > Thanks Rudy, Jess and Mia > This discussion is very interesting but, to me, what it underscores > is the > need to have more fluent, trained Native teachers involved in > curriculum > development. (an old refrain...) > > Years ago, I was heavily involved with training teachers for public > schools > which served tribal communities. These cullturally-appropriate math > stories > were shared, and may have served to raise awareness, but did little to > really change the way math was taught overall. The only places > where real > active involvement and inclusion of culturally grounded math > activities > happened were in the rare classrooms where the teacher was a member > of the > community. > > Although the numbers of certified Native American teachers have > increased > since then, there are still not nearly enough and it is still such > an up > hill battle for them to make substantial changes to established > and, now, > standardized test-driven curricula of most schools. > > Certainly, the charter school movement offers more potential for the > inclusion of culturally-appropriate and guided math activities and > certainly > there are some such curricula developed for non-public schools serving > reservation communities, but it is still a difficult task to lay > out more > than a few isolated lessons, i.e., establish a complete set of > lessons, > which reflect a range of culturally-grounded math activities. > > > Susan > > > On 4/22/06, jess tauber wrote: > > > > With regard to Rudy's post and mine, just wondering whether > language TYPE > > might also have any relevance as to what kind of mathematical > knowledge and > > operations might be found, statistically, in a normal cultural > setting (that > > is unmodified by formal Western-style or other imposed-from-outside > > training)- how much does level of culture influence? > > > > Jess Tauber > > > > > > -- > Susan D. Penfield, Ph.D. > > Faculty Affiliations: > Department of English (Primary) > American Indian Language > Development Institute > Department of Linguistics > Second Language Acquistion and > Teaching Ph.D. Program > Dept. of Language,Reading and Culture > > Phone for messages: (520) 621-1836 From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Wed May 10 15:52:20 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 08:52:20 -0700 Subject: Call for Artists - Relations Exhibition at IAIA Message-ID: __________________________________________________________ Call for digital submissions for the RELATIONS exhibition __________________________________________________________ Please Note: If you are unable to participate in this project, please forward this email to others who might be able to. It is our goal to create a statement that involves Indigenous artists from throughout the world. Please help us spread the word. Introduction The RELATIONS exhibition is an inaugural biennial of contemporary Indigenous art, to be held at the Institute of American Indian Arts Museum in Santa Fe beginning in July 2006. The project, of which the exhibition is the focal point, is intended to stimulate ongoing global dialogue on the need for self-determination in Indigenous art, to emphasize the critical role of Indigenous artists in creating a sustainable future for Indigenous people, and to promote a more inclusive public and scholarly understanding of art and human creativity. The RELATIONS project is not being curated in the typical manner. Instead, there are a core group of artists (presently including Joseph Sanchez, Bob Haozous, Rocky Ka'iouliokahihikolo'Ehu Jensen, Art Oomittuk, Harry Fonseca, Roxanne Swentzell, Rose Simpson, Michah Wesley, Simon Ortiz, Sara Ortiz, Alex Janvier, Jake Fragua, and Anthony Dieter) who are working collaboratively on the project, as both artists and conceptual developers. The inaugural RELATIONS exhibition is intended to stimulate worldwide response – from both the Indigenous and non-Indigenous world. The RELATIONS project is ongoing. The resulting discourse will, in turn, inform the next RELATIONS biennial exhibition (2008), as well as workshops, symposia, and lectures, during the intervening period. How will the exhibition be structured? RELATIONS has five major components: 1) interior and exterior installations in the IAIA Museum galleries; 2) a multimedia "embassy" space that serves to connect Indigenous artists and cultural leaders from around the world; 3) changing digital art installations; 4) an active schedule of programs – dialogues, cultural protocol, performances of music and dance; 5) web and print-based resources which serve to disseminate various aspects of the Indigenous dialogue that has led up to the RELATIONS project. What countries will be represented in the exhibition? The core group of artists represents twelve Indigenous nations from North America and Hawaii. The complete list of participating artists is still in development. By the time the exhibition opens, we expect that it will include the work of 100 artists, representing Indigenous nations in the Americas, Europe, Africa , Asia, and Oceania. Will the show travel? At this time, there are no confirmed plans for the exhibition to travel. Will there be a catalog? There won't be a conventional catalog, but instead a companion publication featuring the extensive, seminal dialogue that has occurred between the artists as they have developed the RELATIONS project. Since many of the works will be based in digital media, and other installations which will be completed close to the opening date, we are anticipating that the publication will be bundled with an DVD, which will serve as a digital checklist. What is the importance of the RELATIONS exhibition, relative to other biennial exhibitions, in Santa Fe and beyond? The RELATIONS exhibition is a challenge to mainstream art exhibitions and biennials, and dominant western notions of art – which have rarified art, and tended to turn it into an elite commercial enterprise. The artists involved in the RELATIONS project seek to move away from such biases, toward an Indigenous understanding of art, in which creativity is an integral aspect of life, for everyone. In doing so, the RELATIONS artists also hope to begin to propose, for everyone, new ways of understanding art – ways that are far more inclusive of the infinitely diverse multicultural creativity that exists in the world. About the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) www.iaiamuseum.org Museum. The IAIA Museum in Santa Fe and the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) in Washington and New York are the two leading national institutions devoted to Native American art and culture. While NMAI encompasses thousands of years of art and culture in the Americas, it is the special role of the IAIA Museum to showcase the contemporary art of Native America and its connection to Indigenous art movements around the world, seeking to bring together the best and brightest Native American and Indigenous artists and cultural leaders for residencies, lectures, demonstrations, and performances. In addition to this national role, the IAIA Museum serves as a vital hub in global network of indigenous art and culture. The Museum provides training and experience for students who want to pursue careers in museums and the arts. Finally, it plays a critical role as a meeting place between the Native and non-Native worlds, a place where education and dialogue can take place in a humane, respectful atmosphere. The Museum is located in downtown Santa Fe, at 108 Cathedral Place. Telephone 505-983-8900 . Academic Campus. A Tribal college and 1994 Land Grant Institution, the Institute of American Indian Arts, throughout its history, has gained national and international recognition, respect and acclaim as the creative stimulus for the contemporary Indian art movement. The United States Congress has declared it a national treasure. Both UNESCO and the International Association of Art view IAIA as one of the most significant arts and cultural education institutions in the world. Founded as a secondary school in 1962 by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, today, the Institute is an accredited baccalaureate institution offering degrees in Creative Writing, Indigenous Studies, Museum Studies Studio Arts, and Visual Communication at its 140-acre academic campus located south of Santa Fe, New Mexico . A leader in Indian arts education for 42 years, IAIA has made a difference in the lives of more than 4,000 students. The academic campus is located at 83 Avan Nu Po Road, twelve miles south of Santa Fe center. Telephone 505-424-2351 __________________________________________________________ Call for digital submissions for the RELATIONS exhibition __________________________________________________________ HOW TO PARTICIPATE: We Need Your Help!!!! Your active participation in the exhibition is critical to the whole concept of a world wide Indigenous dialogue. We want the RELATIONS Project to demonstrate that there is a vital network of involved Indigenous people in the world, who share a common concern for Indigenous self-determination. RELATIONS asks participating artists to reanalyze their contemporary juxtaposition as world citizens. We will consider all material in any medium (digital images, poetry, prose, statements, quotes, Indigenous words, audio and video art) that reflect the various concepts highlighted by the RELATIONS project (see below for details). Submissions should address and speak to the indigenous world view that everything is related as opposed to Western thought of individualism. We would like you to share your thoughts on prayer, breath, identity, elders, youth and the future of Indigenous peoples. What is the future for our children? Works will be reviewed by the core team of artists. EMAIL SUBMISSION CRITERIA: All media must be supplied by email (please email large files as attachments) or on CD or DVD. Deadline for submissions is June 7, 2006 . We will accept submissions after this date for consideration in the catalog but they will not be included in the exhibition. All submissions must be accompanied by a statement authorizing use of the material in the exhibition, catalog, and promotional materials. If accepted, a separate contract may be sent to you. We are not able to return any work that is submitted however we will pay a modest honorarium for work we do accept (see below). Please include in your email submission a valid mailing address. Please include English translations if your submission is written in your Indigenous language. We reserve the right to excerpt material from large text. Payments of honoraria will be dispersed during June and July, 2006. Media type Themes Format Honoraria for ACCEPTED submissions Digital pictures Indigenous views of the world, All our Relatives (rocks, plants, birds, people, animals, sky, etc.) 300 dpi TIF or JPEG $25 US for each image Poetry and original prose/statements (must include translations if not English) Prayer Breath Identity Elders and youth Future of Indigenous People Meaning of Indigenous Names of Indigenous People WORD, RTF, or ASCII file $2 per word for poetry and quotes of 50 words or less $1 per word for essays and other works of more than 50 words Quotes (must be attributed, must include translations if not English) Words in Indigenous Language (must include translations) Audio mixes 5 to 10 separate audio tracks, each 30 sec to 5 min length, consisting of spoken words, chant, song, instrumental music, or synthetic compositions that address one or more of the following themes, from an Indigenous perspective: Prayer Breath Identity Elders and youth Future of Indigenous People Meaning of Indigenous Names of Indigenous People MP3 or .wav file $5 per 30 sec segment (for example, 5 x 2 min segments = 5 x $20 = $100.) Sounds of new life Audio recordings of first sounds of Indigenous babies – first breath, cries, or heartbeat MP3 or .wav file $5 per 30 sec segment (for example, 5 x 2 min segments = $100. Video art Video art, including short subjects or full length videos, dealing with: Prayer Breath Identity Elders and youth Future of Indigenous People Meaning of Indigenous Names of Indigenous People Standard DVD $5 per 30 sec segment (10 min video = $100) In Addition, we are compiling an edited volume of essays and texts to accompany the exhibition. If you have written short or medium length essays dealing with the RELATIONS themes (Prayer, Breath, Identity, Elders and youth, The Future of Indigenous People, The Meaning of Indigenous, The Names of Indigenous People), OR IF YOU ARE AWARE OF ESSAYS WRITTEN BY OTHERS that are especially relevant to this project, PLEASE let us know. All email responses to this call for submittals should be sent to IAIARELATIONS at gmail.com Thank you for your time and consideration, from the entire RELATIONS team. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From manuela_noske at HOTMAIL.COM Wed May 10 16:27:42 2006 From: manuela_noske at HOTMAIL.COM (Manuela Noske) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 09:27:42 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language Message-ID: Incidentally, you might want to check out this website here if you need a font for Dinéh Bizaad that is compatible with different platforms and applications. Chris Harvey owns the site; he specializes in creating Unicode fonts and keyboard lay-outs for different Native American and First Nations languages. He has a lot of useful information and stuff on that site! http://www.languagegeek.com/ Manuela ---------------------------------------- > Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:25:48 -0700 > From: rzs at TDS.NET > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > > No... I don't have Outlook ...shucks > I'm on an iMac10 I use Entourage...its kinda like Outlook... ? > > For my Wyandot writing I do have a special keyboard installed for nasal > hooks and rising tones ...we have glottal stops too but always after vowels > unlike Navajo consonant stops k'a t'a ts'a > > Is there really a font I can install for emailing Dinéh Bizaad ? > yeah lets try to figure this out! > > Do you have the huge Navajo dictionary "ALCHINI BI NAALTSOOSTSOH" ? > It was published 1983 Alice Neundorf > its great with all those hundreds of hand drawn illustrations > I love to sit with Shi Mah Hubbard in Ganado and go through it with her > She gets a real good laugh from those drawings > > Haagoshiláh > rz > > On 5/9/06 3:56 PM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > > > Do you have Outlook? > > > > If you do, I can fix the slash-l problem. And the nasalized, rising tone > > vowels, also. . . . > > > > Plus we could test the fonts as an email option. That would certainly help > > me a lot. :-) Whatcha think? _________________________________________________________________ Enter the Windows Live Mail beta sweepstakes http://www.imagine-msn.com/minisites/sweepstakes/mail/register.aspx From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Wed May 10 16:44:15 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 10:44:15 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Thanks, Manuela, but I made my own. Unicode doesn't support all the characters for Athapascan. I am more concerned that I have spell-check and dictionary support in Microsoft Office, as well as support for the various graphics programs I used to build my materials, than that I have partial support on various platforms. I use tool bars, using the Microsoft macro function, rather than physical keyboards. :-) Thanks for thinking of me. Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Manuela Noske Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2006 10:28 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language Incidentally, you might want to check out this website here if you need a font for Dinéh Bizaad that is compatible with different platforms and applications. Chris Harvey owns the site; he specializes in creating Unicode fonts and keyboard lay-outs for different Native American and First Nations languages. He has a lot of useful information and stuff on that site! http://www.languagegeek.com/ Manuela ---------------------------------------- > Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:25:48 -0700 > From: rzs at TDS.NET > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > > No... I don't have Outlook ...shucks > I'm on an iMac10 I use Entourage...its kinda like Outlook... ? > > For my Wyandot writing I do have a special keyboard installed for nasal > hooks and rising tones ...we have glottal stops too but always after vowels > unlike Navajo consonant stops k'a t'a ts'a > > Is there really a font I can install for emailing Dinéh Bizaad ? > yeah lets try to figure this out! > > Do you have the huge Navajo dictionary "ALCHINI BI NAALTSOOSTSOH" ? > It was published 1983 Alice Neundorf > its great with all those hundreds of hand drawn illustrations > I love to sit with Shi Mah Hubbard in Ganado and go through it with her > She gets a real good laugh from those drawings > > Haagoshiláh > rz > > On 5/9/06 3:56 PM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > > > Do you have Outlook? > > > > If you do, I can fix the slash-l problem. And the nasalized, rising tone > > vowels, also. . . . > > > > Plus we could test the fonts as an email option. That would certainly help > > me a lot. :-) Whatcha think? _________________________________________________________________ Enter the Windows Live Mail beta sweepstakes http://www.imagine-msn.com/minisites/sweepstakes/mail/register.aspx From anggarrgoon at GMAIL.COM Wed May 10 16:49:06 2006 From: anggarrgoon at GMAIL.COM (Claire Bowern) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 11:49:06 -0500 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <00aa01c67450$fd5faf70$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: Which characters aren't supported? Even in the private use area for fonts like Chris Harvey's? (which I really like because it's the only nice looking unicode font that has both underlined letters for Yolngu retroflection AND the right version of capital engma) Claire Mia Kalish wrote: > Thanks, Manuela, but I made my own. Unicode doesn't support all the > characters for Athapascan. I am more concerned that I have spell-check and > dictionary support in Microsoft Office, as well as support for the various > graphics programs I used to build my materials, than that I have partial > support on various platforms. I use tool bars, using the Microsoft macro > function, rather than physical keyboards. :-) > > Thanks for thinking of me. > > Mia > From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 17:16:56 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 10:16:56 -0700 Subject: Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication (fwd link) Message-ID: fyi, Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication http://www.physorg.com/news66397476.html From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 17:21:34 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 10:21:34 -0700 Subject: Hip-hop for the masses (fwd link) Message-ID: fyi, Hip-hop for the masses An anthology edited by Lee Tonouchi explores Hawaii's hip-hop culture http://starbulletin.com/2006/05/09/features/story01.html From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 17:27:11 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 10:27:11 -0700 Subject: Computer center opens doors for rural Guatemalans (fwd) Message-ID: Computer center opens doors for rural Guatemalans Maya Tech the mission of St. Francis parishioners By Lenore Christopher http://www.catholiccincinnati.org/tct/may0506/050506computer.html DAYTON DEANERY — What started as a personal donation of some old computers to the Guatemalan town of Nahualá has multiplied into a full commitment to open doors of communication and education for the residents of the Guatemalan town where Camilo Macario was born and reared and where his wife, Karen, a former Peace Corps volunteer, once lived. [COURTESY PHOTOS A man in the typical Mayan dress of Nahualá learns how to use a computer.] A key ingredient to this blossoming technological outreach that — in less than two years — includes Guatemala’s first community computer lab, a training center, Internet café, youth programs and a children’s library, is gratitude. It was Camilo’s gratitude for a scholarship, allowing him to study in the United States and share his insight when he returned home, that prompted his initial donation. It was the community’s grateful response to that gift that encouraged Camilo, aided by private donations, including a grant from his parish, St. Francis of Assisi Church in Centerville, to expand the operation. And, judging by the grateful requests for similar centers in adjacent Guatemalan towns and, hopefully, with financial and spiritual support from those who see the merits in his project, Camilo’s dream to, one day, offer learning centers throughout Guatemala and Central America, will become a reality. The mission of Maya Tech Learning Centers Inc. is to provide computer technology and education to Guatemala’s underserved communities. It was officially founded as a non-profit corporation in the state of Ohio in 2004 and last year became a federally tax-exempt organization with a voluntary board of directors and advisory council. Its first project is the Centro de Computación Swan Tinamit, founded in 2004, in Nahualá. Its name is derived from the town’s indigenous language, K’iche’, which translates to "communal town," and refers to the community’s involvement in maintenance and use of the center. "The original idea was to give rural communities access to technology," Camilo said, because, on return visits, he and Karen observed the growing "digital divide" between the indigenous people in rural communities, 70 percent of whom are Mayan descendants, and those in the larger cities, who have access to more resources. In 1992, for example, he said, there were no computers in Nahualá. So Camilo donated a few used computers. The gift generated such interest, he knew it would not be enough. Following additional college study in computer technology and moving his family to the Dayton area, "I decided I wanted to do something more substantial to help out the community," he said. Camilo and Karen, in 2003, personally financed the start of the Maya Tech Learning Centers Inc. [Curiosity and eagerness bring all ages to the Computer Center Swan Tinamit.] "We are calling this the pilot project," he said. "Once we get this one set up and we think it will be self-sustainable in the future, it will be time to open new centers." And, he said, the main center "and the people from the smaller communities (who come to the center) will help us grow." The community computer lab and learning center opened a year later with five computers, providing access for personal, school and business use. The center relies heavily on free software, such as Open Office and Linux. A group in Guatemala is translating the programs into different languages, including K’iche’. "The idea is, why teach people to use a computer if they can’t afford to use the products?" he said. Camilo remembers thinking if 12 students signed up when the doors first opened, "I’d be happy. A week later, we had 24," and the numbers have been growing ever since. "They were all ages, from third-grade to university students and teachers." An Internet café at the center enables people to access the Web and obtain and send emails in a community atmosphere. The training center began with the start of the academic year in January, offering a curriculum and classes on various levels of computer operation. Seventy students are currently enrolled in the classes that are accredited through the Guatemalan Ministry of Education. The center now has 12 computers, with the help of donations, including five laptops from Lexis Nexis. "The town has grown in the last 10 years," Camilo said, and there are now banks, an attorney — more commerce that will use computers and technology" and, therefore, a place where new job skills will be needed. With a certificate, students will qualify for jobs in computer operation. "I hope the kids who come to the classes will feel a part of the center, not just take classes and leave," he said. "I want to build a community feeling — (so that people) feel it belongs to them." The center, lab and café have been so successful that Maya Tech is soliciting at least 30 new or slightly new functional computers and any available software that can be donated. Additional computers, especially laptops, will allow the center, lab and classes to operate simultaneously. The cost of building a new computer in Guatemala is approximately $450, he explained. Checks may be made payable to Maya Tech Learning Centers Inc. and mailed to P.O. Box 139, Bellbrook, Ohio 45305. All donations are tax deductible, and board members are available for presentations. For information, contact Camilo at camilo.m at mayatechlc.org. Within the center is also an educational area equipped with books, puzzles and educational games for family use. Youth activities, including study groups, school newspaper and academic clubs, are also available, all under the direction of the center’s program manager. A children’s library is a work in progress, Camilo said. The hope is to eventually expand the library to include reading material for all ages. "Schools in general do not provide textbooks," he explained. "The main idea is that a lot of the schools ask people to buy (particular) books, and a lot of families can’t afford it. If we know what books they need, we could buy a supply, and those who can’t afford the books can use it at the center." Maya Tech is supported by private monetary donations and is hoping to spread the word of their pilot’s success so that people will want to invest in the future of this and other centers. "I know how it is (there). I have experienced it, those who are marginalized and who do not have the opportunities," said Camilo. "Now I know what I can do to help, even if it is a small thing. I think it will make a difference." "This is not just a charity for poor people in Guatemala," Karen emphasized. "It is a social justice project and creating an awareness. "We are constantly looking for funding opportunities," she said, as well as ways to share their work and to connect with other people and groups who have similar missions. For the second year in a row, Camilo and Karen will represent Maya Tech Learning Centers and Guatemala with a cultural display and booth at A World A’Fair May 19-21 at the Dayton Convention Center. "We will be selling various Guatemalan artisan products," said Karen. Maya Tech was named "business of the month" by a local bank branch and also offers Fair Trade, organic, Guatemalan coffee at $10 for a one-pound foil bag. Proceeds support the computer center and small coffee cooperatives in the rural areas of the country. Maya Tech will also hold a fund-raising dinner at Benham’s Grove in Centerville June 23 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $45. For information on Maya Tech Learning Centers Inc., access www.mayatechlc.org or email learnmore at mayatechlc.org or call 937-654-0669. From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Wed May 10 17:47:41 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 11:47:41 -0600 Subject: Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication (fwd link) In-Reply-To: <20060510101656.tcmlhq8g4g0g0c84@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: I read this article. The mathematics is cute, (IMHO). But they follow concepts --> after eliminating "meaningless" words such as pronouns' ?????? Pronouns? Meaningless? I think not. We wouldn't have the words anaphor and cataphor if pronouns were "meaningless". Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of phil cash cash Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2006 11:17 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: [ILAT] Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication (fwd link) fyi, Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication http://www.physorg.com/news66397476.html From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 20:16:24 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 13:16:24 -0700 Subject: Saving Languages (fwd) Message-ID: forwarded from  LINGUIST List 17.1012 http://linguistlist.org/issues/17/17-1012.html Saving Languages Subtitle: An Introduction to Language Revitalization Published: 2005 Publisher: Cambridge University Press                  http://us.cambridge.org Author: Lenore A. Grenoble, Dartmouth College Author: Lindsay J. Whaley, Dartmouth College Hardback: ISBN: 0521816211 Pages: 244 Price: U.K. £ 45.00 Paperback: ISBN: 0521016525 Pages: 244 Price: U.K. £ 17.99 Abstract: Language endangerment has been the focus of much attention over the past few decades, and as a result, a wide range of people are now working to revitalize and maintain local languages. This book serves as a general reference guide to language revitalization, written not only for linguists and anthropologists, but also for language activists and community members who believe they should ensure the future use of their languages, despite their predicted loss. Drawing extensively on case studies, it sets out the necessary background and highlights central issues such as literacy, policy decisions, and allocation of resources. Its primary goal is to provide the essential tools for a successful language revitalization program, such as setting and achieving realistic goals, and anticipating and resolving common obstacles. Clearly written and informative, Saving Languages will be an invaluable resource for all those interested in the fate of small language communities around the globe. 1. Language revitalization as a global issue; 2. Issues in language revitalization; 3. Models for revitalization; 4. Case studies; 5. Literacy; 6. Orthography; 7. Creating a language program. Linguistic Field(s): Applied Linguistics                              Sociolinguistics Written In: English (eng ) See this book announcement on our website: http://linguistlist.org/get-book.html?BookID=18916 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From pasxapu at DAKOTACOM.NET Wed May 10 21:17:06 2006 From: pasxapu at DAKOTACOM.NET (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 14:17:06 -0700 Subject: Maori Radio In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi Jenny, I have been meaning to respond to show solidarity with your research. It seems radio is an unexplored area and rich for inquiry on how indigenous languagea are or are not being used in broadcasting. Please feel free to share some of your preliminary findings at some point here on ILAT. Thanks, Phil Cash Cash ilat mg On May 7, 2006, at 10:16 PM, Jenny Sargent wrote: > I am doing research on the effectiveness on radio programs in achieving > the objectives of language revitalization programs. Currently I am > looking > for information on the Maori radio stations. If anyone knows of > studies, > interviews, reports, government documents, or anything else which > contains > information concerning how Maori radio if affecting the language goals > of > the Maori community, please let me know. > Thanks, > Jenny Sargent-Smith > From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Wed May 10 21:36:55 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 14:36:55 -0700 Subject: Maori Radio In-Reply-To: <49580f188278d2e811415624c54ab382@dakotacom.net> Message-ID: This header reminds me of a song I recreated: Sung to the Tune of Mexican Radio by Wall Of Voodoo I feel a cool breeze on my shoulder Off the river at the reservation border I have my walkman and check the station I listen for Tribal News of the Native nations I hear the talking of the DJ Is it Hopi, Maybe Hoopa, perhaps Lakota Sometimes even Bellagana (sp?) Can't understand just what does he say? I'm on an Indian radio I'm on an Indian radio I dial it in and tune the station They talk about Council business, and commodity allocations There is a tourney on the next Rez Guess its time for a road trip journey I'm on an Indian radio I'm on an Indian radio I wish I was in Albuquerque Dancing at the Midnight Rodeo I call my request in on the phone Can’t We hear “One Eyed Ford” I want to taste some food from home Maybe Salmon, even deer meat, Mutton stew just doesn’t cut it There is the guy, with no teeth That I met at the 49er Can't understand just what does he say? I'm on an Indian radio I'm on an Indian radio Radio radio... From Tracy.Jacobs at ARCHIVES.GOVT.NZ Wed May 10 23:29:25 2006 From: Tracy.Jacobs at ARCHIVES.GOVT.NZ (Tracy Jacobs) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 11:29:25 +1200 Subject: Maori Radio Message-ID: Kia ora Jenny I haven't had time to delve too deeply into this, but you might like to check out the following websites and/or contact these government agencies (apologies if you've already checked these out): Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Maori / Maori Language Commission http://www.tetaurawhiri.govt.nz Te Mangai Paho / Maori Broadcasting Funding Agency http://www.tmp.govt.nz Te Puni Kokiri / Ministry of Maori Development http://www.tpk.govt.nz Particularly: http://www.tpk.govt.nz/publications/subject/default.asp#broadcasting Or their newsletter, Kokiri Paetae: http://www.tpk.govt.nz/publications/paetae/default.asp I had a quick look at http://www.maori.org.nz as well, and found a link to Nga Iwi FM http://www.ngaiwifm.irirangi.net/ which looks like it runs on-air Maori language lessons. The Te Mangai Paho site has links to other iwi radio stations. Good luck with your research. E noho ora mai Tracy Jacobs -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Jenny Sargent Sent: Monday, 8 May 2006 5:17 p.m. To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: [ILAT] Maori Radio I am doing research on the effectiveness on radio programs in achieving the objectives of language revitalization programs. Currently I am looking for information on the Maori radio stations. If anyone knows of studies, interviews, reports, government documents, or anything else which contains information concerning how Maori radio if affecting the language goals of the Maori community, please let me know. Thanks, Jenny Sargent-Smith From rzs at TDS.NET Thu May 11 14:45:00 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 07:45:00 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <007201c6743a$18e083d0$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: I don¹t know why people do what they do But obviously I wonder a lot... After leaving the Santa Fe area And moving here in Oklahoma on the very gut bulge above the bible belt I see people existing A kind of automated living Who sell out for very little Life slashed half/price One can live and die here Leaving only garbage in the woods And its acceptable patriotic living. Human beings reduced to herds of mall clones happy littering churchgoers the inevitable walmart shopper Its no wonder why a few americans All of a sudden want to leave it all To pack up and head for the jungles,the reservations To become a missionary to ³save² the poor ndns Or to become an archaeologist to study coprolites Escaping to go study some OTHER people as anthropologists, as an anywhere-but-here-ist Far AWAY from this seducing pull towards sameness This relentless drive towards standardizing the humanbeing To get out of this sink hole sucking after our souls And because there seems to be no cure For this standardizing of the humanrace Alarmed, people escape to any distant holdouts Places where soul-beings still exist freely But at what price? What we have called the march of civilization Isn¹t it truthfully a form of cultural-domestication? We need to look carefully at what¹s become of our animal relatives. A living traditional sensory sharpened human-being Is reduced to ³data for study, conversion or betterment² Once domesticated a species no longer retains sharp senses To detect actual threats to its survival, And instead usually develops weird phobias of all kinds Ripe for mass definition and control And eventually and inevitably becomes The educated and true world class citizen Where culture is expressed on the tee-shirt And not from the heart The perfect walmart shopper Richard Zane Smith -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From coyotez at UOREGON.EDU Thu May 11 14:40:07 2006 From: coyotez at UOREGON.EDU (David Gene Lewis) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 07:40:07 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi Richard, I am enjoying your prose and perspectives. I understand your feeling about anthropologists and their ilk. However please be aware that many people, such as myself, are trained anthropologists, linguists, and now part of the ilk. And even so we still work locally, within our tribal context, as well as in the surrounding American context. There is really a sea change in the way anthropologists are doing their work. It is a generational thing. Each new generation appears to be more aware that native people exist as rational, thinking and feeling humans. And so while I understand the "native" perspectives on the "anthropologists", and truly validate those feeling in my writing, and teaching, In my mind I can no longer generalize about "them" all. As many times, "They" are "Us". Thanks again Richard, David Lewis Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde University of Oregon ------------------- > I don¹t know why people do what they do > But obviously I wonder a lot... > After leaving the Santa Fe area > And moving here in Oklahoma > on the very gut bulge above the bible belt > I see people existing > A kind of automated living > Who sell out for very little > Life slashed half/price > > One can live and die here > Leaving only garbage in the woods > And its acceptable patriotic living. > Human beings reduced > to herds of mall clones > happy littering churchgoers > the inevitable walmart shopper > > Its no wonder why a few americans > All of a sudden want to leave it all > To pack up and head for the jungles,the reservations > To become a missionary to ³save² the poor ndns > Or to become an archaeologist to study coprolites > Escaping to go study some OTHER people > as anthropologists, as an anywhere-but-here-ist > Far AWAY from this seducing pull towards sameness > This relentless drive towards standardizing the humanbeing > To get out of this sink hole sucking after our souls > > And because there seems to be no cure > For this standardizing of the humanrace > Alarmed, people escape to any distant holdouts > Places where soul-beings still exist freely > But at what price? > What we have called the march of civilization > Isn¹t it truthfully a form of cultural-domestication? > We need to look carefully at what¹s become of our animal relatives. > A living traditional sensory sharpened human-being > Is reduced to ³data for study, conversion or betterment² > Once domesticated a species no longer retains sharp senses > To detect actual threats to its survival, > And instead usually develops weird phobias of all kinds > Ripe for mass definition and control > And eventually and inevitably becomes > The educated and true world class citizen > Where culture is expressed on the tee-shirt > And not from the heart > The perfect walmart shopper > > Richard Zane Smith > David Lewis University of Oregon Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 11 15:58:22 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 08:58:22 -0700 Subject: Venezuela Revitalizes Indigenous Culture (fwd) Message-ID: Venezuela Revitalizes Indigenous Culture http://www.plenglish.com/Article.asp?ID=%7B6CE0882F-B913-4163-9160-71058D59FA0F%7D&language=EN Caracas, May 10 (Prensa Latina) Venezuelan experts and officials supported by the UN Children´s Fund (UNICEF) will meet in Maracaibo on Thursday to revitalize the "Anu" culture and language. Indigenous communitarian promoters, teachers and other officials of the Education Ministry and the Venezuelan Central and Zuli universities will converge at this important meeting. The preservation and recovery of the "Anu" culture and language are part of the great national efforts in the field of Bilingual and Intercultural Education. This process of revitalization includes the development of actions to contribute with the linguistic training of professionals and the creation of didactic aids and methods to be used at classrooms. Thus, the process becomes perfect opportunity to open new spaces for the interchange among the communitarian factors, main promoters of the initiative. From jblackbu at UOREGON.EDU Thu May 11 23:04:23 2006 From: jblackbu at UOREGON.EDU (Jesse Blackburn Morrow) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 16:04:23 -0700 Subject: NILI Summer Inst. & Hinton Master-Apprentice Workshop Message-ID: Hello all-- I don't believe ILAT was included in earlier mailings of this announcement -- apologies for that. Please distribute to anyone you know who's involved with or developing an Indian language program in the Northwest U.S. Thanks, Jesse Blackburn Morrow Assistant to the Director Northwest Indian Language Institute ****** The Northwest Indian Language Institute (NILI) will be holding its Summer Institute “From Language Learner to Language Teacher” at the University of Oregon July 5-21, 2006, including a Master-Apprentice workshop led by Leanne Hinton, July 6-8. Since 1998, NILI's Summer Institute has offered training in teaching methods, applied linguistics, curriculum and materials development to those involved with the teaching of Native languages here in the Northwest. The Institute is a setting where the unique situations of the region’s various Tribal language programs are respected, and we seek to provide skills and materials that will enhance your own language revitalization efforts. Participants have said they attend partly for the knowledge they gain from other participants, and the enjoyment of spending time with others involved in the same quest for language revitalization. See below for more details of the Institute and Master-Apprentice Workshop. Please let us know as soon as possible if you’re interested in attending either the Workshop or full Institute (and tell us a bit about your situation with teaching/learning a NW language) so that we may send you a registration form, and plan with you in mind. Hope to see you in July! MASTER-APPRENTICE WORKSHOP (JULY 6-8) Led by Dr. Leanne Hinton (UC-Berkeley), who was instrumental in development of the successful California Master-Apprentice Program in 1993. This method of language learning is a great way to create new speakers of a language when only a few Elder speakers remain, and to pass along traditional values and customs in a natural setting. INSTITUTE COURSES (JULY 5-21) *Methods, Materials, and Technology for NW Indian Language Teaching – content will be shaped to fit the needs of registrants [3 credits] *Sahaptin Language Class [1 credit] *Chinuk Wawa Language Class [1 credit] *Intro to Linguistics for Teachers and Students of NW Languages [1 credit] *Advanced Linguistic Study (of the language of your choice) [1 credit] RATES *Tuition for the full NILI Summer Institute July 5-21 (a total of 5 UO credit hours) is $1300. This includes the 3 day Master-Apprentice Workshop, textbook, and a computer lab fee. *For those wanting to attend ONLY the Master-Apprentice Workshop July 6-8, the workshop fee is $250, which includes the cost of the textbook. The cost of campus housing/meals for 3 nights (or hotel costs) and parking are additional. For housing/meals and parking rates, a registration form, or more information, please contact NILI Director Janne Underriner, or Assistants Jesse Blackburn Morrow or Racquel Yamada. Northwest Indian Language Institute 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290 Email Voicemail 541.346.3199 Fax 541.346.5961 http://babel.uoregon.edu/nili From rzs at TDS.NET Fri May 12 02:03:23 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 19:03:23 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <200605111440.k4BEe7Ix001186@smtp.uoregon.edu> Message-ID: Great points David, Well appreciated too... Yes its easy to "stereotype" Even easier In writings meant to create a mood of light and shadow And perhaps I even forget these are mere caricatures myself! There are GREAT exceptional anthropologists working today Naahw, I checked...theres no David Lewis In my odd anths specimen case richard On 5/11/06 7:40 AM, "David Gene Lewis" wrote: > Hi Richard, > I am enjoying your prose and perspectives. I understand your feeling > about anthropologists and their ilk. However please be aware that many > people, such as myself, are trained anthropologists, linguists, and > now part of the ilk. And even so we still work locally, within our > tribal context, as well as in the surrounding American context. There > is really a sea change in the way anthropologists are doing their > work. It is a generational thing. Each new generation appears to be > more aware that native people exist as rational, thinking and feeling > humans. And so while I understand the "native" perspectives on the > "anthropologists", and truly validate those feeling in my writing, and > teaching, In my mind I can no longer generalize about "them" all. > > As many times, "They" are "Us". > > Thanks again Richard, > David Lewis > Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde > University of Oregon From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Fri May 12 15:48:25 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 08:48:25 -0700 Subject: Potawatomi Language Conference Message-ID: 4th Annual Potawatomi Language Conference E Nodmok I Zheshmowen (Hearing the Language) July 23-26, 2006 – Niles, Michigan The Conference is being hosted by the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. The conference will take place at the Niles Inn Conference Center Niles, Michigan. Please make your own arrangements with the Niles Conference Center for lodging. You can contact them at (269) 684-3000. They are located at 930 South 11th Street Niles, Michigan 49120. Room cost are $49.99 a night. Please try to submit your Application by June 19, 2006. Please submit your registration form to the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, Attention Language Conference, 58620 Sink Road, Dowagiac, MI. 49047. For questions please call (269) 782-0887 or 1.888. 330.1234. Megwetch. From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Fri May 12 16:03:14 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 09:03:14 -0700 Subject: U.S. House panel votes to retain bilingual ballots (fwd) Message-ID: U.S. House panel votes to retain bilingual ballots Billy House Republic Washington Bureau May. 11, 2006 12:00 AM http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0511bilingual-ballots0511.html WASHINGTON - A key House panel on Wednesday voted to continue requiring bilingual ballots and translation assistance for voters in 31 states, including help for Native Americans and Hispanics in Arizona who are not fluent in English. The House Judiciary Committee rejected efforts to cut the language-assistance provision from a bill to renew the 1965 Voting Rights Act, set to expire next year. The action also signaled that, with legislation still pending to curb illegal immigration and beef up border security, there is little appetite among House Republican leaders to further upset Hispanic voters in an election year. "It wouldn't help them, and it could certainly hurt them. It would just look like they were going overboard, especially on something as important and sensitive as voting rights," said David Mark, a political analyst and former editor of Campaigns & Elections magazine. A House bill could be ready by Memorial Day. An identical 25-year voting rights extension is being considered in the Senate. With support from both chambers, a bill is expected to get President Bush's blessing and be signed into law. In Arizona, civil rights groups and others agreed language assistance still is needed at the polls. Under current law, polling places in all 15 Arizona counties must provide Spanish-language assistance and ballots; those in nine counties are required to also provide assistance in Native American languages. Extending the language provisions of the Voting Rights Act will ensure the services continue. In addition, some Arizona jurisdictions this year will begin using voting machinery with earphones for audible instructions in Spanish and other languages to help voters understand the ballot and voting procedures. Added when the 1965 Voting Rights Act was revised in 1975, language assistance is required when at least 5 percent of a jurisdiction's citizens belong to a language minority group and the English illiteracy rate exceeds the national average. Lawmakers determined then that certain "language minorities," including Spanish-speakers, Asian-Americans, Native Americans and Alaskan Natives, faced similar problems as Blacks had in the South. The landmark civil rights law initially was designed to end such tactics as poll taxes, literacy tests and intimidation used against Blacks. Today, more than 300 counties and municipalities across the nation are required to provide language assistance, mostly Spanish, at polling places. But dozens of other languages also are covered by the rules, and some jurisdictions have multilingual requirements. For instance, Apache County in Arizona must provide ballots and language assistance in Spanish, as well as oral help for Apache, Navajo and Pueblo voters. In Los Angeles County in California, help is required to be provided in Spanish, Filipino, Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese. But Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, joined by 55 House Republicans, in February wrote to Rep. James Sensenbrenner, Judiciary chairman, urging that the Wisconsin Republican let that section expire, in part because it encourages a "linguistic division" of the country. Among those signing the letter was Rep. J.D. Hayworth, R-Ariz. He has been a longtime supporter of making English the official language of the United States, said his spokesman, Matt Lambert. On Wednesday, King formally proposed an amendment to strip the provision from the voting act renewal bill. He told fellow Judiciary Committee members that "reauthorizing the multilingual voting mandate" contradicts the nation's immigration law because knowledge of English is a condition of naturalization, and in order to vote, a person must be a U.S. citizen. But King's amendment was defeated by the committee, which includes Arizona GOP Reps. Jeff Flake and Trent Franks. Flake was among 11 Republicans who opposed the amendment; Franks was among nine Republicans who voted in favor of it. "I'm just convinced that it is a good trend in our society that our government have a common language," Franks said. "My desire is to see everyone in this country, every citizen, to have equal access to voting and to the polls. I believe that the best way to provide a consistent, fair and just system is to have the voting materials and ballots printed in a common language, which in America should be English." But Alessandra Soler Meetze, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona, disagreed. "Here you've got huge Latino populations, who are not yet proficient enough in English to fully read and understand complicated ballot questions and referendums in English," she said. "Keeping this requirement will show that we are serious that every citizen can participate fully." Some Native American languages do not even have written forms, said John Lewis, a Mohave member of the Colorado River Indian Tribes who is executive director of the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona. Although increased educational opportunities have helped, Lewis said, many Native Americans are more comfortable understanding concepts and positions contained in ballot propositions when they are translated orally for them. "It's important that this (proposition) be extended," Lewis said. Reach the reporter at 1-(202) 906-8136. From anguksuar at YAHOO.COM Fri May 12 21:52:36 2006 From: anguksuar at YAHOO.COM (Richard LaFortune) Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 14:52:36 -0700 Subject: NIEA Survey on Title VII of No Child Left Behind In-Reply-To: <20060512090314.z44oco084gwws8kc@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: National Indian Education Association 110 Maryland Avenue, N.E. Suite 104 Washington, D.C. 20002 P: (202) 544-7290 / F: (202) 544-7293 May 11, 2006 Broadcast #06-026 NIEA Survey on Title VII of No Child Left Behind The National Indian Education Association would like to hear from you regarding Title VII of the No Child Left Behind Act (Title VII) and how it is working within your schools. NIEA is collecting specific information on any program challenges or obstacles in implementing programs under Title VII that meet the educational and culturally related academic needs of American Indian/Alaskan Native/Native Hawaiian children. NIEA plans to use your survey responses in a testimony for a possible oversight hearing on Indian education before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs in mid-May. Your participation in this survey will also be helpful in a follow up to last year's field hearings on the No Child Left Behind Act. Please take a few moments to answer the following questions. Your insight will provide valuable information that will be considered as NIEA continues to prepare for the reauthorization of NCLB. 1. Please describe the types of programs and services your school provides through funding under Title VII of the No Child Left Behind Act. 2. Please advise on any challenges to your educational plan or directives that have been given when trying to implement Title VII programs that meet the unique educational and culturally related academic needs of Native students. 3. Please advise if your school has been instructed to use Title VII funding to support programs that do not meet the unique educational and culturally related academic needs of Native students. 4. Please advise if your school has been instructed to use Title VII funding to support programs that should be supported by funding from other Titles within the No Child Left Behind Act. 5. Please advise if your school has made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). If your school has not made AYP, please advise if this has impacted how you are able to provide programs under Title VII. Also, if you could, please explain the reasons that your school did not make AYP, especially as it relates to the needs of Native students. 6. Please advise on how your Title VII program is achieving positive results or is assisting Native students in positive ways. 7. Please provide any additional information you may feel is helpful. If possible, please provide your responses to Jack Soto of NIEA at niea at niea.org or by fax at (202) 544-7293 by May 10th so review of the information can be incorporated it into the testimony on Indian Education. NIEA will send additional information about the upcoming hearing on education once information is made available. NIEA thanks you for your participation in this survey! --------------------------------------- If you would like to be removed from our list-serve, please send your request to niea at niea.org. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Sun May 14 21:53:42 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sun, 14 May 2006 14:53:42 -0700 Subject: Preserving a language Message-ID: http://www.record-eagle.com/2006/may/14native.htm Author preserves dying language Over 1,000 words translated from Odawa to English BY CRAIG McCOOL mccoolrecordeagle at sbcglobal.net  Special to the Record-Eagle/Kevin Johnston Ray Kiogima, co-author of the book "Odawa Language and Legends," the Odawa Bands Governmental Center in Harbor Springs. HARBOR SPRINGS — Ray Kiogima rarely gets a chance anymore to talk with others in his native language. The number of people who speak Odawa has dwindled over the years. Now, Kiogima said, you could count on a single hand the number of locals who are fluent in the old language. "In the tribe, we've probably got four people besides me," Kiogima said. "I used to enjoy talking Odawa to people who were fluent in it, but they die off." Kiogima, 73, an elder with the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, has done something about it, recently publishing a book containing Odawa/English translations of more than 1,000 common words and hundreds of phrases. The book, "Odawa Language and Legends," is the culmination of decades of work. It is the only known instance in which the regional Native American language has been translated to English. Kiogima broke down the Odawa words — historically spoken but rarely written — to their syllable sounds, then transcribed them, phonetically, into English equivalents. Ah-nee, for example, means "Hello." There is no Odawa word for Goodbye, Kiogima, said. The closest thing is Bah mah pee: "Later." The language of the Odawa people is apparent everywhere in northern Michigan. The word Cheboygan, for example, comes from the Odawa phrase Zhah boo guhn, or "The way through." But while traces of the language are ever-present, the heart of the language is dying, said Carla McFall, who runs the Little Traverse Bay Band's language preservation and revitalization program. "Ray's generation is the last generation that is fairly fluent," McFall said. "This is the very last chance" to preserve the language. Kiogima — Ki means 'land'; Ogima means 'boss' or 'ruler' — lived as a teenager in Harbor Springs with his grandmother, who spoke little English and insisted her grandson become fluent in Odawa. "She told me right out that if I was going to live with her and talk to her, I was going to talk Odawa," Kiogima said. His five brothers also learned Odawa, but only Kiogima retained the knowledge into adulthood. He taught his own children a few words, but realized that, by-and-large, the younger generation would never learn the language. "I thought, if we can write it, we can preserve it, and that's what I want," he said. "It's always been a dream of mine, to have it written down. We want to get it to the younger crowd." Preserving and resurrecting the language is important, said McFall. "A people is defined by its language," she said. "Without it, we lose a lot. Not just the language, but culturally as well." Kiogima offered an analogy: "It would be like a person without a home or a man without a country," he said. "He would be lost." Translation? "Kah mah-buh duh yah zeen gojibi wah daht." "This man has nowhere to live." -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: 14native.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 17185 bytes Desc: not available URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Mon May 15 03:37:28 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sun, 14 May 2006 20:37:28 -0700 Subject: Revitalizing Culture & Language Message-ID: Venezuela Revitalizes Indigenous Culture Caracas, May 10 (Prensa Latina) Venezuelan experts and officials supported by the UN Children´s Fund (UNICEF) will meet in Maracaibo on Thursday to revitalize the "Anu" culture and language. story @:http://www.plenglish.com/Article.asp?ID=%7B6CE0882F- B913-4163-9160-71058D59FA0F%7D&language=EN From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 16 14:14:45 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 08:14:45 -0600 Subject: Usitative Message-ID: Hi, Everyone, I am interested in what people on this list working in linguistics have to say about the Usitative. I am about to say that the usitative is a semantic function in English – as opposed to a grammatical function in Diné Bizaad. In Diné Bizaad, the usitative is very Bayesian, while in English, people specify with particular words such as usual, customary. (Regularly is repetitive rather than usitative). What would you say? Best, Mia -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Tue May 16 16:18:58 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 09:18:58 -0700 Subject: Hopi elder gets anthropology degree (fwd) Message-ID: Hopi elder gets anthropology degree http://vocuspr.vocus.com/VocusPR30/DotNet/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=nau&Entity=PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=108611&XSL=PressRelease FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (May 11, 2006) -- When Ferrell Secakuku was a boy growing up on the Hopi reservation, his elders encouraged him to get a modern education as a way to preserve his tribe's culture. Now Secakuku, 68, is graduating from Northern Arizona University with a master's degree in anthropology to do just that. "As an anthropologist my aim is to preserve the value of the Hopi life and to help record traditions so they may pass to future generations," Secakuku said. "I'm really concerned that our culture is dying away because our young people are not learning our traditions and language." Secakuku is one of 2,600 students to graduate this week during four commencement ceremonies at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. March 12 and 13 in the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome on the university campus. Secakuku, a member of the Hopi Snake Clan and Hopi Tribal chairman from 1994-1997, received his bachelor of science degree from NAU in 1964 and decided to pursue a master's in anthropology to not only help safeguard his experiences, but "to develop formal research skills to use when investigating the Snake Clan, religion and societal roots," he said. Secakuku's research at NAU confirmed his beliefs that Hopi cultural roots, especially Snake Clan ceremonies, took shape in Mexico. His thesis: "Hopi and Quetzalcoatl: Is there a Connection?" explores the connection of Mesoamerican linguistic and religious ceremonies with Hopi history. "While working on my degree I had the opportunity to travel down to Mexico with my professor, Dr. Miguel Vasquez. I saw many similarities of the Snake Clan culture at the Teotihuacan pyramid," Secakuku said. "The pyramid was built around A.D. 200 to honor the serpent Quetzalcoatl—a symbol of power and religious ritual in that area. I believe the Hopi brought that religion from there. We still practice it today." Secakuku notes other commonalities among the Hopi and Mesoamerican cultures, including language connections and the belief that the Maya and Aztec also emerged from an underworld to this world. He is currently writing grants to fund further research. "It's very amazing to discover some of these similarities that I have come across. It really goes to show we must have shared life together at one time," Secakuku said. Secakuku, born and raised in the village of Sipaulovi, is a businessman, a farmer, a fine art painter and a Hopi elder who prepares his clan's religious ceremonies. He speaks about his life to students at NAU and community events. He's cultivating a nonprofit business, Mesa Media, Inc., to produce and market Hopi teaching language CDs and DVDs, and he is looking forward to graduation so he can spend more time at home. "I've been working on my degree for two and a half years. The only time I've left Hopi was for educational purposes. At first, it was very foreign being here. I was away from the Kiva, the planting of corn, and I had to learn how to really read and write," Secakuku said. "Now I am ready to write about what I know so it will be remembered." Chris Downum, an associate professor in anthropology, said, "Ferrell's thesis defense was historically important not just for NAU but for the discipline of anthropology. It marks the transformation of Hopi as subject to Hopi as scholar and expert. Non-Hopi anthropologists have taken so much from the Hopi over the past century, it was very gratifying to see Ferrell find his voice as an anthropologist and tell his part of the Hopi story in his own words." -NAU- CONTACT: Diane Rechel NAU Office of Public Affairs (928) 523-0611 Diane.Rechel at nau.edu From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 16 18:57:55 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 11:57:55 -0700 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <007501c678f3$18e7d370$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > I am about to say that the usitative is a semantic function in English – as > opposed to a grammatical function in Diné Bizaad. In Diné Bizaad, the > usitative is very Bayesian, while in English, people specify with particular > words such as usual, customary. (Regularly is repetitive rather than > usitative). English has it as a semi-grammatical category in the past tense: We used to [usta] go there all the time. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 16 19:08:05 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 13:08:05 -0600 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi, Scott, thanks. :-) I wonder what we make of the difference between 'usta' being (kinda) optional, and the grammar-dependence of the Usitative? What I mean is that there is no usitative rule in English, but there is a formal position for it in Diné Bizaad. I think the psychology of this is intriguing. Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Scott DeLancey Sent: Tuesday, May 16, 2006 12:58 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > I am about to say that the usitative is a semantic function in English – as > opposed to a grammatical function in Diné Bizaad. In Diné Bizaad, the > usitative is very Bayesian, while in English, people specify with particular > words such as usual, customary. (Regularly is repetitive rather than > usitative). English has it as a semi-grammatical category in the past tense: We used to [usta] go there all the time. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 17 04:48:00 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 21:48:00 -0700 Subject: Hopi elder gets anthropology degree In-Reply-To: <20060516091858.9vpc4sso4wsc44gk@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: Great article! I'm really glad to hear Ferrell Secakuku is trained and will be working with his own,Hopi people . Al Qoyawayma,a good friend,and fellow potter has been sharing with me some pretty fascinating work being done concerning Plasma ray formations and Z-pinch research.Some of these researchers are almost certain that such visual displays of light created by these plasma sightings might have been visible in the sky 5,ooo years ago or so ,day or night creating unusual formations that people all over the world would have seen. These guys are cautious in their research,though a book is soon coming I hear They have been looking at pictograph sites all over the world for certain consistant patterns and shapes that might yield clues...who knows? Al gave me a stack of scientific journal material on the investigations Sheeesh...and i thought Mia uses some weird words Hey,when I gave the word "usitative" to my iMac dictionary it said: doh shilth behoziin dah ! richard On 5/16/06 9:18 AM, "phil cash cash" wrote: > Hopi elder gets anthropology degree > http://vocuspr.vocus.com/VocusPR30/DotNet/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=nau&Ent > ity=PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=108611&XSL=PressRelease > > FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (May 11, 2006) -- When Ferrell Secakuku was a boy > growing up on the Hopi reservation, his elders encouraged him to get a > modern education as a way to preserve his tribe's culture. Now > Secakuku, 68, is graduating from Northern Arizona University with a > master's degree in anthropology to do just that. > > "As an anthropologist my aim is to preserve the value of the Hopi life > and to help record traditions so they may pass to future generations," > Secakuku said. "I'm really concerned that our culture is dying away > because our young people are not learning our traditions and language." > > Secakuku is one of 2,600 students to graduate this week during four > commencement ceremonies at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. March 12 and 13 in the J. > Lawrence Walkup Skydome on the university campus. > > Secakuku, a member of the Hopi Snake Clan and Hopi Tribal chairman from > 1994-1997, received his bachelor of science degree from NAU in 1964 and > decided to pursue a master's in anthropology to not only help safeguard > his experiences, but "to develop formal research skills to use when > investigating the Snake Clan, religion and societal roots," he said. > > Secakuku's research at NAU confirmed his beliefs that Hopi cultural > roots, especially Snake Clan ceremonies, took shape in Mexico. His > thesis: "Hopi and Quetzalcoatl: Is there a Connection?" explores the > connection of Mesoamerican linguistic and religious ceremonies with > Hopi history. > > "While working on my degree I had the opportunity to travel down to > Mexico with my professor, Dr. Miguel Vasquez. I saw many similarities > of the Snake Clan culture at the Teotihuacan pyramid," Secakuku said. > "The pyramid was built around A.D. 200 to honor the serpent > Quetzalcoatl?a symbol of power and religious ritual in that area. I > believe the Hopi brought that religion from there. We still practice it > today." > > Secakuku notes other commonalities among the Hopi and Mesoamerican > cultures, including language connections and the belief that the Maya > and Aztec also emerged from an underworld to this world. He is > currently writing grants to fund further research. > > "It's very amazing to discover some of these similarities that I have > come across. It really goes to show we must have shared life together > at one time," Secakuku said. > > Secakuku, born and raised in the village of Sipaulovi, is a businessman, > a farmer, a fine art painter and a Hopi elder who prepares his clan's > religious ceremonies. He speaks about his life to students at NAU and > community events. He's cultivating a nonprofit business, Mesa Media, > Inc., to produce and market Hopi teaching language CDs and DVDs, and he > is looking forward to graduation so he can spend more time at home. > > "I've been working on my degree for two and a half years. The only time > I've left Hopi was for educational purposes. At first, it was very > foreign being here. I was away from the Kiva, the planting of corn, and > I had to learn how to really read and write," Secakuku said. "Now I am > ready to write about what I know so it will be remembered." > > Chris Downum, an associate professor in anthropology, said, "Ferrell's > thesis defense was historically important not just for NAU but for the > discipline of anthropology. It marks the transformation of Hopi as > subject to Hopi as scholar and expert. Non-Hopi anthropologists have > taken so much from the Hopi over the past century, it was very > gratifying to see Ferrell find his voice as an anthropologist and tell > his part of the Hopi story in his own words." > > -NAU- > > CONTACT: > Diane Rechel > NAU Office of Public Affairs > (928) 523-0611 > Diane.Rechel at nau.edu From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Wed May 17 16:49:09 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 09:49:09 -0700 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <00c901c6791c$145444f0$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > What I mean is that there is no usitative rule in English, but there is a > formal position for it in Diné Bizaad. I think the psychology of this is > intriguing. How we'd say that is, the semantic category is more grammaticalized in Diné Bizaad than in English. And yes, that kind of observation often looks interesting, and gets you thinking about cultural differences. But, as I pointed out in a post last week, that can be really dangerous. It's easy to make up stories about "other" folks that neatly explain why their grammar is different from yours. Too easy, and the problem is that there's no way to ever confirm your particular story. The other danger is misunderstanding your own language. Whorf got great mileage out of contrasting how Hopi and other Native languages deal with time with the "Standard Average European" system which he said is found in English. The problem is that, although the "SAE" concept is more-or-less what's taught in school, if you look at how English grammar actually deals with time, it's not an example of the SAE system at all. So, while there surely are differences between Hopi and English means of talking about time, the differences that Whorf found were only in his own head. For your question, notice that, although English doesn't have a formally distinct usitative verb construction, that's one of the main meanings that go with the simple present tense: "What do you do for fun? I watch movies." Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Wed May 17 17:18:21 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 11:18:21 -0600 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi, Scott, Your points are well-made and well-taken. :-) However, one of the underlying bigotries in this country - and perhaps across the world - is that Indigenous people do not have sophisticated mathematical or scientific concepts. There is an enormous amount of physical material that demonstrates that this is not true. So what I am proposing is to use constrained technology to watch the system emerge. Using constrained technology eliminates the opportunity for people to make up stuff in their own heads. Certainly we have seen enough academic stories. However, relations can be found and traced, and put together, these define a System. It's a lot like saying X + 2 = 4, where in this case, X can only be "2". In English, you look for math in semantics (usual & customary, numerosity, and the abstract semantics of equations); in Diné Bizaad, you look for it in the grammar. These grammatical positions form little "sites" that then show up like stars in the sky. The emergent system are the lines that the stories that employ these sites describe. Thus you can find an emergent mathematic system or construct in a story that you can't read. Because you can't read it, you can't apply your own mathematical understanding. (One of the areas of my research is how to stifle people's cognitive elaboration; this forces an accommodation rather than an assimilation, which in a lot of cases is what you want). And the nice thing about such an emergent system is that others can see it as it emerges on its own. Others don't have to wade through any elaborated explanation. Its delightfully visual (multimedia lets you color the sites like points of light, and connect the dots based on theme (numerosity, frequency, mass nouns, shapes, and so on). Cool, eh? I don't suspect this is going to be an altogether popular approach in some circles because it doesn't have any sites for making up stories. . . or what some people kindly call, Theorizing. Powell did a lot of "theorizing"; look where it got us! Ideas? mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Scott DeLancey Sent: Wednesday, May 17, 2006 10:49 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > What I mean is that there is no usitative rule in English, but there is a > formal position for it in Diné Bizaad. I think the psychology of this is > intriguing. How we'd say that is, the semantic category is more grammaticalized in Diné Bizaad than in English. And yes, that kind of observation often looks interesting, and gets you thinking about cultural differences. But, as I pointed out in a post last week, that can be really dangerous. It's easy to make up stories about "other" folks that neatly explain why their grammar is different from yours. Too easy, and the problem is that there's no way to ever confirm your particular story. The other danger is misunderstanding your own language. Whorf got great mileage out of contrasting how Hopi and other Native languages deal with time with the "Standard Average European" system which he said is found in English. The problem is that, although the "SAE" concept is more-or-less what's taught in school, if you look at how English grammar actually deals with time, it's not an example of the SAE system at all. So, while there surely are differences between Hopi and English means of talking about time, the differences that Whorf found were only in his own head. For your question, notice that, although English doesn't have a formally distinct usitative verb construction, that's one of the main meanings that go with the simple present tense: "What do you do for fun? I watch movies." Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 17 17:44:52 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Zane Smith) Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 12:44:52 -0500 Subject: Usitative Message-ID: Scott, i enjoy reading your posts. one thing i've appreciated about your writing is the clarity even in dealing with abstract issues.. A Wyandot man here often ends a speech by saying "there is no word for 'goodbye' in Wyandot" and of course, he refers only to the current understanding of the word "goodbye" after all...where did "bye" come from ? "bye and bye"? or the 16th century "God-be-with you"? so actually there might be no "goodbye" (as we understand it today) even in the older english. Its meaning has evolved to become only the sounds you verbalize at a parting,yet with no obvious inherent expression or wish. richard > > From: Scott DeLancey > Date: 2006/05/17 Wed AM 11:49:09 CDT > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative > > On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > > > What I mean is that there is no usitative rule in English, but there is a > > formal position for it in Diné Bizaad. I think the psychology of this is > > intriguing. > > How we'd say that is, the semantic category is more grammaticalized in > Diné Bizaad than in English. And yes, that kind of observation often > looks interesting, and gets you thinking about cultural differences. > But, as I pointed out in a post last week, that can be really dangerous. > It's easy to make up stories about "other" folks that neatly explain > why their grammar is different from yours. Too easy, and the problem > is that there's no way to ever confirm your particular story. > > The other danger is misunderstanding your own language. Whorf got > great mileage out of contrasting how Hopi and other Native languages > deal with time with the "Standard Average European" system which he > said is found in English. The problem is that, although the "SAE" > concept is more-or-less what's taught in school, if you look at how > English grammar actually deals with time, it's not an example of the > SAE system at all. So, while there surely are differences between > Hopi and English means of talking about time, the differences that > Whorf found were only in his own head. For your question, notice that, > although English doesn't have a formally distinct usitative verb > construction, that's one of the main meanings that go with the simple > present tense: "What do you do for fun? I watch movies." > > Scott DeLancey > Department of Linguistics > 1290 University of Oregon > Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA > > delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu > http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html > Richard Zane Smith 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. Wyandotte Oklahoma 74370 From rtroike at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 18 07:57:44 2006 From: rtroike at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (Rudy Troike) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 00:57:44 -0700 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Mia, Good question. It's commonplace for languages to evolve "grammaticalization" of certain distinctions/features, while other languages express these distinctions/features "periphrastically" (to use a good term from traditional grammar), others lexically, and still others not at all. A good example is plural, which most European languages express grammatically, while other languages such as some of those in South-east Asia, express the distinction only lexically, by using numbers or quantifier words. Scott's example of English "used to" belongs in the grammatically gray (grey?) area of what Martin Joos called "quasi-modals". These involve the use of verbs which have been "bleached" of their primary meaning, and are in the process of becoming purely grammatical markers (we are inhibited in seeing this because of the practice of putting white spaces around "words" (whatever those are)). Examples are things like "be going to", "have to", "want to" (= desiderative), "start" (=inceptive), "stop" (=cessative), + a main Verb. Often these are reduced phonologically, as in "ahmonna" ('I'm going to'), Scott's "usta", and "hafta", "wanna", etc., showing further (again obscured by spelling) how these are becoming grammaticalized. Whether something is clearly part of the purely grammatical structure of a language, or somewhere on the slippery slope toward becoming grammaticalized, may be an accident of the historical point at which we examine the language, since a thousand years earlier or later, the language might show very different grammatical/structural features. Rudy Troike From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Thu May 18 14:40:38 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 08:40:38 -0600 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <20060518005744.ugl5w0cogskog4go@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: Hi, Rudy, Grammaticalization was one of the first things I researched when I came back to school. I think it makes a big difference whether you look at a) how people influenced the development of common parlance; vs. b) how the language changes when you just look at the surface. Jesperson did a lot with the disappearance of the dative (the pears were pleasing to the king) in common parlance. His theory was that because each generation wishes to distance itself from the previous one, that it stopped using the dative. Hopper looks at grammaticalization, but doesn’t spend too much time looking at how people influence that process. He looks at it in diachronic terms, for example, how long will it take for a form to appear or disappear in the common parlance. Penelope wrote a whole book about how people use grammaticalization, making subjects appear and disappear. She talks about how bias influences the use of grammaticalized forms (the man beat his wife, vs. the beaten wife). In the first case, we see the man beating his wife, but in the second case, “beaten” has become a property of wife, the focus is entirely on her, and the wife-beater has disappeared from the scene. I am going to tender a maybe-new hypothesis :-). I’m going to say that grammar is more stable, harder to change. (And there are probably lots of people who have already said this.) But the hypothesis is that “Concepts that are embedded in the grammar are culturally older than concepts that are added on in the semantics.” A recent article by Sara Solla (http://biology.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1371/ journal.pbio.0040122) looks at neurons. In this article, she states what should be obvious but what many people don’t seem to see: “A crucial function of our brains, as well as the brains of many other organisms, is to provide an interface with the external world. This interface has two fundamental components: the processing of sensory information and the control of movement.” When we look at Diné verbs, we see a close connection between the grammatical forms and the reference to the kinesthetic properties related to moving the object(s) of the specified shape and number. Solla looks at the number of variables needed to describe features vs. the width of the tuning curve, which I think is interesting in itself (the article is free, by the way. You can read the whole thing at the link I gave you). What if I extrapolate from this and say that Southern Athapascan languages more closely reflect an awareness and understanding of psychological perception than English? Then, what if I go one step further, and say that English is deficit because it sees the world only on the surface and has no inherent awareness of the depth of complexity in the world? Addressing complexity is then a function of the sophistication of the English-language user, rather than of the sophistication of the tool. Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Rudy Troike Sent: Thursday, May 18, 2006 1:58 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative Mia, Good question. It's commonplace for languages to evolve "grammaticalization" of certain distinctions/features, while other languages express these distinctions/features "periphrastically" (to use a good term from traditional grammar), others lexically, and still others not at all. A good example is plural, which most European languages express grammatically, while other languages such as some of those in South-east Asia, express the distinction only lexically, by using numbers or quantifier words. Scott's example of English "used to" belongs in the grammatically gray (grey?) area of what Martin Joos called "quasi-modals". These involve the use of verbs which have been "bleached" of their primary meaning, and are in the process of becoming purely grammatical markers (we are inhibited in seeing this because of the practice of putting white spaces around "words" (whatever those are)). Examples are things like "be going to", "have to", "want to" (= desiderative), "start" (=inceptive), "stop" (=cessative), + a main Verb. Often these are reduced phonologically, as in "ahmonna" ('I'm going to'), Scott's "usta", and "hafta", "wanna", etc., showing further (again obscured by spelling) how these are becoming grammaticalized. Whether something is clearly part of the purely grammatical structure of a language, or somewhere on the slippery slope toward becoming grammaticalized, may be an accident of the historical point at which we examine the language, since a thousand years earlier or later, the language might show very different grammatical/structural features. Rudy Troike From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Thu May 18 16:03:13 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 09:03:13 -0700 Subject: Fwd: UK premiere of film "The Last Speakers" Message-ID: Subject: UK premiere of film "The Last Speakers" Dear friends and colleagues, This is to announce the UK premiere of the film "The Last Speakers" which took place yesterday in London at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). The film is slated for US release in the fall of 2006, on PBS. More info at: http://www.hrelp.org/events/thelastspeakers/ and a preview at http://www.ironboundfilms.com/lastslides.html  ------------------------------------ K. David Harrison, PhD http://www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/dharris2/ Department of Linguistics Swarthmore College 500 College Avenue Swarthmore, PA 19081 tel. 610-690-5785 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: unknown.gif Type: image/gif Size: 45529 bytes Desc: not available URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 18 16:39:03 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 09:39:03 -0700 Subject: Cultural Differences, Technological Imperialism and Indigenous GIS (fwd) Message-ID: Cultural Differences, Technological Imperialism and Indigenous GIS By David Mark (May 18, 2006) http://www.directionsmag.com/article.php?article_id=2173&trv=1 Directions Magazine The Worldwide Source for Geospatial Technology Do all people, from all cultures and all languages, think about geographic space and geographic processes in more or less the same way? Or are there significant cross-cultural variations in how different peoples conceptualize and reason about geographic processes, features and places? Do geography and spatial relations parallel the infamous case of the many "Eskimo [Inuit] words for snow," the linguistics factoid that every cocktail party conversationalist thinks he or she knows? (The snow words situation turns out to be mostly a misinterpretation, but that's another story!) Or is spatial cognition and related linguistic development governed by universal principles? Coming closer to home, we can ask similar questions about GIS. Are GIS software products and Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDIs) the same for all, a universal foundation based only on the true nature of geographic phenomena, universal principles of computing and cognitive primitives? Or are the GIS packages and SDIs that we know today biased toward a European worldview and a so-called 'Western' scientific approach? If GIS is universally easy-to-use (or universally difficult, but GIS usability is another topic!), then that is good news both for humanitarians and for software vendors, and we can move forward with a one-size-fits-all solution to the world's geospatial problems. But if GIS is biased toward the culture that produced it, then it could be yet another case of North Atlantic Imperialism, another brick in the darker side of globalization, posing an ethical dilemma, especially for those working in indigenous GIS or GIS and international development. Mark Twain once wrote: "There is something fascinating about science. One gets such wholesale returns of conjecture out of such a trifling investment of fact." We have very few facts about cultural differences in spatial cognition. For almost 20 years, I have been intrigued by questions of possible cultural biases in GIS software, but until recently I had not found much in the way of solid answers. I now think I had been looking for cultural differences in spatial cognition in all the wrong places, in at least two different dimensions. I'll explain, and then draw some implications for GIS. In the 1990s, I wrote numerous papers on spatial cognition, GIScience and GIS. A frequent justification for spatial cognition research was that it relates to GIS usability and especially to GIS universality. Papers at Latinamericanist and Latin American GIS meetings speculated that cultural and linguistic differences between Spanish and English might lead to added barriers to easy GIS use by Spanish speakers. But testing human subjects on spatial relations and language in the United States, Spain and Costa Rica failed to reveal significant differences for line-region spatial relations. Was the concern unfounded? On sabbatical in 2002, I was fortunate indeed to have the opportunity to visit Andrew Turk at Murdoch University in Perth, Australia. Turk, in turn, took me a thousand miles north to Roebourne, Australia, where about 500 Yindjibarndi speakers were keeping their language alive after being forcibly removed from their traditional lands almost a century ago. Through semi-structured interviews and other ethnographic methods, Turk and I learned details of the Yindjibarndi terms for features of the landscape, things that in English would be called hills and valleys, pools and cliffs, gullies and riverbeds. While a dictionary published in the 1980s appeared to show term-by-term translations, we found that in most (if not all) cases, the terms and their definitions did not line up! There was a many-to-many relation between Yindjibarndi terms for elevated areas and their English equivalents. The relation between rivers and their beds was turned inside out in this tropical desert area. Rivers in English are fundamentally composed of water, even if some are sometimes dry; whereas a wundu in Yindjibarndi is a (dry) channel that on rare occasions might contain water. When water is present after the rare heavy rains following a tropical cyclone, the water is categorized by its intensity of flow and is always distinct from the permanent feature that might get named "river" in English. The conceptual systems that underlie the semantics of geographic expressions in the Yindjibarndi language do not seem strange, but they definitely are different. Working with Turk, David Stea, Carmelita Topaha, and many Navajo friends, we have found similar differences in Navajo language landscape categories in the arid highlands of northern Arizona and New Mexico. These tendencies do not appear to be unique to the languages we have examined to date. Discussions with researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics (Nijmegen, The Netherlands) indicate that they are finding similar results for a wide variety of languages, cultures and environments: terminology for landforms, as well as systems of place naming, vary considerably between peoples living in different sorts of environments, in different cultural traditions and lifestyles. Interesting perhaps, but how does this relate to GIS? Spatial data infrastructures encode entity types or feature codes in order to enhance the semantics of geospatial data. But such codings might not add value from an indigenous perspective, unless data are also encoded according to the categorical systems of the indigenous people. We might try to avoid categories altogether and just store entities and attributes, and then try to infer categories later on. But theories from cognitive science tell us that inferring categories from observable properties will be difficult, if not impossible, to implement. All of the above might raise ivory tower curiosity and fuel esoteric dissertation research. But these issues have important theoretical implications for indigenous GIS and indigenous mapping. If there are significant cultural differences in any aspect of spatial cognition or language, surely this must in turn imply that current GIS is Eurocentric. As it turns out, unmodified commercial GIS has proved to be a valuable and at times powerful tool for indigenous people. Just as maps were powerful tools of European imperialism in the 18th and 19th Centuries, GIS returned the favor by supporting aboriginal land claims with presentations in a language that dominant-culture courts could appreciate. And many tribes in the western United States use unmodified commercial GIS to manage tribal lands and maximize productivity of forests and grazing lands, just as private land holders or government agencies might do. But in most (if not all) of these, the GIS was wielded by tribal members with university degrees or by consultants from the dominant culture. It is not clear whether tribal GIS experts can think in their own language and culture while using GIS, or whether traditional and spiritual values can be incorporated directly into GIS solutions. Earlier, we found few differences in spatial conceptualization for spatial relations, but more recently we believe we have solid evidence that spatial feature categories can be quite different across languages. We were also working mainly comparing English with Spanish and French, other Indo-European languages. Moving to geographic entity types rather than spatial relations, to non-Indo-European languages in Australia and the western United States, and to arid landscapes rather than humid, we still see broad cross-language similarities but also many differences in the details. Indigenous GIS faces all of the challenges of "Geographic Information and Society," a research agenda within Geographic Information Science. But indigenous GIS also faces additional challenges due to the cognitive and linguistic factors mentioned above. GIS for community empowerment requires qualitative methods and ease of use, whether in Indian country, in low-income urban settings or in suburbia. Socioeconomic and educational barriers to GIS use and the steep "Digital Divide" may be greater than the cultural and linguistic issues raised here. But if there is any truth in our recent findings, indigenous GIS will never be on an equal footing with, or fully interoperable with, the main stream of GIS until indigenous spatial cognition and conceptualization are understood as well in the indigenous cultures in question as they are for English and the dominant culture of North America and Europe. Reprinted with permission, Copyright 2006, Directions Media From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 18 17:13:50 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 10:13:50 -0700 Subject: AN ABORIGINAL BASIS IN AUSTRALIAN ENGLISH (fwd media link) Message-ID: AN ABORIGINAL BASIS IN AUSTRALIAN ENGLISH 17.5.2006 17:04:13 SBS Radio http://www9.sbs.com.au/radio/index.php?page=wv&newsID=135072 Today we begin a series looking at the development of Australian English. If you weren't born in Australia, you might have wondered how much Aboriginal language or culture has seeped into the nation's English. For instance, do you know what "within cooee" means, and where it came from? And, what about "hard yakka"? Bruce Moore from the Australian National Dictionary Centre is with Caroline Davey to demystify some of these words. From rick_harp at YAHOO.COM Thu May 18 21:39:41 2006 From: rick_harp at YAHOO.COM (=?windows-1252?Q?Rick_Harp?=) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 14:39:41 -0700 Subject: Could role-playing video games help with language learning? Message-ID: This is an article from the March 2006 edition of 'PC Gamer' Magazine. It made me wonder if what they did here with math and english in a "RPG" could work for language instruction. Rick Harp, a Cree language student in Alberta http://www.bluequills.ca/cree_language_certificate.htm Education Through Gaming - Learning Quest ----------------------------------------- Instructor uses popular RPG to Math, English Lessons come with a nice carrot for pupils at West Nottinghamshire College in Nottinghamshire, England. They're learning Math and English with the educational aid of PC RPG Neverwinter Nights. Pupil-pleasing teacher Gavin Smith has built a custom Neverwinter Nights module that reinforces math and English courses for post-16 students. At the end of each lesson, students get a chance to test what they've learned in a fantasy quest. For math, students are asked to shop for supplies for a boat journey. "It's designed to test ratios and fractions," Gavins explains. "And students immediately want to learn. They come to their teachers demanding knowledge." West Nottinghamshire College believes that the RPG module has helped the local school achieve remarkable academic success. More than 500 students have passed through the course, the team won a BECTA "Beacon" award, and the exam boards now endorse the module as an official teaching product. The national average for students' "retention and achievement" hovers around the 34% mark, but this college averages 94%. Gavin describes the effect the game is having on the pupils as "a minor miracle." "We've got something here. Games captivate students in a very different way than traditional teaching. It's really quite special." copyright PC Gamer Magazine > http://pcgamer.gamesradar.com From susan.penfield at GMAIL.COM Thu May 18 22:22:48 2006 From: susan.penfield at GMAIL.COM (Susan Penfield) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 15:22:48 -0700 Subject: Could role-playing video games help with language learning? In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Rick, Good question -- I can tell you that we have submitted a proposal to work with NeverWinter Nights as a framework for Indigenous language learning with a Charter School in Arizona. It is a very attractive software for lots of reasons. We are working with a group here at the UA called the 'Learning Games Initiative' http://www.mesmernet.org/lgi/--- There are some exciting possibilities -- also lots of questions to be raised where Indigenous languages/communities are involved... I'll keep you posted and describe the project in detail soon... Best, susan On 5/18/06, Rick Harp wrote: > > This is an article from the March 2006 edition of 'PC Gamer' Magazine. It > made me wonder if what they did here with math and english in a "RPG" > could > work for language instruction. > > Rick Harp, > a Cree language student in Alberta > http://www.bluequills.ca/cree_language_certificate.htm > > > > Education Through Gaming - Learning Quest > ----------------------------------------- > > Instructor uses popular RPG to Math, English > > Lessons come with a nice carrot for pupils at West Nottinghamshire College > in Nottinghamshire, England. They're learning Math and English with the > educational aid of PC RPG Neverwinter Nights. > > Pupil-pleasing teacher Gavin Smith has built a custom Neverwinter Nights > module that reinforces math and English courses for post-16 students. At > the end of each lesson, students get a chance to test what they've learned > in a fantasy quest. For math, students are asked to shop for supplies for > a > boat journey. "It's designed to test ratios and fractions," Gavins > explains. "And students immediately want to learn. They come to their > teachers demanding knowledge." > > West Nottinghamshire College believes that the RPG module has helped the > local school achieve remarkable academic success. More than 500 students > have passed through the course, the team won a BECTA "Beacon" award, and > the exam boards now endorse the module as an official teaching product. > The > national average for students' "retention and achievement" hovers around > the 34% mark, but this college averages 94%. > > Gavin describes the effect the game is having on the pupils as "a minor > miracle." "We've got something here. Games captivate students in a very > different way than traditional teaching. It's really quite special." > > copyright PC Gamer Magazine > http://pcgamer.gamesradar.com > -- Susan D. Penfield, Ph.D. Department of English(Primary) American Indian Language Devel.Institute Department of Linguistics Second Language Acquistion &Teaching Ph.D. Program Dept. of Language,Reading and Culture The Southwest Center (Research) Phone for messages: (520) 621-1836 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 18 22:28:00 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 15:28:00 -0700 Subject: Budget 2006: Help to revitalise Pacific languages (fwd) Message-ID: Budget 2006: Help to revitalise Pacific languages Thursday, 18 May 2006, 3:39 pm Press Release: New Zealand Government Hon Phil Goff, Minister of Pacific Island Affairs Hon Luamanuvao Winnie Laban, Associate Minister of Pacific Island Affairs http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0605/S00436.htm Help to revitalise Pacific languages The government will spend $600,000 over the next three years on a programme to revitalise the Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau languages that are at risk of becoming extinct in New Zealand. Pacific Island Affairs Minister Phil Goff and Associate Minister Luamanuvao Winnie Laban said Budget 2006 would fund an expansion of their Ministry's successful Mind Your Language pilot involving the Niue community last year. "The 2001 census found only six per cent of Cook Islanders, 12 per cent of Niueans and 30 per cent of Tokelauans born in New Zealand could hold an everyday conversation in their mother tongue," Phil Goff said. "The people from all three island groups are New Zealand citizens and the centre of population of each group is now in New Zealand. "Those languages risk being lost within the next 30 years if cultural knowledge and language skills cannot be maintained and passed onto younger generations. Given the small populations still resident in the islands, this put the culture and language heritage of these areas are at risk. "The key aim of Mind Your Language is to build a critical mass of people who are able to hold every-day conversations in the tongue of their forebears. "The funding will see resources developed for Cook Island and Tokelau tutors who are fluent speakers but not necessarily teachers, and it will also allow a new group of learners from the Niue community to undertake the programme. Luamanuvao Winnie Laban said helping Pacific languages to survive and flourish was an important part of New Zealand's identity as a Pacific nation. "At a practical level it also allows people to fully participate in symbolic family and cultural activities, which in turn helps builds strong, confident communities." ENDS From rtroike at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Fri May 19 09:00:24 2006 From: rtroike at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (Rudy Troike) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 02:00:24 -0700 Subject: Usitative, etc. In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Mia, You are in danger of sounding like Rousseau. The GIS article amused me with one point about a term for a passageway for water after a rain, in an area like the Southwest U.S. where surface water is a temporal thing. Here in Arizona and New Mexico, we have a similar feature which has a label, "wash", which finds no counterpart in the better-watered parts of the English-speaking world, and might equally confound the GIS article author. I was amused recently by a story told by a man here in Tucson, who took his sons back to his own childhood home in Ohio for a visit. When they got into the Midwest, at one point they crossed a river, and one son excitedly pointed out "Dad, look! The river has water in it!" Unlike the assumption of the GIS author that "river" is defined as water moving in a stream bed, here in Arizona children grow up understanding "river" as a stream bed that may occasionally have some water in it. Do we speak the same language? Do Arizona children have a "deeper" conceptual-cognitive understanding of "river" than speakers of English in most of the rest of the globe? Or has the dessication of the atmosphere impoverished their cognitive competence? Ever since the rise of cities, country-dwellers have been ridiculing their "city-slicker" visitors for their atrophied awareness of country features, while the urbanites retaliate by making fun of the rural "yokels" for their ignorance of the citysphere. But their grammars don't differ in profound ways, although rural linguistic features earn the label of "solecisms", going back to the Greeks, and urban features may draw private rural scorn, but public envy, which is why historically, cities show rings of isoglosses around them as the surrounding rural populations have imitated urban speech. Language changes for the same basic reason that any other form of human behavior changes -- fashion, and the desire to imitate someone or some group who/which is admired. Grammar is usually the most resistant part of language to change, in part because it is so largely out of awareness, but that is not always true. On the one hand, the -m in "am" is a first-person marker that goes back to Indo-European, but has disappeared in all English verbs except "be". On the other, "like" has emerged as a quotative marker in American teen speech with lightning speed, and "you guys" has become the new 2nd person plural pronoun with equal rapidity. Evidentials in verbs, an old element in the Turkic language family, was borrowed into Bulgarian, alone of the Slavic languages, as a result of the Ottoman occupation of the area. And Gumperz has documented a village in India where three languages are spoken, two related and one not, where all three, while retaining their native vocabulary, have developed perfectly identical patterns of morphology and syntax. Grammatical borrowing is so common, in fact, that linguists are now suspicious of grammar as a major evidence for genetic relatedness between languages. The interpretation of identical grammatical structures may differ between languages, even closely related languages, because of fashion-driven change. We have little micro-evidence to prove why, when, or how changes start, but we are able to catch them only after the fact, when it is too late to reconstruct their orgins, except speculatively. So as Scott warns, attributing understandings of the universe to grammar is a hazardous and largely unvalidated undertaking, best avoided. Rudy From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Fri May 19 14:18:20 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 08:18:20 -0600 Subject: Usitative, etc. In-Reply-To: <20060519020024.ltp4elqy0o88s4c8@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: Hi, Rudy, Where do I sound like Rousseau? I must admit to having only a passing familiarity with Rousseau. However, I am not influenced by religion (Rousseau was Calvinist, then Catholic, then Calvinist). I don't associate nature with savage man. I do admit, like Rousseau, to taking the minority position. When people look at me, they see a person who they expect will support the majority opinion. When I speculate, often with data, that the majority opinion is not necessarily the "true" opinion, it makes people think in different ways. There is a particular psychological conflict between that they biases tell them is "true" about me because of how I look, and my words. I also don't deal so much with the political. I don't characterize the world in terms of the rich and powerful vs. everyone else. I see this as particularly evident in the recent elections, where there was a huge influence of the middle class . . . When I was in Florida, I happened to be talking with a Cuban woman about a current election. She and her friends were voting Republican because they associated themselves with the elite and they saw Republicans as elite. So they were voting their perceived status rather than their day-to-day reality. GIS: Poor Dr. Mark. His is still stuck in the Enlightenment Grand Narrative. Notice how he separates "indigenous" from the unmarked category. He even has hypothesized that Spanish speakers might have difficulty with an English interface because of linguistic differences. To borrow from Fauconnier, who I am more like, but also Rousseau, I can say that the issues of language and culture are a battle of compressions. Language in human use tends to be reduced to human scale for ease of communication, while in becoming part of common parlance, these compressions represent the pressures of social expectation. I spent 25 years of my life building computer systems for people all over the world. I can tell you with an assurance based on strong differences in the custom systems we used to build that registers vary not only between organizations and institutions, but also between departments, and between functional levels in those departments. Understandings and registers vary with the organizational history that people have assimilated and accommodated. And like Hebb and Freeman, I also see that the knowledge that people gather and fashion for themselves is based on what they have previously gathered and fashioned. I am perpetually amazed at how much the Enlightenment Grande Narratives still influence people's ways of looking at the world and evaluating what might be possible. Mark hopes (and hopes and hopes to no avail) that something will turn out to be "universal" so - like Chomsky, I might remark - someone can develop a one-size software that fits all. I don't know if this hope is laziness, greed, or disregard for humanity beyond all belief. What I still hear reflected in such writings are the views of Morton, Galton, Agassiz, and the measures and mis-measures of (hu)man. Speaking of Agassiz, he was head of Eugenics at Harvard. This was the first discipline for which America because highly regarded by European scholars. I often hear people talking about how Hitler's philosophies and tactics. I don't often hear the knowledge that Hitler learned from Harvard, from Agassiz and his faculty. Eugenics - or ethnic cleansing - is an American tradition. Is this Rousseauian? Believing that a discipline that characterizes people as those who are deserving of a future and those who are not is a classic and perpetual example of Human Savagery? Ironically, the lake around which some of the earliest Athapascans lived has been named for Louis Agassiz! Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Rudy Troike Sent: Friday, May 19, 2006 3:00 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: [ILAT] Usitative, etc. Mia, You are in danger of sounding like Rousseau. The GIS article amused me with one point about a term for a passageway for water after a rain, in an area like the Southwest U.S. where surface water is a temporal thing. Here in Arizona and New Mexico, we have a similar feature which has a label, "wash", which finds no counterpart in the better-watered parts of the English-speaking world, and might equally confound the GIS article author. I was amused recently by a story told by a man here in Tucson, who took his sons back to his own childhood home in Ohio for a visit. When they got into the Midwest, at one point they crossed a river, and one son excitedly pointed out "Dad, look! The river has water in it!" Unlike the assumption of the GIS author that "river" is defined as water moving in a stream bed, here in Arizona children grow up understanding "river" as a stream bed that may occasionally have some water in it. Do we speak the same language? Do Arizona children have a "deeper" conceptual-cognitive understanding of "river" than speakers of English in most of the rest of the globe? Or has the dessication of the atmosphere impoverished their cognitive competence? Ever since the rise of cities, country-dwellers have been ridiculing their "city-slicker" visitors for their atrophied awareness of country features, while the urbanites retaliate by making fun of the rural "yokels" for their ignorance of the citysphere. But their grammars don't differ in profound ways, although rural linguistic features earn the label of "solecisms", going back to the Greeks, and urban features may draw private rural scorn, but public envy, which is why historically, cities show rings of isoglosses around them as the surrounding rural populations have imitated urban speech. Language changes for the same basic reason that any other form of human behavior changes -- fashion, and the desire to imitate someone or some group who/which is admired. Grammar is usually the most resistant part of language to change, in part because it is so largely out of awareness, but that is not always true. On the one hand, the -m in "am" is a first-person marker that goes back to Indo-European, but has disappeared in all English verbs except "be". On the other, "like" has emerged as a quotative marker in American teen speech with lightning speed, and "you guys" has become the new 2nd person plural pronoun with equal rapidity. Evidentials in verbs, an old element in the Turkic language family, was borrowed into Bulgarian, alone of the Slavic languages, as a result of the Ottoman occupation of the area. And Gumperz has documented a village in India where three languages are spoken, two related and one not, where all three, while retaining their native vocabulary, have developed perfectly identical patterns of morphology and syntax. Grammatical borrowing is so common, in fact, that linguists are now suspicious of grammar as a major evidence for genetic relatedness between languages. The interpretation of identical grammatical structures may differ between languages, even closely related languages, because of fashion-driven change. We have little micro-evidence to prove why, when, or how changes start, but we are able to catch them only after the fact, when it is too late to reconstruct their orgins, except speculatively. So as Scott warns, attributing understandings of the universe to grammar is a hazardous and largely unvalidated undertaking, best avoided. Rudy From rrlapier at AOL.COM Fri May 19 14:36:17 2006 From: rrlapier at AOL.COM (rrlapier at AOL.COM) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 10:36:17 -0400 Subject: Senate Votes English as 'National Language' Message-ID: Senate Votes English as 'National Language' Bill Keeps in Place Multilingual Laws By Jonathan Weisman and Jim VandeHei Washington Post Staff Writers Friday, May 19, 2006; A01 After an emotional debate fraught with symbolism, the Senate yesterday voted to make English the "national language" of the United States, declaring that no one has a right to federal communications or services in a language other than English except for those already guaranteed by law. The measure, approved 63 to 34, directs the government to "preserve and enhance" the role of English, without altering current laws that require some government documents and services be provided in other languages. Opponents, however, said it could negate executive orders, regulations, civil service guidances and other multilingual ordinances not officially sanctioned by acts of Congress. That vote, considered a defeat for immigration-rights advocates, was followed last night by an important victory: By 58 to 35, the Senate killed an amendment that would have blocked eventual citizenship for future immigrants who arrive under a temporary work permit. Democrats and Republicans agreed that the amendment would have destroyed the fragile, bipartisan coalition backing the Senate bill. The Senate action came hours after President Bush, who visited the border town of Yuma, Ariz., asked Congress to approve a $1.95 billion budget request to deploy National Guard troops and 1,000 additional enforcement agents to the U.S.-Mexico border. Bush also endorsed for the first time the construction of 370 miles of southern border fences to cut down on illegal immigration. The English language vote continued the conservative turn that a major overhaul of the nation's immigration laws has taken since the Senate began debate this week. The comprehensive legislation would strengthen border security, allow illegal immigrants who have been in the country five years or more to remain and eventually become citizens, and create a guest-worker program. With approval of a triple-layered border fence Wednesday, the capping of the annual number of guest-worker visas at 200,000 and the English-language amendment yesterday, Republicans say the bill is tougher than the original version and comes closer to what is needed to satisfy many conservatives. But immigrants-rights groups say their support is teetering. "This is devastating," said Raul Gonzalez, legislative director of the National Council of La Raza, after the English-language vote. "For us, this is a tough issue to bring back to the community." Only nine Senate Democrats voted for the amendment and one Republican, Sen. Pete V. Domenici (N.M.), voted against it. Maryland's two Democratic senators voted against it, and Virginia's two GOP senators voted for it. The English-language debate has roiled U.S. politics for decades and, in some quarters, has been as controversial and important as an amendment to ban flag burning. The impact of the language amendment was unclear even after its passage. The wording negating claims to multilingual services appears straightforward. It also sets requirements that immigrants seeking U.S. citizenship know the English language and U.S. history. The amendment would require more thorough testing to demonstrate English-language proficiency and knowledge of U.S. history and elements of U.S. culture such as the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem. But its author, Sen. James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.), made two last-minute changes that some opponents said would reduce its effect significantly. By stipulating that the English-only mandates could not negate existing laws, Inhofe spared current ordinances that allow bilingual education or multilingual ballots. By changing the amendment to label English the "national language" rather than the "official language" of the country, Inhofe may have lessened its symbolic power. "In my view, we had it watered down enough to make it acceptable," said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), one of the chief architects of the immigration bill. But pro-immigration groups and some Democrats said the amendment would obliterate executive orders issued by President Bill Clinton that mandated multilingual services and communications in a variety of federal agencies, and could undermine court orders, agency regulations, civil service guidances, and state and local ordinances that call for multilingual services. Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) called the amendment "racist," and Sen. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.) dismissed it as divisive and anti-American. Further complicating the picture, moments after approving the Inhofe amendment, the Senate voted 58 to 39 to approve a competing amendment by Salazar. It declared English the "common unifying language of the United States," but mandated that nothing in that declaration "shall diminish or expand any existing rights" regarding multilingual services. Senators said the conflict will have to be worked out in negotiations with the House. During his appearance in Arizona with Gov. Janet Napolitano (D) in attendance, Bush offered some tough talk. After touring a porous section of the border that has helped turn Yuma into a hotbed for illegal workers, Bush told a group of federal patrol agents that the White House is committed to sending reinforcements soon, and to significantly expanding security and staff over the next several years. "It's time to get immediate results," Bush said at the Yuma Sector Border Patrol headquarters. But administration officials made it clear that the $1.95 billion for the president's border initiative should come out of the same money approved by the Senate in its version of an emergency war spending bill. That angered Senate Budget Committee Chairman Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who had secured that money solely for capital expenditures, such as fences, sensors and watchtowers, not border security operations. But Gregg said he has "been told rather bluntly" some of those expenditures will have to wait. The White House said the new budget request by Bush would cover the $750 million-plus Guard deployment, new agents, fences and barriers, five helicopters and two new unmanned surveillance aircraft. The money would be offset by delaying other military purchases, according to the White House. VandeHei reported from Yuma. © 2006 The Washington Post Company Rosalyn LaPier Piegan Institute www.pieganinstitute.org -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From rzs at TDS.NET Fri May 19 16:00:47 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Zane Smith) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 11:00:47 -0500 Subject: Senate Votes English as 'National Language' Message-ID: kweh omätërú More steps towards a gradual standardization of the american citizen Being exposed to all the great discussion we are having here i hope we are also daily working against this --sameness-- drive sing a song, use a prayer in your OWN language resist this conquest....by being John Kyarahoo(Wyandot) saw it coming in 1911 and it was recorded in text: "...ä tawátö daé' d 'ayöhshanyókyerata' tuhásha' daé yarihögyáh tutenyó tizhú d' aómetsáyeh..." meaning: "its impossible to hold on to anything anymore the reason is (there seems to be) a change covering(clothing) the land..." (He died the following year) to understand we are dying is no cure of itself and we can waste alot of time articulating our death we can only resist conquest by being richard > > Senate Votes English as 'National Language' > Bill Keeps in Place Multilingual Laws > > > After an emotional debate fraught with symbolism, the Senate yesterday voted to make English the "national language" of the United States, declaring that no one has a right to federal communications or services in a language other than English except for those already guaranteed by law. Richard Zane Smith 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. Wyandotte Oklahoma 74370 From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 22 03:31:47 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 20:31:47 -0700 Subject: Voice of the Ainu speaks to the people (fwd) Message-ID: Voice of the Ainu speaks to the people 05/22/2006 BY EIJI ZAKODA, THE ASAHI SHIMBUN http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200605220128.html BIRATORI, Hokkaido--There was a time when the Ainu culture seemed nearly extinct, drowned in the long-standing Japanese assimilation policy. Now a new wave is swelling. A tiny community FM radio station that opened five years ago in Biratori, southern Hokkaido, is keeping the Ainu voice alive and reaching audiences on a global scale. And the local community of Nibutani, where the station is based, has become a global gathering place for the international movement to protect indigenous culture. In fact, almost 10 years since the passing of the Law for the Promotion of Ainu Culture and Dissemination and Advocacy of Ainu Traditions, Ainu culture is practically blossoming. A new generation of leaders is eager to follow in the footsteps of Shigeru Kayano, who until his death on May 6 at 79 had been the undisputed voice of the Ainu for as long as most people could remember. Kayano became the first Diet member of Ainu descent in 1994, and acted as representative for the Ainu radio station. "Listen to our radio broadcast and you can actually hear the language that has been revived," Kayano said in an interview shortly before his death. "Words fly to you through the air. It is my dear wish that the Ainu words will reach listeners and tell our story." Kayano's son, Shiro, is one of several volunteers who now make broadcast content for the station. "I know that our broadcast won't boost the number of Ainu speakers immediately," Shiro, 47, said. "But there is great significance in sending out word of our Ainu culture to the wider world." The idea for the station came to the elder Kayano when he heard of indigenous people in Canada who have radio programs in their own language. He chose Nibutani library, near his house, to house the station. In April 2001, it went on the air. Though officially called FM-Nibutani, around here people call it FM-Pipaushi, meaning "a place with many shells." Shiro contributes to a monthly hourlong variety show of folk tales, Ainu epic poetry called yukara, Ainu language lessons and tongue twisters, and local news in both Ainu and Japanese. On one day there might be an interview with a local elder recounting tales of times past; on another a graduate student from Alaska might speak about education for indigenous people. Pipaushi is a community FM station, so the broadcast can only be heard only locally. Thanks to the Internet, though, it can attract listeners worldwide. Shiro's "International Indigenous Peoples' Network" Website gets about 300 visitors for each broadcast; as of early April they had gotten about 20,000 hits. "It is a great idea to promote the Ainu language through the Internet," one Japanese person living in Seattle commented online. "I want to learn about the Ainu," wrote a high school student in Germany. The station now has a special wall covered with messages from various indigenous people around the world. Other areas in Japan are pricking up their ears. A community FM station in Sapporo relays the Pipaushi broadcast, and just last month a Kobe station began airing the Ainu variety program. "The more languages you speak, the deeper understanding of others you cultivate," said naturalist and writer C.W. Nicol, a guest on the Feb. 12 broadcast. "If the Ainu language makes a comeback, that will certainly give more depth to the Japanese language." "Words have a certain magic," he said. "Once you master the language, you start feeling proud about your own roots." Society has not always been so tolerant of the Ainu culture. Like many minorities and indigenous peoples, the Ainu endured a history of repression and assimilation. In 1593, the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598) officially gave the Matsumae clan the right to govern the island of Ezo--now Hokkaido, the ancestral Ainu homeland. The Hokkaido Colonial Office was set up in 1869. Thirty years later, in 1899, the Meiji government enacted the Hokkaido Former Aborigines Protection Law. The act was essentially a major assimilation program. Certain tracts of land were designated for Ainu people, their common property placed under the control of the governor of Hokkaido, and education guidelines outlined by the state. After World War II, the Ainu took steps to assert their cultural independence. In 1946, the Ainu Association of Hokkaido was formed to improve the people's livelihood and education. It was renamed Utari Kyokai in 1961. A major step for the Ainu was Kayano's election in 1994 to a seat in the Upper House, making him the first Diet member of Ainu descent. He was also instrumental in getting the 1899 assimilation-oriented law replaced in 1997 with the Ainu culture promotion law. A Hokkaido government census two years later noted that after falling fairly continuously from 26,256 in 1807 to a low of 15,969 in 1931, the Ainu population in Hokkaido had increased to about 24,000 in 1999. Much of the damage had already been done, though. The Ainu language was hit particularly hard. Japan's unflinching assimilation policy had almost succeeded in stamping the language out, especially during the 1970s and 1980s. Many parents simply felt beaten down, as though their language no longer served any purpose in Japanese society. Some stopped speaking it with their children. Now, the Utari Kyokai offers Ainu language lessons in 14 places around Hokkaido. The Ainu culture promotion law also supports higher-level classes with the goal of educating future language teachers. And Nibutani has become a gathering place for supporters of indigenous culture around the world. In 1993 and 2005, more than 10 minorities and indigenous groups, including Native American tribes and the Ami from Taiwan, came together for the Nibutani Forum to discuss how to encourage harmonious co-existence. Even the central government is taking a few tentative steps forward. It launched a program to revive the ioru, the traditional Ainu living space. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, together with the Agency for Cultural Affairs, has budgeted 50 million yen to start the project in fiscal 2006 in Shiraoi, southwest Hokkaido. The whole ioru, including the chise house at the center, will be recreated. The living space is closely intertwined with the natural environment, a harmony that Ainu culture emphasizes strongly. A new forest will be planted in Shiraoi, with 16 kinds of trees and 22 other plant species, including the cattail used in the making of special ornaments and garments for use in traditional Ainu ceremonies. Despite all this, the road ahead will be tough for Ainu culture. The bitter truth is that few fluent native Ainu speakers remain. Shigeru Kayano was one of them. "There was a time when we almost lost our language because they only taught Japanese at our schools," he said. "However, now we have textbooks and dictionaries. Times have changed. People can now learn the language, if they wish to do so." He called language "the symbol of a people." "It is the soul. As long as we keep our language alive, our soul will continue on its shining path."(IHT/Asahi: May 22,2006) From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 22 03:34:51 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 20:34:51 -0700 Subject: Aborigines tell their own tale in mystic film (fwd) Message-ID: Aborigines tell their own tale in mystic film Fri May 19, 2006 8:29 PM ET By Kerstin Gehmlich http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=filmNews&storyID=2006-05-20T002905Z_01_L19149818_RTRIDST_0_FILM-LEISURE-CANNES-ABORIGINE-DC.XML&archived=False CANNES, France (Reuters) - Director Rolf de Heer had to hire crocodile hunters and learn how to build canoes out of trees for his new film, which he made with Aboriginal actors speaking their own language. Heer, a native of the Netherlands who moved to Australia at age 8, said he developed "Ten Canoes" with members of the Yolngu community in northern Australia because he wanted to let the indigenous people tell its own history. "I think the greatest importance to them is to show their story and to have their culture valued by our culture," Heer told Reuters on Friday after he presented the film, which is showing at the Cannes festival outside the main competition. "In the end, the film can, in Australia, provide some sort of little extra step in reconciliation and understanding -- and just enjoyment. I think if we can enjoy indigenous culture, that is more important than anything else." Heer's gentle parable on pride, love, jealousy, and tribal ties is set in an Australia of some 1,000 years ago. Hunter Minygululu takes the young Dayindi on his first goose egg hunt into the marshland, where he learns that Dayindi fancies one of his wives. To ward off the young man and to teach him how to respect tribal law, Minygululu recites the story of a similar incident involving their hunting ancestors centuries ago. Heer said it was a challenge to film in the Yolngu languages -- the movie has English subtitles -- and to transfer the tale into a plot accessible to Western viewers. "(The Yolngu's) storytelling is based on repetition and building in off-directions. We are more direct," Heer said. Aborigine actor David Gulpilil, who starred in "Crocodile Dundee" and Heer's "The Tracker," takes on the role of ironic narrator. Heer said his crew had demonstrated nerves of steel during shooting. "If you stand in a swamp, up to your waist for 6 hours at a stretch, and leeches are getting at you from the waist down, and mosquitos from the waist up, and the local says there's a big one coming, a crocodile, then in the end you just have to say ... 'Tell me when it gets closer. Keep shooting'," he said. Showing the film to the local community of Ramingining where it was shot was a moving experience, he said. "They made so much noise, laughing and cheering, that they could understand perhaps only 30 percent of the dialogue. But it didn't matter because they understood what was going on. They were laughing at jokes that I didn't know were there," he said. "It's the first time they have seen that sort of drama ... that is their own story, with their own people doing it, particularly in their own language. So it's been fantastic." Reuters/VNU From coyotez at UOREGON.EDU Mon May 22 04:15:27 2006 From: coyotez at UOREGON.EDU (David Gene Lewis) Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 21:15:27 -0700 Subject: Fwd: [thx Jeff Kopp] Now possible to recover oldest recordings Message-ID: David Lewis University of Oregon Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde ------ Forwarded message ------- From: David Robertson Reply-to: David Robertson To: CHINOOK at LISTSERV.LINGUISTLIST.ORG Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 17:47:26 -0400 Jeff Kopp sent along amazing news that something we'd hoped for has become possible. Some scientists have succeeded in recovering the sound from old wax cylinder recordings using optical scanning. Nothing touches the disk (which would wear it out, ruining valuable information). The recordings at the following links are impressive. I think they've managed to clean up so much surface noise that we now hear versions better than a wax cylinder player ever delivered. The potential for recovering detailed phonetic and other linguistic data from old recordings of NW languages is huge. For example, there's quite a bit of recorded Chinook Jargon waiting for this treatment, when it becomes available and easy to use. Thanks, Jeff. --Dave R "...they're working on optical recovery. This sounds pretty complicated (it's done with a particle accelerator at the DOE's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory), but besides being totally non-destructive (every play of a wax cylinder can damage it a little), it gets more of the sound out. http://www.newsobserver.com/303/story/234530.html Here's another: http://playlistmag.com/features/2005/08/preserve3/index.php" To respond to the CHINOOK list, click 'REPLY ALL'. To respond privately to the sender of a message, click 'REPLY'. Hayu masi! From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 22 18:58:32 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 11:58:32 -0700 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <000001c67a89$0bbf1c20$0efd7b80@LFPMia> Message-ID: Mia, You ought to take a look at: James R. Hurford's article "The neural basis of predicate-argument structure" in BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES (2003) 26, 261–316 Quite an interesting read and it seems to fit well with some of ideas you are considering with the grammar of Díne. I get the impression that Hurford is proposing a kind of "primitive mental representation," one independent of language, that makes a grammar happen. Pretty cool idea I think as I've been trying to find ideas or "stuff" like this to come to an understanding of Nez Perce. l8ter, Phil (cayuse/nez perce) From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Tue May 23 12:53:14 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 05:53:14 -0700 Subject: A Unique Sound (fwd) Message-ID: A Unique Sound [Photo credit: Amanda Stone Sequoyah Indians girls basketball coach Bill Nobles] [Download Listen to clips from the game (2:00) Need an mp3 player? Get Quicktime] By Amanda Stone TAHLEQUAH, Okla.—“Sequoyah Indian girls won.” Radio host Dennis Sixkiller spoke these words after the Tahlequah Sequoyah girls won their second consecutive Oklahoma state high school basketball championship. Listeners heard those words in Cherokee. ["Sequoyah Indian Girls Won" as written in the Cherokee syllabary.] Among broadcasters airing the state games, Sixkiller and partner David Scott were the only ones in Oklahoma using the tribe’s native language. “We enjoy doing it in Cherokee, and I’m glad we’re able to,” Sixkiller said. “We get all kinds of responses.” In winning the 3A Oklahoma state championship, Sequoyah defeated Verdigris High School of Claremore, 60-45, before a crowd estimated at more than 5,000. The Sequoyah game aired on Cherokee Voices and Cherokee Sounds, a radio program sponsored by the Oklahoma Cherokee Nation. It airs on stations at 101.7 FM and 1350 AM and carries community stories, sports and Cherokee music. [Photo credit: Amanda Stone Oklahoma girls 3A state basketball championship trophy is on display at Sequoyah High School.] Sixkiller said both stations carried the games. The FM station broadcast in English and the AM station in Cherokee, he said. “I think it’s awesome,” said Gina Stanley, superintendent of Sequoyah High School. “I don’t miss a game, but once they make it that far, there are a lot of others out there listening and taking advantage of it.” Although unsure how many listeners tuned in for the games, Sixkiller said many people in the Tahlequah area told him that they enjoyed the broadcasts. “About a month before the games, we had people wanting to know if we were going to do it again,” Sixkiller said. “People really like it. Some people in Jay drove around a parking lot until they could hear it.” The Sequoyah basketball program has a good fan following, said Bill Nobles, the girls’ basketball coach. Buses made the two-and-a-half hour trip to Oklahoma City for the games, and school was dismissed so the 355-member student body could attend. The radio station sufficed for students and other fans who could not support the team in person, he said. “It’s great there are so many Cherokee speakers around,” Nobles said. “This is very much a community and family-based program. There’s a lot more speakers than people realize.” Amanda Stone, Cherokee, attends Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Okla. She is a 2004 graduate of the Freedom Forum's American Indian Journalism Institute. Article Link: http://www.reznetnews.org/news/060505_cherokee/ Copyright © 2006 Reznet. Reznet is a project of The University of Montana School of Journalism and the Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education. From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 23 23:19:22 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 17:19:22 -0600 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <20060522115832.s8wgo4ok084sk408@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: Hi, Phil, Thanks. Hope both you and the trout are well. I will check this out when I am home. I currently in Gallup. What I'm actually doing is untangling the mathematics in the language, and a ton is buried in the grammar. :-) Fairly complex ideas, too, repetition and recursion, Bayesian statistics :-). I understand there is a ton in the details in the Hoogan, also. I can hardly wait. :-) I'll let you know when I have read the Hurford. I know we have the journal in the NMSU library. Best, Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of phil cash cash Sent: Monday, May 22, 2006 12:59 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative Mia, You ought to take a look at: James R. Hurford's article "The neural basis of predicate-argument structure" in BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES (2003) 26, 261–316 Quite an interesting read and it seems to fit well with some of ideas you are considering with the grammar of Díne. I get the impression that Hurford is proposing a kind of "primitive mental representation," one independent of language, that makes a grammar happen. Pretty cool idea I think as I've been trying to find ideas or "stuff" like this to come to an understanding of Nez Perce. l8ter, Phil (cayuse/nez perce) From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 25 16:24:01 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 09:24:01 -0700 Subject: Language preservation focus of meeting (fwd) Message-ID: Published on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 3:53 PM MST Language preservation focus of meeting http://www.silverbelt.com/articles/2006/05/23/apache_moccasin/apache01.txt The San Carlos Apache Administration of Native American (ANA) Language Preservation Office will be holding a public meeting to inform the public of the ANA grant awarded to the San Carlos Apache Tribe for language preservation last year. The meeting will be held in the education conference room on Tuesday, May 30, at 10 a.m. The overall goal of the project is to assess the status of the Apache language on the San Carlos Apache Reservation. The San Carlos Planning Department established a Language Preservation Office upon receiving word on the grant approval. Joyce Johnson was hired as the language coordinator in April and will continue to work to design a formal assessment tool that captures the information identified during the design of the language project program, conduct an actual assessment of the community, collect and analyze the information generated. An overall concern, identified throughout the reservation includes the general agreement that the San Carlos Apache people are rapidly losing the ability to understand and speak the Apache language. In the grant application, the planning department states, “It is felt that this is a critical problem as language is a key component of one's culture and one's identityŠ.there is a tremendous need to formally assess and determine the actual status of the Apache language.” The language coordinator will be involved with the Elder's Cultural Advisory Council and the support of a Project Evaluation Team. A language committee will also be established as a part of the grant. Community members who are interested in providing input into the assessment tool, conducting surveys, and helping in the development of the long term language goals are strongly encouraged to participate. For more information regarding the Language Preservation Program, please contact Joyce Johnson at 475-2331. From stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU Thu May 25 19:14:24 2006 From: stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU (Bruce Stonefish) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 15:14:24 -0400 Subject: Article - Technology Revitalizes Endangered Languages In-Reply-To: <1e3.392e79e.2b96307a@aol.com> Message-ID: Hello All, I know some may not of heard from me in awhile - have been doing fine, as I am back in my community. Recently we (Myself and Glen Jacobs) have released a Lunaape Lanaguage resource. You can check it out at the following website - www.mohican.com - then log on to 'community' then 'Lunaape Language'. We have to date sold approximately 50 or so. We are currently in the process of make a bulk order for the CD's. The resource is a Booklet and 3 CD Set (4hrs) of Lunaape Language. There are words in this booklet that cannot be found anywhere else. This booklet is a product of the Lunaapge Language Immersion Camp that we held last August- it is actually the booklet we used. We recieved funding from the Stockbridge Munsee Tribe in Wisconsin. (We will be hosting this camp again this August in our community if you are interested - let me know) This e-mail is intended help advertise the sale of our Language Resource as well as to give you a glimpse into what I have been doing. Check it out - order one for yourself or some for you community. We are approaching our chief and council as well as the Chief and Council in Munsee. So let me know if you need any. Got to keep the language alive. Anushiik waak Laapichkuneewal, Bruce Stonefish (519) 692-7226 stonefbr at gse.harvard.edu On Tue, 04 Mar 2003 11:38:18 -0500 (EST) Jim Rementer wrote: > A recent article of interest. > > Jim Rementer > > > Innovative use of technology breakthrough revitalizes endangered languages > > VICTORIA, BC, March 4 /PRNewswire/ - There is an urgent need for Aboriginal > communities worldwide to have the tools to document, archive and revitalize > their endangered languages while enough fluent speakers still survive. > > Two Victoria-based organizations - The First Peoples' Cultural Foundation > (FPCF) and Trafford Publishing - are exploring ways to support and enhance > existing First Nations language programs and encourage the revitalization of > endangered languages around the world. > > They have begun to use Trafford's breakthrough service in full-color book > publishing to create a series of customized full-color primers-in several > Aboriginal languages. Language revitalization is critical to cultural > survival; primers like this are much-needed by Aboriginal language > instructors. > > "There are more than 6,500 languages spoken around the world," says Simon > Robinson, Executive Director of the FPCF. "It is estimated that 90 per cent > of these languages will be extinct by the end of the 21st century. Unless we > act now to support their revitalization, thousands of years of accumulated > human knowledge is at risk of disappearing without record." In Canada, > British Columbia is home to 32 of the country's 50 Aboriginal languages. By > building tools and providing resources that support community language > initiatives, Robinson's organization aims to help endangered languages thrive > again. > > In their initial collaboration, Trafford and the FPCF will publish primers on > colors and numbers. There will be five different versions of the book - each > featuring a different First Nations language. As a testament to the speed and > accessibility of Trafford's new publishing tool, a proof of the first book in > the series - a book in Sencoten created by students of the Lau,Welnew Tribal > School on the Saanich Peninsula - was produced in under one week. > >Future work includes expanding the series to include an alphabet primer, > books on conversational phrases, and dictionaries; and translating the > primers into other First Nations languages. The new technologies will enable >First Nations communities and individuals to produce their own wide range of > books in their own languages. > > "We are really excited about the work of the First Peoples' Cultural >Foundation," states Bruce Batchelor, co-founder and CEO of Trafford > Publishing. "Our on-demand publishing system can provide the FPCF with an > accessible and cost-effective way to produce dictionaries, children's books - > any imaginable printed resource - in First Nations languages." > > Generally, once a manuscript and accompanying artwork are complete, Trafford > can have the book ready for distribution to classrooms and retail outlets in > as little as four weeks. It will be stored as a digital file and printed > on-demand using a Xerox DocuColor system > > "Xerox has been a leader in Print On Demand since the initial launch of > high-speed digital print engines more than 20 years ago. Our latest > generation of digital printing devices, particularly the DocuColor family of > digital color presses, enables the cost-efficient production of full-color > books such as these First Nations primers," said Peter W. Perine, vice > president and general manager, Xerox Publishing Segment Marketing. "In this > high-growth area of Print On Demand, Xerox is helping customers produce > high-quality books in short run lengths and quick turnaround times." > > The FPCF and Trafford Publishing are making their announcement at iSynergy, a > technology showcase in Vancouver that was sponsored by Apple Computers. The >FPCF's programs and enabling tools (website interactivity, remapped keyboards > and customized fonts, for example) are built on Apple technology. Trafford > uses Apple Macintosh computers for its prepress and production processes, and > Apple 0SX servers for its data-intensive networking. > > The First Peoples' Cultural Foundation is committed to the documentation, > protection and revitalization of the full diversity of Aboriginal language, > arts and cultures. It has garnered worldwide attention for FirstVoices.com, > an impressive web-based Indigenous language archiving application that it has > developed and made available online. Indigenous groups from Canada, > Australia, Europe and the USA are preparing to use the FPCF's tools. > www.fpcf.ca > > Trafford is a Canadian-registered private company currently serving close to > 2,000 authors from over 40 countries. It has offices in Victoria, BC > (Canada), New Bern, NC (USA), Drogheda, Co. Louth (Ireland), and Crewe, > Cheshire (UK). Trafford is credited with inventing the on-demand publishing > process for authors of black and white paperback books-now over 10% of all > new titles launched in North America use this process. Extending this service > to affordable full-color children's books is another world first. > > See www.trafford.com/journalists for a backgrounder on this publishing > breakthrough. From stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU Thu May 25 19:16:01 2006 From: stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU (Bruce Stonefish) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 15:16:01 -0400 Subject: Tribal College Journal In-Reply-To: <5.2.0.9.2.20030222144707.00ab3810@oregon.uoregon.edu> Message-ID: Hello All, I know some may not of heard from me in awhile - have been doing fine, as I am back in my community. Recently we (Myself and Glen Jacobs) have released a Lunaape Lanaguage resource. You can check it out at the following website - www.mohican.com - then log on to 'community' then 'Lunaape Language'. We have to date sold approximately 50 or so. We are currently in the process of make a bulk order for the CD's. The resource is a Booklet and 3 CD Set (4hrs) of Lunaape Language. There are words in this booklet that cannot be found anywhere else. This booklet is a product of the Lunaapge Language Immersion Camp that we held last August- it is actually the booklet we used. We recieved funding from the Stockbridge Munsee Tribe in Wisconsin. (We will be hosting this camp again this August in our community if you are interested - let me know) This e-mail is intended help advertise the sale of our Language Resource as well as to give you a glimpse into what I have been doing. Check it out - order one for yourself or some for you community. We are approaching our chief and council as well as the Chief and Council in Munsee. So let me know if you need any. Got to keep the language alive. Anushiik waak Laapichkuneewal, Bruce Stonefish (519) 692-7226 stonefbr at gse.harvard.edu On Sat, 22 Feb 2003 14:55:05 -0800 David Lewis wrote: > Dear ILAT, > > The newest issue of Tribal College Journal has devoted the issue to History > and Native Americans. I see this as very related to our Linguistics as when > the languages went or should they disappear, our history goes with > them. If you want to order this Journal the address is : > Tribal College Journal > P.O. Box 720 > Mancos, CO 81328 > > (970) 533-9170 > (888) 899-6693 > > or www.tribalcollegejournal.org > > David From stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU Thu May 25 19:19:02 2006 From: stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU (Bruce Stonefish) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 15:19:02 -0400 Subject: BRIEF intro In-Reply-To: <200301242148.h0OLmmC20453@lisbon.ucdavis.edu> Message-ID: Hello All, I know some may not of heard from me in awhile - have been doing fine, as I am back in my community. Recently we (Myself and Glen Jacobs) have released a Lunaape Lanaguage resource. You can check it out at the following website - www.mohican.com - then log on to 'community' then 'Lunaape Language'. We have to date sold approximately 50 or so. We are currently in the process of make a bulk order for the CD's. The resource is a Booklet and 3 CD Set (4hrs) of Lunaape Language. There are words in this booklet that cannot be found anywhere else. This booklet is a product of the Lunaapge Language Immersion Camp that we held last August- it is actually the booklet we used. We recieved funding from the Stockbridge Munsee Tribe in Wisconsin. (We will be hosting this camp again this August in our community if you are interested - let me know) This e-mail is intended help advertise the sale of our Language Resource as well as to give you a glimpse into what I have been doing. Check it out - order one for yourself or some for you community. We are approaching our chief and council as well as the Chief and Council in Munsee. So let me know if you need any. Got to keep the language alive. Anushiik waak Laapichkuneewal, Bruce Stonefish (519) 692-7226 stonefbr at gse.harvard.edu On Fri, 24 Jan 2003 13:48:48 -0800 Kirsten Meyer wrote: > Osiyo, > > I have been hesitating on introducing myself because I am not doing > anything nearly as important as most of the other people on the listserve. > I am a first year graduate student in Native American Studies at the > University of California, Davis. I am fortunate to have Martha Macri as my > advisor here, and am studying Cherokee language and linguistics. > Eventually I would like to design curriculum for use in Native > communities, especially for language revitalization, and I am very > interested in integrating technology and multimedia into language > acquisition programs. In addition to Cherokee, I also have a special > interest in Yavapai and Lenape language revitalization efforts. Reading > about the projects everyone is working on in their communities has been > very inspiring. I hope to meet some of you in person before too long. > > Kirsten Meyer From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 25 23:13:36 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 16:13:36 -0700 Subject: Students Document a Disappearing Language (fwd) Message-ID: Students Document a Disappearing Language By Kerry Grens Durham, New Hampshire 25 May 2006 Grens report (MP3) - Download 984k Grens report (Real) - Download 653k Listen to Grens report (Real) http://www.voanews.com/english/AmericanLife/2006-05-25-voa60.cfm In the highlands of southwest Kenya, about a million and a half people speak an unwritten language called Kisii. Halfway around the world from the coffee and maize farms of Kisii district, students at the University of New Hampshire are developing a rulebook for the language. They have only the help of one transplanted native speaker. And he's learning just as much about Kisii as they are. In a typical session, seven linguistics students gather around Henry Gekonde and pepper him with questions. "Can you say that it's 'not red' in Kisii?" asks one. "Yeah," he responds, "You can say yaya teri mbariri. Yaya means no." Gekonde grew up in Kenya, speaking Kisii at home. The students are trying to learn as much as they can from him about his native tongue. Over the past several months, they have developed a keen ear for a language that none of them had ever heard before. They transcribe Gekonde's answers using the International Phonetic Alphabet, just about as quickly as he speaks. Today, they are trying to understand how to say "not" in Kisii. Aside from a translation of the Bible and a few children's books, the class has been unable to find anything written in Kisii. [photo inset - The words banana, fish, hand and book are from some of the 8 noun classes the students discovered as they documented the Kisii language] The purpose of this linguistics course is to teach students how to document a largely unknown language. And with the semester coming to a close, the students have made considerable progress. They started with simply collecting the sounds Kisii uses, and translating vocabulary. Now they've got the basic sentence structure down. It is the same as English: subject, verb, direct object. But Adam Jardine says he and his classmates have also uncovered some bewildering differences. "It's kind of like in French and Spanish where there's a masculine/feminine distinction. In Kisii, there (are) 8 of those distinctions. So depending on what type of noun a word is, all these different things in the sentence change." Another difference is that Kisii does not have the verb "to be". It does, however, have many different past tenses. All of these complexities were also somewhat of a surprise to Henry Gekonde, who admits he didn't really analyze his language until now. "Even the way it works -- the tenses, the noun system and all that -- I never thought about that. I'm uncovering things about Kisii that I didn't know before. And for some of the questions that the students ask me, I don't really have an answer." He says it's very exciting. "We're figuring it out together." Gekonde never learned about Kisii grammar. Kenyan schools teach only the country's dominant languages, Swahili and English. "It's a dying language anyway, not that many people speak it," he says, adding, "it's not used in academic research or work or writing, so what's the point of studying it?" To preserve it, according to linguistics professor Naomi Nagy, who teaches this class. There are very few texts that describe anything of Kisii grammar, she says, adding that even though Kisii is not included on the endangered list, hundreds of unwritten languages are at risk of going extinct within the next hundred years. "I think that a really important step for people who are trying to preserve endangered languages is to get the speakers of those languages to realize that their language is just as good." [photo inset - New Hampshire linguist Naomi Nagy and Henry Gekonde grill a goat at a Kenyan dinner to mark the end of the semester] So Professor Nagy asked Henry Gekonde to be the subject of her language documentation class. He says he was happy to do it. He sees Kisii eroding among the younger generation in Kenya, and being replaced by English. Gekonde's hope is that documenting Kisii will help keep his native language alive… and with it, the Kisii way of interpreting the world. "You have computers and cars and things like that. That makes you view the world in a different way," he explains. "We have bananas and maize and walks to the market on foot, lots of rain, and we have words that describe that lifestyle that people lead, and that's the way we view the world. That's really what distinguishes us from people who speak other languages." Henry Gekonde says he's determined to preserve those distinctions. Although he came to the University of New Hampshire as a linguistics graduate student to study English, he now plans to return to Kenya to develop the first Kisii dictionary. From mona at ALLIESMEDIAART.COM Fri May 26 17:57:42 2006 From: mona at ALLIESMEDIAART.COM (MSmith) Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 12:57:42 -0500 Subject: Open Source Award Message-ID: > > >14) Mellon Foundation Announces Awards for Open Source Software > > Deadline: August 15, 2006 > > The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has announced a Call for > Nominations for the 2006 Mellon Awards for Technology > Collaboration. These awards, to be bestowed for the first time > at an international technology conference in the fall of 2006, > will recognize notprofit organizations that have demonstrated > exceptional leadership in the collaborative development of open- > source software through the contribution of substantial, self- > funded organizational resources to the open-source project for > which they are nominated. > > MATC awards will be made at two levels -- $25,000 and $100,000 > -- for significant contributions to collaborative, open-source > software development that serves one of the foundation's > traditional constituencies. The level of the award will depend > on the scale and significance of the nominated project. > > Any U.S. or foreign organization that meets the foundation's > legal criteria for receiving grants and its strict standards for > excellence is eligible for consideration. The board of trustees > of the Mellon Foundation has authorized multiple awards at each > level. > > Visit the Mellon Foundation Web site for the complete Call for > Nominations. > > RFP Link: http://fconline.fdncenter.org/pnd/10002728/mellon > > For additional RFPs in Science/Technology, visit: > http://fconline.fdncenter.org/pnd/10002729/science > > From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Sat May 27 15:45:06 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sat, 27 May 2006 08:45:06 -0700 Subject: KILI Radio Message-ID: Native American Indigenous Cinema & Arts homepage: www.thenaica.org blog: http://thenaica.org/nucleus/carole.php NO MORE SILENCE: BRINGING BACK THE VOICE OF KILI RADIO For anybody driving west through the prairie expanse of South Dakota, something changes once you cross the Missouri. You soon come upon the moonscape terrain of the Badlands followed by the dramatic melding into the pine-covered Black Hills. If you’re into drinking in the local ambience and turn off your iPod and satellite radio you’ll discover something else. The intermittent radio signal of a station that is nothing like what most of us have listened to before. The DJs occasionally speak in Lakota; sometimes interspersing the dialect with English in the same conversation. They broadcast live from pow wows, inform listeners about healthy lifestyles, school events and tribal meetings, discuss local issues, and play music. The playlist is especially eclectic; traditional and pow wow along with with pop, contemporary Native music and hip hop to appeal to younger listeners. KILI Radio, broadcast “high atop Porcupine Butte” on the Pine Ridge Reservation, calls itself the “Voice of the Lakota Nation.” Recognizing the physical isolation of Pine Ridge and nearby reservations, you appreciate the importance of having a venue residents can tune into to keep in touch with neighbors who may literally live an hour’s drive away. But that voice has been silenced. This past April a lightning strike knocked out their transmission tower, and with it, the community connection in Pine Ridge. The station is still broadcasting and is accessible through live streaming on their website. Whereas you and I and thousands across the globe can find out about the upcoming school board meeting, a majority of those in Pine Ridge cannot. Access to the internet is simply not an option for many in this poorest of poor reservations and the fact that a housewife from Stuttgart can tune in while an elderly resident of Kyle is unable to seems more than ironic. Repairing the tower could cost up to $200,000. Raising that amount, which will enable the station to receive a matching grant, may seem insurmountable. It’s not—literally millions of tourists travel through South Dakota each year, many stopping in at the local pow wows and sipping a soda at Big Bats. These folks might be tiresome and at times obnoxious fixtures to Lakota residents but they are also potential supporters of the reservation they swarm each summer. For that reason, let’s hope KILI puts the word out beyond South Dakota and Indian media outlets. Let’s do our part as well. The voice of the Lakota nation has already been silenced too long. Website: http://www.kiliradio.org (KILI radio is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. All donations are tax-deductible.) -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Sat May 27 16:53:03 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Sat, 27 May 2006 09:53:03 -0700 Subject: UN asked to approve indigenous rights declaration (fwd) Message-ID: UN asked to approve indigenous rights declaration The Philippine Star 05/28/2006 http://www.philstar.com/philstar/News200605280404.htm UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Indigenous groups from around the world called for UN approval of a declaration on indigenous rights despite opposition from the United States, Australia and New Zealand. At the end of a two-week meeting, 1,200 native leaders representing more than 370 million indigenous people in 70 countries on Friday approved a final report urging the General Assembly at its next session starting in September to adopt the draft declaration. The declaration, the culmination of more than 20 years of work, states that indigenous peoples have the right to their own identity, culture and language, and to self-determination. It says governments should respect their rights to traditional lands and resources, and it states that native peoples have the right to decide on any development project in their community. In a joint statement, the US, Australia and New Zealand called the proposed text "fundamentally flawed" and said any attempt to seek UN endorsement "would be disingenuous and irresponsible" and would "potentially undermine the cause of advancing human rights internationally." The three countries protested that self-determination could threaten "the political unity, territorial integrity and indeed the security of existing UN member states." They called the provisions on lands and resources "particularly unworkable and unacceptable" because they appear to require recognition of indigenous rights to lands now lawfully owned by other citizens. The proposed declaration was negotiated for 11 years by a working group in the UN Human Rights Commission which reached an agreement in February, just before the discredited body was about to become defunct. The indigenous leaders called on the new Human Rights Council, which replaced it, to endorse the declaration and send it to the General Assembly. Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, chairperson of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, said the declaration’s adoption is supported by the European Union, a group of Scandinavian countries, parts of Asia and almost all countries in Latin America. The declaration would strengthen the indigenous peoples movement "both on the ground and globally," she said. "Even if it’s not legally binding, it still has a moral power to make the governments agree and adhere to the basic rights that are recognized internationally." Tauli-Corpuz, executive director of the Tebtebba Foundation in the Philippines which promotes research and education on indigenous people, said the final report also calls on the new Human Rights Council to provide more resources for the UN special investigator on indigenous issues and to allow the forum to participate on issues related to its work. The forum also requested an immediate suspension of a project to collect and analyze genetic samples from 100,000 indigenous people around the globe, according to Debra Harry, a Northern Paiute activist from Nevada who heads the Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism. From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Sat May 27 16:57:08 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Sat, 27 May 2006 09:57:08 -0700 Subject: Navajo teacher discusses language and the Beauty Way (fwd) Message-ID: Navajo teacher discusses language and the Beauty Way http://www.cibolabeacon.com/articles/2006/05/26/news/news6.txt GRANTS - Navajo speaker Leonard Anthony gave a talk on “Hozho Naa Has Dlii” - The State of the Beauty Way” at Grants High School Tuesday. Sponsored by the Office of Indian Education of the Grants/Cibola County School District, the talk centered on the importance of language and tradition in the Navajo worldview. Anthony started by breaking down the phrase, “Hozho Naa Has Dlii” into its component words. “Hozho means a state of well being and the path before and after us,” he explained. “Naa indicates a complete circle, Has is a term meaning working toward a new beginning and Dlii means trust or long life. In its simplest terms, it means path plus direction plus circle plus trust. “Language is so important in distilling philosophical and cultural concepts in a Native American context,” Anthony related. “Also very important in the Navajo culture is the idea of clanship and kinship. These relationships give a person a sense of who he is and what his boundaries are. A Navajo can ask, what is my clan and what does that mean? It gives an individual a sense of personal and family awareness.” The educator went on to explain the origins of the clans from various parts of Changing Woman’s body. “These were the First Clans and gave rise to the importance of the maternal clan in our society. The mother is the matriarch because she gives life and nourishment and so her clan is considered the most important in the family. Maternal clans carry on for generations,” Anthony said. “The father supports the maternal clan and is responsible for practical language development. I’ve learned how important home participation is in the process of language skills acquisition,” he added. Anthony described his journey into the appreciation of his cultural heritage and language. “As a youth, I had no discipline or trust and I wore my hair long and shaggy,” he recalled. “I felt lost until I had a four-day ceremony in a hogan with a medicine man. He gave me lots of instructions and I found that I wanted to change. That’s when I started wearing my hair in a bun and it was seen as a traditional rite of passage and an acceptance of adulthood.” Anthony was so changed that he eventually took two years off work to study his clan history. “When you’re familiar with your clan, people will know who you are and what your values are,” he asserted. He is very proud of the fact that the Navajo language has specific words for thankfulness, positive feelings for others, belief in self, being at peace, self-sufficiency, determination, a state of joyfulness, respect and friendliness. “We also have phrases that express gratitude to our relatives and ancestors,” he explained. Anthony said he spoke on English as a child because of acculturation and assimilation. As a Navajo-speaking adult, he is concerned with children and the preservation of their language and culture. “I have loved my journey,” Anthony said. “I’ve been able to sing songs and learn language. I’ve visited over 50 schools in the past seven months, including colleges and treatment centers.” By Diane Fowler From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Tue May 30 17:03:39 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 10:03:39 -0700 Subject: Ariz. tribes unsure what Hayworth means (fwd) Message-ID: Ariz. tribes unsure what Hayworth means May. 29, 2006 12:00 AM http://www.azcentral.com/news/columns/articles/0529ruelas0529.html Rep. J.D. Hayworth is considered a friend to Arizona's tribes. But sometimes they don't speak the same language. Sometimes, for example, Hayworth speaks in overblown rhetoric and ends up insulting centuries of language and tradition. Such was the case when Hayworth signed a letter written by Rep. Steve King, complaining about multilingual ballots. The unspoken target was Spanish speakers, a political can't-miss these days. But the words ricocheted toward the reservations in Hayworth's district. The letter bemoaned a "linguistic divide" in the country. It also said government actions like printing ballots in different languages "contradict the 'Melting Pot' ideal" and are a "serious affront" to previous generations of immigrants who learned English. Applied to recent immigrants from Mexico, those statements reflect a mind-set on the border debate. Applied to the Indian reservations in Arizona, those statements sound as if Hayworth is against tribal members speaking Navajo or Hopi or Apache. Talk of different languages hurting the ideals of the United States just doesn't translate. "I'm not sure what that means," said John Lewis, executive director of the Intertribal Council of Arizona, after I asked him about the term "linguistic divide." The fear of languages other than English does not apply on reservations, Lewis said. Tribes fight to keep their languages alive as part of their way of life. That's why the language Hayworth signed off on is puzzling to many tribal members who saw Hayworth as a friend. "I'm not sure what his intent was, and there's different ways to interpret what he said," Lewis said. "I'm not sure how far he was going." Hayworth declined weeks of requests for a phone interview on the subject. In a written statement, released from his congressional office, he talks about making "an exception" for Native Americans. But it's not clear whether that exception is meant to apply to the "linguistic divide" rhetoric or to the portions of the Voting Rights Act he wants to ditch. The act, which is set to expire next year, mandates that ballots and other election materials be translated in certain areas of low English literacy. In his statement, Hayworth called those translations an "unfunded mandate." But a study released by two Arizona State University professors found that the need for those translated materials in Arizona is highest among Native American voters. The report, available at www.renewthevra.org, surveyed Native American voters in Coconino County during the 2004 election. It found that about half of those needing help to vote relied on the government. And since Navajo is a traditionally oral language, the multilingual ballot would take the form of a translator talking the voter through the ballot. But, apparently, the vision of an elderly Navajo woman having a ballot explained to her in a language she can understand goes against the "Melting Pot" ideal and adds to the "linguistic divide." Wonder what word will be used in the November elections to translate "Hayworth." Reach Ruelas at (602) 444-8473 or richard.ruelas at arizonarepublic.com. From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 30 19:37:06 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 12:37:06 -0700 Subject: FYI: NEH Division of Preservation and Access: Grants Deadlines (fwd) Message-ID: This might be of interest to some on the list: grants for preparing collections of language materials. Scott DeLancey ---------- Forwarded message ---------- LINGUIST List: Vol-17-1629. Tue May 30 2006. ISSN: 1068 - 4875. Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 10:54:56 From: Helen Aguera < haguera at neh.gov > Subject: NEH Division of Preservation and Access: Grants Deadlines The Division of Preservation and Access of the National Endowment for the Humanities (an independent federal agency of the United States government) will be accepting applications for Reference Materials Grants and Grants to Preserve and Create Access to Humanities Collections on July 25, 2006. Any U.S. nonprofit organization with 501(c)3 tax exempt status is eligible, as are state and local governmental agencies and tribal governments. Grants are not awarded to individuals. Prospective applicants seeking further information are encouraged to contact the division's staff (at 202-606-8570 or at preservation at neh.gov). Reference Materials Grants support projects that create reference works and research tools, including: databases and electronic archives that codify and integrate humanities materials, or provide bibliographical control of a subject or field; print and online encyclopedias about various fields in the humanities or about a particular area or subject; historical, etymological, and bilingual dictionaries for undocumented languages, as well as reference grammars and other linguistic tools (separate funding is available for endangered language projects in partnership with the National Science Foundation); descriptive catalogs that provide detailed information about humanities materials; tools for spatial analysis and representation of humanities data, such as atlases and geographical information systems (GIS); and digital tools specifically designed to develop or use humanities online resources. The program guidelines can be consulted at http://www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/referencematerials.html . Grants to Preserve and Create Access to Humanities Collections fund the following activities: cataloging; arrangement and description; documentation; preservation microfilming of brittle books and serials; mass deacidification of items not yet embrittled; conservation treatment; transfer of materials to more stable media; creating digital surrogates to enhance intellectual accessibility; creating oral histories; and conducting archival surveys. The program guidelines are available at http://www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/pcahc.html . All institutions applying for an NEH grant must submit their applications via Grants.gov. Be sure to register with Grants.gov as soon as possible since the registration process takes a minimum of two weeks to complete. To help you through the Grants.gov registration process, please use the checklist located at: http://www.neh.gov/grants/grantsgov/grantsgovchecklist.html. Linguistic Field(s): General Linguistics ----------------------------------------------------------- LINGUIST List: Vol-17-1629 From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 31 17:15:07 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 31 May 2006 10:15:07 -0700 Subject: New ways of telling (fwd) Message-ID: Published: 05.31.2006 New ways of telling O'odham students recount tales, culture via modern media By Lourdes Medrano ARIZONA DAILY STAR http://www.azstarnet.com/dailystar/dailystar/131474 "Looking Forward, Looking Back" Digital stories explore Tohono O'odham youths' culture. To get to the stories, visit www.bridgesweb.org, click on "communities" and then "San Xavier, USA." The memories of Stephanie Danforth's early life on the Tohono O'odham reservation are as sharp as the stars she admired from her village on clear desert nights. "There are no lights to mess up the sky's beauty," Danforth, 15, recalls of those days in a digital story that explores her childhood in Indian country. "I could hear the swaying of the trees in the night, but during the day I could smell the food cooking, like chili, beans and Indian tacos." Danforth's story, which also looks at her later years in the city, is one of 11 that Tohono O'odham high school students created recently through the "Looking Forward, Looking Back" project in San Xavier. The students' work is the first from the Tucson area to be showcased on the Bridges to Understanding Web site, which connects indigenous youth from around the world through digital storytelling. The San Xavier Education Department spearheaded the project involving students from Sunnyside High School and Desert View High School. Most of them live in San Xavier, just southwest of Tucson. The students' short stories delve into family and culture, both on and off the reservation. After learning how to write a script and tell a story through images, the youngsters came up with creative ways to describe how they maintain ties to centuries-old cultural traditions in modern times. The story of Davied Johnson, 15, focuses on traditional foods. He talks about how, when he was younger, his grandmother's cooking sparked his interest in such foods as tepary beans and cactus fruits. He has wanted to be a chef since then, the teen says. "Someday I'm going to make these foods for my restaurant so everybody can taste the glories of O'odham food," he narrates in his story. Ashley Escalante, 14, probed the O'odham language and discovered that many youths do not speak it. "If we lose our language, we stop being who we are," she says in her story, adding that it is up to young people to help preserve the O'odham tongue by learning it. "I'm going against the current by trying to make our language stronger," she narrates. "I wonder if someday my parents will ask me to teach them." Danforth, Escalante and Johnson said putting together their stories after school was hard work, but that in the end they were happy with what they accomplished. The trio and their fellow storytellers had their first public showing at Sunnyside High School a few days ago. Now they are taking their stories to elders and others throughout the reservation. "It makes me feel proud," Johnson said. The idea was for students to look at their community and their connection to their heritage, said Ronald Felix, administrative assistant for the San Xavier Education Department. "They showed a lot of commitment to the program," he added. The seven-month project was years in the making with support from various organizations, Felix said. It finally came to fruition when the San Xavier District Council set aside funding for it, which was complemented with grants and private money. In all, Felix said the department received about $80,000 for cameras, recording equipment, computer software, student stipends and salaries for two instructors. The cost also includes a planned art sculpture that will represent the students' stories, Felix said. The art piece, which will be done between June and September, will become a fixture in the San Xavier Plaza, said Felix, who assisted instructors Josh Schachter and Kimi Eisele whenever they needed a hand. Schachter ran the photography component, while Eisele helped students with writing and interviewing techniques. "A lot of it was learning about their own identity, learning about their heritage, and learning to live in two worlds," Schachter said of the students' work. As for him, the freelance photographer said: "Just learning to build trust in a community as an outsider was an important lesson for me." "Looking Forward, Looking Back" Digital stories explore Tohono O'odham youths' culture. To get to the stories, visit www.bridgesweb.org, click on "communities" and then "San Xavier, USA." Contact reporter Lourdes Medrano at 573-4347 or lmedrano at azstarnet.com. All content copyright © 1999-2006 AzStarNet, Arizona Daily Star and its wire services and suppliers and may not be republished without permission. All rights reserved. Any copying, redistribution, or retransmission of any of the contents of this service without the expressed written consent of Arizona Daily Star or AzStarNet is prohibited. From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Mon May 1 04:59:45 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2006 21:59:45 -0700 Subject: Dying Language Animals & Extinction Message-ID: ? Last Words Can dying languages, like animals, be saved from extinction? That's the difficult question being debated in Maine, where the Penobscot Nation is waging a determined fight to keep its melodic language alive. By Stacey Chase | April 30, 2006 BEFORE BEGINNING TODAY'S lesson, teacher Roger Paul, a dark ponytail hanging straight down his back, pulls a blond sweet-grass rope, braided like a little girl's pigtail, out of his leather medicine bag and sets one end on fire. Gathered in a lopsided circle are two boys and seven girls in the after-school language program at the Penobscot Nation Boys & Girls Club on Indian Island, Maine. Paul instructs the pupils to cleanse themselves in the smoke, and they dutifully pass the smoldering, silky braid from one to the next, waving it over their bodies like a metal-detector wand. Afterward, they join hands and say a prayer using words that sound both unfamiliar and musical. Smudging ceremonies like this one open every session of "Penobscot Days," a new three-times-a-week initiative that teaches children to speak Penobscot by pairing instruction with traditional Native American activities like drumming, basket making, and snowsnake, a game in which players hurtle a carved stick or "snake" down an iced snow path. "Whenever we speak the language the ancestors taught us," Paul says, "it pleases them, and they come and listen in and guide us." The Penobscot Nation's struggle to reclaim its melodic, esoteric language - considered severely endangered by linguists - sparked public debate in the past several months after the tribe's state representative, Michael Sockalexis, introduced a bill in the Maine Legislature calling for taxpayer money to be used "to develop a program to maintain and preserve the Penobscot language." The drumbeat to save Penobscot that began in the 1980s has been growing louder from inside this insular community for five years now with the striking realization that the tribal elders were rapidly dying and, with them, the language. Of all the New England states, Maine is the only one to have any Native American languages from tribes recognized by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs that are still "living" - in other words, being spoken fluently. Moreover, the languages of all of Maine's recognized tribes are living. The Penobscot, Passamaquoddy, and Maliseet languages - from Maine's Penobscot Nation, Passamaquoddy Tribe, and Houlton Band of Maliseets, respectively - are mutually intelligible. The Micmac language, from the Aroostook Band of Micmacs, is discrete. While all these languages are in jeopardy, the threat to Penobscot, which has the fewest speakers, is especially dire. According to the best estimates, there are as few as five fluent Penobscot speakers among the nation's 2,261 members, about 60 percent of whom live in Maine. Fluency, though, is tough to measure. Some Penobscots, like Sockalexis, learned their native tongue as children but mostly forgot it; some can comprehend it but feel uncomfortable speaking the undulating, polysyllabic words themselves; some speak a grammatically tortured version of the language; and some know only a few words and phrases. "Now I've lost half of the Penobscot - I've been away so long," laments 94-year-old Valentine Ranco of Wells, Maine, the state's oldest Penobscot and a fluent speaker raised on the Indian Island reservation. "Fifty years! No one to speak to!" Ranco may feel alone, but in one respect she's not: Languages are disappearing around the world. "We are in a huge wave of linguistic extinction," says Norvin Richards, an MIT linguistics professor and an expert on obscure languages like Massachusetts's Wampanoag and Australian Aborigines' Lardil. "Something like 50 to 90 percent of the world's 6,000 languages are expected to die in the next century." We fight for animals, for the bald eagle and the giant panda and the blue whale, with such fervor, but should we fight to keep a dying language alive - even if few will ever use or hear it? Maine's language preservation bill, which was awaiting action by the Legislature's appropriations committee this month, is nothing short of a Penobscot rallying cry that forces everyone to ask: What's in a language? THE PENOBSCOT LANGUAGE IS PERCEIVED BYAN ENGLISH speaker, perhaps romantically, as a stream of unrecognizable rhythms that rise and fall effortlessly like chanting or singing. The stressed syllables are generally pronounced higher, not louder as in English, with the highest pitch typically falling three syllables from the end of polysyllabic words. In addition, Penobscot statements often rise at the end of a phrase - similar to the pronunciation of a question in English - and therefore produce a kind of lilt. "When I hear my native language, it puts me at ease. And it brings me back to a peaceful place where I feel like I'm part of something important," says Roger Paul, 44, a Passamaquoddy who speaks both Passamaquoddy-Maliseet and Penobscot. "I feel, I guess . . . like a small child who is just held and embraced." Though it is characterized by polysyllabic words, Penobscot can be brilliantly concise. An entire sentence in English can often be expressed by a single Penobscot word. For example, ? we means "You are a very smart, intelligent, dependable person." "It gets you all at once. It all comes in one rhythmic unit," says Conor Quinn, a doctoral candidate in linguistics at Harvard University and a Maine native who has worked closely with the Penobscots. "That's the poetry of the language." Linguists consider a language to be living if there are people who canconverse fluently in it. But even dead languages - sometimes optimistically called dormant - can be resurrected, though not without recordings, a body of texts, or both. Modern Hebrew is one such success story. Richards and other linguists identify the region's federally recognized tribes with dead languages as the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head/ Aquinnah in Massachusetts, the Narragansett Indian Tribe in Rhode Island, and the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes in Connecticut. (There are no federally recognized tribes in New Hampshire or Vermont.) All are taking measures to bring their ancestral languages back to life. In 1990, Congress passed the Native American Languages Act to encourage the preservation of languages across the country, acknowledging that earlier federal policies helped exterminate some of them. Maine's Native American tribes speak closely related languages that derive from the Eastern Algonquian family of languages once widely used from Maine to Virginia. But a common misperception is that tribal languages are relics linguistically frozen in the 1600s, when they were first heard by missionaries and explorers, and they are missing words critical to communicating in today's culture. "It's entirely possible to talk about the stock market or auto racing in Penobscot if you want to," MIT's Richards says. "There's nothing inherent in the language that makes it unsuitable for modern use." Language, or what some linguists like to call "nonmaterial culture," is an artifact, like a sweet-grass basket or birch-bark canoe. "There's more to a language than simple communication," says former Penobscot chief Barry Dana, 47, of Solon, Maine. "With the Penobscot language - or Passamaquoddy, Abenaki, Maliseet, Navajo, Inuit, whatever - trapped in that language is the complete understanding of your culture." DRIVE ABOUT FIVE HOURS NORTH FROM BOSTON TO OLD TOWN, Maine, take the short causeway over the Penobscot River, and you'll come to the 315- acre island that, together with 146 other islands, make up the Indian Island Reservation. Roughly 30 percent of the state's Penobscots live on Indian Island itself. The Penobscots are wary of visitors from what members often refer to as the "dominant culture" - outsiders who sometimes view residents as history exhibits or mere curiosities. "We're sort of looked at in a fishbowl," says Linda McLeod, a Maliseet and principal of the Indian Island School, a public kindergarten through Grade 8 school on the reservation. "People come on the island wanting to see the `Indian children,'" she says. "They come on the island asking, `Where are the tepees?'" Penobscot was the first language for nearly every Indian Island resident into the 1940s. But with World War II, many Penobscots abandoned their language for the employment and educational opportunities that came with speaking English. At the same time, Penobscots say, the Catholic nuns who ran the island's school would punish children who uttered their native tongue. Over time, the language started disappearing from everyday use. Barry Dana's cousin Carol Dana, a fluent Penobscot speaker, learned the language from her grandmother and great-aunt growing up on Indian Island but says she also inherited feelings of inferiority about the Penobscot tongue that were imposed by non-Indians. "We've all been kind of educated out of who we are and pitted against who we are," says Dana, 53, who left the reservation but returned. The tribe took the first step toward stemming the precipitous language loss in 1985, when Barry Dana began teaching Penobscot as part of a native studies program introduced at the Indian Island School. Today, the school's 111 pupils get regular classroom instruction for two periods a week in Penobscot and occasionally Maine's other tribal languages. The emphasis is on speaking; indeed, as with numerous other indigenous languages with oral traditions, the vast majority of Penobscot speakers cannot read or write their own language. "That's the way everybody learns their language - speak it first, then you learn the written," says McLeod. (At the mainland public high schools where most of these students go after the eighth grade, second-language choices are French and Spanish.) Meanwhile, tribal leaders and ordinary Penobscots recognized that language studies also needed to happen outside the school. The Penobscot Language Revitalization Project was born, and in the last five years, the Penobscot Nation has received $308,605 from the federal Administration for Native Americans - and kicked in $90,411 in both cash and in-kind tribal support - to plan and implement a series of community initiatives. Among them are the after-school program at the Boys & Girls Club, storytelling at the reservation's day-care center, a master-apprentice language tutorial for young adults, the creation of the penobscotnation.org website, and weekend and weeklong camps where families are encouraged to speak nothing but Penobscot. Carol Dana, the tribe's so-called language master, is mentor to two apprentices: Gabe Paul, 20 (who is not related to Roger Paul), and Maulian Dana, 21 (who is the daughter of Barry Dana), both students at the University of Maine in nearby Orono. They and the younger children represent the tribe's best hope for reintroducing broadbased fluency in two or three generations. "There used to be a kind of shame in using the language. Now young people are taking ownership and have a sense of pride about the language," says Bonnie Newsom, director of the tribe's cultural and historic preservation department. "That has been very healing for us as a community." BACK AT THE BOYS & GIRLS CLUB, 11-YEAR-OLD Maya Attean is issuing commands to Roger Paul, the teacher, to "stand" (s?hken), "sit" (?pin), and "turn around" (?). As long as she uses the Penobscot word for the action, Paul plays along, popping in and out of his seat and spinning like the marionette of a mad puppeteer. Maya and her classmates giggle themselves silly. Later, she and the other girls form a circle around a big drum on the basketball court and pound it while chanting "The Pine Needle Dance" of the Passamaquoddys and other songs. Maya's father is Penobscot; her mother is Passamaquoddy. The couple live on the reservation and are raising their daughter in a multilingual household, encouraging her to use second and third languages by labeling household items - the chair, the cupboard, the computer - with the appropriate Indian words. And why is a sixth- grader so interested? "So the Penobscot language will stay alive," Maya says brightly, "and I can teach it to my kids when I get older, and they can teach it to their kids." Instilling the language in the younger generation was exactly what Michael Sockalexis had in mind when he proposed his bill. In December, the tribe's state representative introduced Legislative Document 1807, "An Act to Establish the Penobscot Language Preservation Fund in the Department of Education," partly due to the sadness he feels over his own loss of conversational Penobscot. He wants things to be different for his six grandchildren, ages 2 to 12. "Speaking as a young kid, learning from my grandfather and my great- grandfather, I have that in my head now," says the 58-year-old Sockalexis. "To have that gone - call it like a song: It's like I know the music, but ... I've forgotten the lyrics." The bill, which the Maine House passed on March 16 and was before the Legislature's joint appropriations committee earlier this month, would deposit $300,000 into a newly created fund at the state Department of Education to be managed by the tribe's cultural and historic preservation department. Tribal leaders hope that the money would attract additional aid from groups like the National Endowment for the Humanities. (Sockalexis was unable to vote on his own bill, as he and the representative of the Passamaquoddy Tribe are considered intergovernmental liaisons with no voting rights in the Legislature.) But passage was far from guaranteed. The bill is vying against dozens of requests for new funding, and the appropriations panel, which doles out the state's limited resources, could opt to table it or send it on to the Senate for a decisive vote. "Heritage counts. And the tribe has been trying to teach its young people about their heritage," says state Representative Richard Blanchard, a Democrat from Old Town, Maine, who has co-sponsored the bill and whose legislative district encompasses Indian Island. "How advantageous the language is going to be to them, I don't know." When asked why Native American children - unlike those of, say, Polish descent - should be encouraged to learn the language of their ancestors, linguists tend to bristle. "Even if we don't teach Johnny Polish, Polish still exists," says Richards, the MIT linguist. "If we decide not to save these languages, there'll be no speakers of them at all." MORE THAN IDLE CHATTER, LANGUAGE IS INTRINSIC to our identity. Even if people don't look the same or share the same customs, a common tongue binds them together. And the very words used not only reveal the speaker's feelings and ideas but shape them. "When I hear English, I feel competitiveness," Roger Paul says. "Once I switch that worldview and start thinking in Indian, it's difficult to think back in English again." Language preservationists argue it's important to keep languages, like animals, from extinction for the sake of diversity. "Every language provides us with more knowledge about human thinking and behavior ... and a unique perspective. So, when we lose a language, we lose a lot of knowledge," says Pauleena MacDougall, associate director of the Maine Folklife Center housed at the University of Maine in Orono. "It's almost like losing an animal. So what? Why do we care about it? Because it's something missing that should be here." The loss of Penobscot has happened with such swiftness that it was almost gone before anyone knew it needed rescuing. The Penobscot Nation's eldest member, Valentine Ranco, was born in 1912 on Orson Island, next to Indian Island, and did not know how to speak English when her grandfather sent her off to the Indian Island School. Married in 1929, Ranco and her now deceased husband, Leslie, also Penobscot, left the reservation in 1942 when he took a job in a military parts factory in Springfield, Massachusetts. A decade later, they opened the Indian Moccasin Shop in Wells, Maine, now run by their daughter, June Lane. During the war years, "I stopped speaking [Penobscot] because I didn't have anyone to speak to," Ranco recalls. "Everybody stopped. Everybody!" While the Rancos, like other Native Americans, had to assimilate into the mainstream culture, they did so as if looking over their shoulders at the ghosts of old Penobscots whispering secrets in their native tongue. "Within our language, we can maintain who we are and remember our place in what part of the environment we belong in," Paul says after the smudging ceremony. "That's why I feel ... it's so important to maintain the language - because we'll be teaching the kids to look at the world through the eyes of our ancestors." (Speaking Penobscot) Before the 1930s, there was no offi cial Penobscot alphabet. But in that decade, the late pathologist and avocational linguist Frank T. Seibert Jr. used the International Phonetic Alphabet - a standardized notation system that represents the distinctive sounds used in all spoken language - to devise one. Unlike the 26-letter alphabet used in English, the Penobscot alphabet has 25 letters, counting double consonants and including special characters like the alpha and schwa. The following line comes from "The Wolverine," a Penobscot tale transcribed in the early 20th century by the late anthropologist Frank G. Speck and used by permission of the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. It was translated into the Penobscot alphabet by Pauleena MacDougall, Seibert's research assistant in the 1980s and now the associate director of the Maine Folklife Center. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: from_provider_globe.gif Type: image/gif Size: 1986 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: word.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 1228 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: word2.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 1030 bytes Desc: not available URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Mon May 1 05:10:15 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2006 22:10:15 -0700 Subject: Native Student Success Message-ID: Pathways for Indian Student Success American Indian students are the least likely of all college-goers to earn a degree, and they?re more likely than members of any other racial group to drop out, according to federal data. Research to date hasn?t been able to explain all of the hows and whys behind this phenomenon, but many student affairs professionals say that it?s time to tackle the problem. Leaders of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, an organization that represents about 11,000 student affairs officials in higher education, have taken note of the complex issues that face American Indian students. While the organization has been holding its annual convention for 88 years, this year, for the first time ever, addressing the recruitment and retention of American Indian students has played a substantial role at the meeting, due largely to the concerns of administrators who serve such students ? both at mainstream institutions and at tribal colleges and universities. ?We wanted to make sure that there was always a place for indigenous peoples in NASPA,? said Gwendolyn Jordan Dungy, executive director of the organization, at a special day-long ?Summit on Serving Native American Students: From Discussion to Action,? which was held on Sunday. The forum highlighted the formation of a new NASPA-affiliated group called the Indigenous Peoples Knowledge Community, which is intended as a network for administrators nationwide to share best practices for serving Indian students. A new listserv is also in the works. ?We are past the time for talking,? said Henrietta Mann, a professor emeritus in Native American Studies at Montana State University at Bozeman, during her keynote address. ?We need to establish effective action plans to maintain our historical cultures and to shape the future for Native American students in higher education.? George S. McClellan, vice president for student development at Dickinson State University, in North Dakota, said that Indian students tend not to use student services, and that those services that they do use tend to be focused on financial aid. His findings came as a result of a recent study by researchers at the University of Arizona, which has one of the largest Indian populations of all mainstream institutions in the country. He said that colleges need to incorporate incentives for getting students to seek service. At the University of North Dakota, for example, a student must visit the Native student affairs at least two times a year in order to be eligible for tuition assistance programs ?Both Native and non-Native professionals and professional associations must play a role in bringing about the needed changes in higher education with respect to better serving Native American students,? said McClellan. ?A critical component in achieving the goal of increasing rates of participation and persistence is to recognize and act on the knowledge that building student success begins long before Native students arrive on campus.? Based on his own observations, he said that having American Indian faculty members and staff tends to help Indian students feel more connected to their campuses. Shelly Lowe, a student service provider at the University of Arizona, said that higher education professionals need to become aware of and make use of indigenous theories, models and practices in seeking to support Native American students, staff and faculty. She said that a book she co-authored with McClellan and Mary Jo Tippeconic Fox, Serving Native American Students, which is available online, provides several examples that have been helpful for some Indian students. ?Footnotes indicating that findings on Native Americans are not statistically significant and so are omitted from the research are too often the only reference to Native Americans in much of the literature in higher education,? added Lowe. She suggested that although qualitative research is often more time-consuming than quantitative research that this methodology could be helpful. Ruth Harper, a professor of counseling and students affairs at South Dakota State University, said that qualitative research is one of the best ways to understand Indian students, even though one cannot make generalizations from it. She recently used the method to study several Lakota male students who attend Sinte Gleska University, in South Dakota. For these men, she said integrating aspects of American Indian culture with counseling was important to them, as were ways to address concrete issues, including travel, costs and child care. One man told Harper that the Lakota language courses he has taken at the university ?mean my life.? Many administrators at the summit said they weren?t under the impression that forming an action-focused committee would be a magic bullet. With 562 federally recognized tribes and many state- recognized tribes ? all with different cultures and languages, Indian students are one of the most heterogeneous groups around. Further complicating matters is that fact that some students are deeply concerned about making Native culture and language an integral part of their education, while others don?t hold this as a priority. Still, most said that focusing on culture is crucial ? not only in helping Native students succeed, but also in fostering generations of students who are connected to their unique histories. Along these lines, Mann said that indigenous people have a right to their own identities, languages and cultures, but that mainstream institutions of higher education often have not provided students with avenues to achieve these rights. ?Language is the lifeblood of our cultures and is rooted in the Earth,? she said. She added that no matter where an Indian student attends college, administrators have the obligation to honor students? cultural heritage and spirituality, especially if they are expressing the desire for this kind of support. She said that her own institution has worked diligently to strengthen its Native American Studies program, which currently offers a minor and master of arts degree. ?Cultural pluralism is a gift,? added Mann. ?But too often we are left out of programs on campuses. We need to change that.? Several administrators who have collaborated with tribal colleges, said that such institutions are able to infuse language and culture into a student?s learning experience in ways that mainstream institutions often do not. Research indicates that tribal colleges have improved participation and persistence rates of American Indian students by creating culturally relevant learning environments. Still, because many tribal colleges are two-year institutions, there was a general concern that the institutions cannot meet the full educational needs of many Indian students. Student affairs professionals at the summit said that mainstream institutions must find ways to collaborate with tribal college officials to learn what works for their students, and to determine what actions can be taken on campuses nationwide to improve the experience for Indian transfer students. ? Rob Capriccioso The original story and user comments can be viewed online at http:// insidehighered.com/news/2006/03/15/indians. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From HeitshuS at U.LIBRARY.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 1 16:16:20 2006 From: HeitshuS at U.LIBRARY.ARIZONA.EDU (Heitshu, Sara) Date: Mon, 1 May 2006 09:16:20 -0700 Subject: Native Student Success Message-ID: The University of Arizona Library has Serving Native American Students as may many other libraries. You need to look under the journal title New Directions for Student Services to find it in our online catalog. It is volume 2005, issue 109. Sara Sara C. Heitshu Librarian, Social Science Team American Indian Studies, Linguistics, Anthropology heitshus at u.library.arizona.edu 520-307-2781 fax 520-621-9733 University of Arizona Main Library PO Box 210055 Tucson, AZ 85721-0055 -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Andre Cramblit Sent: Sunday, April 30, 2006 10:10 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: [ILAT] Native Student Success Pathways for Indian Student Success American Indian students are the least likely of all college-goers to earn a degree, and they're more likely than members of any other racial group to drop out, according to federal data. Research to date hasn't been able to explain all of the hows and whys behind this phenomenon, but many student affairs professionals say that it's time to tackle the problem. Leaders of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, an organization that represents about 11,000 student affairs officials in higher education, have taken note of the complex issues that face American Indian students. While the organization has been holding its annual convention for 88 years, this year, for the first time ever, addressing the recruitment and retention of American Indian students has played a substantial role at the meeting, due largely to the concerns of administrators who serve such students - both at mainstream institutions and at tribal colleges and universities. "We wanted to make sure that there was always a place for indigenous peoples in NASPA," said Gwendolyn Jordan Dungy, executive director of the organization, at a special day-long "Summit on Serving Native American Students: From Discussion to Action," which was held on Sunday. The forum highlighted the formation of a new NASPA-affiliated group called the Indigenous Peoples Knowledge Community, which is intended as a network for administrators nationwide to share best practices for serving Indian students. A new listserv is also in the works. "We are past the time for talking," said Henrietta Mann, a professor emeritus in Native American Studies at Montana State University at Bozeman, during her keynote address. "We need to establish effective action plans to maintain our historical cultures and to shape the future for Native American students in higher education." George S. McClellan, vice president for student development at Dickinson State University, in North Dakota, said that Indian students tend not to use student services, and that those services that they do use tend to be focused on financial aid. His findings came as a result of a recent study by researchers at the University of Arizona, which has one of the largest Indian populations of all mainstream institutions in the country. He said that colleges need to incorporate incentives for getting students to seek service. At the University of North Dakota, for example, a student must visit the Native student affairs at least two times a year in order to be eligible for tuition assistance programs "Both Native and non-Native professionals and professional associations must play a role in bringing about the needed changes in higher education with respect to better serving Native American students," said McClellan. "A critical component in achieving the goal of increasing rates of participation and persistence is to recognize and act on the knowledge that building student success begins long before Native students arrive on campus." Based on his own observations, he said that having American Indian faculty members and staff tends to help Indian students feel more connected to their campuses. Shelly Lowe, a student service provider at the University of Arizona, said that higher education professionals need to become aware of and make use of indigenous theories, models and practices in seeking to support Native American students, staff and faculty. She said that a book she co-authored with McClellan and Mary Jo Tippeconic Fox, Serving Native American Students, which is available online , provides several examples that have been helpful for some Indian students. "Footnotes indicating that findings on Native Americans are not statistically significant and so are omitted from the research are too often the only reference to Native Americans in much of the literature in higher education," added Lowe. She suggested that although qualitative research is often more time-consuming than quantitative research that this methodology could be helpful. Ruth Harper, a professor of counseling and students affairs at South Dakota State University, said that qualitative research is one of the best ways to understand Indian students, even though one cannot make generalizations from it. She recently used the method to study several Lakota male students who attend Sinte Gleska University, in South Dakota. For these men, she said integrating aspects of American Indian culture with counseling was important to them, as were ways to address concrete issues, including travel, costs and child care. One man told Harper that the Lakota language courses he has taken at the university "mean my life." Many administrators at the summit said they weren't under the impression that forming an action-focused committee would be a magic bullet. With 562 federally recognized tribes and many state-recognized tribes - all with different cultures and languages, Indian students are one of the most heterogeneous groups around. Further complicating matters is that fact that some students are deeply concerned about making Native culture and language an integral part of their education, while others don't hold this as a priority. Still, most said that focusing on culture is crucial - not only in helping Native students succeed, but also in fostering generations of students who are connected to their unique histories. Along these lines, Mann said that indigenous people have a right to their own identities, languages and cultures, but that mainstream institutions of higher education often have not provided students with avenues to achieve these rights. "Language is the lifeblood of our cultures and is rooted in the Earth," she said. She added that no matter where an Indian student attends college, administrators have the obligation to honor students' cultural heritage and spirituality, especially if they are expressing the desire for this kind of support. She said that her own institution has worked diligently to strengthen its Native American Studies program, which currently offers a minor and master of arts degree. "Cultural pluralism is a gift," added Mann. "But too often we are left out of programs on campuses. We need to change that." Several administrators who have collaborated with tribal colleges, said that such institutions are able to infuse language and culture into a student's learning experience in ways that mainstream institutions often do not. Research indicates that tribal colleges have improved participation and persistence rates of American Indian students by creating culturally relevant learning environments. Still, because many tribal colleges are two-year institutions, there was a general concern that the institutions cannot meet the full educational needs of many Indian students. Student affairs professionals at the summit said that mainstream institutions must find ways to collaborate with tribal college officials to learn what works for their students, and to determine what actions can be taken on campuses nationwide to improve the experience for Indian transfer students. - Rob Capriccioso The original story and user comments can be viewed online at http://insidehighered.com/news/2006/03/15/indians . -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Tue May 2 22:46:15 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Tue, 2 May 2006 15:46:15 -0700 Subject: Saving Languages Message-ID: The Daily Californian Meet the Prof A Linguist?s Quest to Save a Dying Language BY Andrea Lu Contribution Writer Wednesday, April 26, 2006 Click to Enlarge photo/eli weissman Andrew Garrett studies the Yurok language of one Native American group. He hopes to help in preserving the rich language and its culture. There are currently 6,000 languages around the world. Fast forward 100 years, and there will only be 600 left-the rest will have disappeared and become dead languages. UC Berkeley linguistics professor Andrew Garrett is documenting the Native American Yurok language in hopes of chronicling their language for the future before it too vanishes, as there are only a half dozen elderly Yurok speakers remaining. "My purpose is to fill out our knowledge of that language, and it involves a lot of different things-recording different kinds of speech, vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, and trying to integrate that information with material that earlier linguists have collected," Garrett said. Garrett, a historical linguist who studies how languages evolve over time, turned his focus from Europe and the Middle East to study Californian Native languages in 2000. Since then, he has been working primarily on understanding and analyzing the Yurok language. The Yurok is the largest Native American tribe in California with currently 5,000 enrolled tribal members. Also known as the Klamath River Indians, the tribe resides north of the city Eureka. Garrett's interest in the Yurok language began "by chance, really" when he moved to California and agreed to work with a colleague who wanted to research it. "For me personally, it turned out to be a fortunate chance because for one thing the structure of that particular language is a little unusual among languages of California and Native American languages in general," he said. "While I was working on Yurok language I found aspects that cast interesting light on problems of Indo-European languages and vice versa." It was also the first language that Berkeley anthropology department founder Alfred Kroeber researched intensively starting from 1901. Kroeber left behind an archive stuffed with field notes and recordings on different aspects of the Yurok culture such as myths, ceremonies and narratives, yet most of the material was never published. "What I find interesting about it is the richness of the archive and the challenge of figuring out how the language as it was documented in 1905 is similar to or different from the language we can hear now," Garrett said. "The project is trying to pull all of that into one big picture of a single language." The database has allowed him to gain valuable insight into a language that now only few people can speak. One of his goals is to map the differences in people's speech by location to find patterns. "My work on the historical side really has focused on working with the archival material on Yurok," Garrett said. "One of the projects I've been doing lately is going through the archives because right now there are very few speakers, but in the old days there were thousands of speakers and apparently a lot of diversity in areas where the language was spoken." Garrett's ultimate goal is to establish in the linguistic archives the documentary material on Yurok that will be available to scholars and native people. Garrett also hopes to produce a comprehensive grammar reference, as well as a book featuring stories, myths and narratives in Yurok. His experience working with the Yurok has been enjoyable, says Garrett, and community members have been receptive to his research. However, working with the Yurok has not been completely stress free as the reality of the extremely small minority who can speak Yurok and their old age has been a depressing reminder for Garrett. "It is frustrating to work with a language where all the speakers are very elderly," Garrett said. "During the time I have been working on the language one very good speaker has died, and another came close to death but now is fine...it can be discouraging and a little scary. Also on a practical level, they're all sort of deaf so that's been an obstacle." The Yurok case represents the growing threat of languages around the world dying off at an incredibly rapid rate. "The field has collectively recognized in the last 10, 20 years what has been true for a long time but came into everyone's consciousness recently-that a huge amount of languages in the world are going to be dead in 50 to 100 years," Garrett said. According to Garrett, the cause of the language extinction resides primarily on social factors such as colonialism, imperialism, economic greed and oppression of native peoples. Also, the globalization of certain languages such as English and Spanish have contributed to the demise of many indigenous languages. "The root of the problem is really social because what society is doing to small communities and small groups of people has an effect on those people and thus has an effect on their languages," Garrett said. One of the causes that has produced a direct negative effect on indigenous languages in the United States is President George Bush's No Child Left Behind Act that has caused schools to adjust their curriculum to the English-based test. "The result of the intense orientation toward those English tests is that some schools that have or are near Native American communities are tending to drop native language programs because they feel they don't have the time or resources," Garrett said. While some linguists feel that they should actively revitalize threatened languages within respective communities, Garrett feels that the role of the linguists should be of a careful promoter, and should not intervene at will. "Personally, I don't see it as the white linguist's role to be an activist inside in the tribe," he said. "If (the tribes) want to use the language more, then we try to help them. For example, last year when I was on sabbatical I did a lot of workshops for the Yurok language program on the grammatical aspects of the language. But I don't think it would be appropriate for us to push it ourselves." A common misconception of linguists is that they can speak many different languages. Garrett's response to this stereotype is that linguists study languages, not speak them, and he himself is still far from becoming fluent in Yurok. "I'm at that foreign language learning stage where, when someone's talking, you recognize as it goes along that you know each of the pieces but they're going too fast for you to put it all together and you want to say 'No, no, stop, wait! Talk four times as slow!'" Garrett said. Contact Andrea Lu at science at dailycal.org. From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 3 16:53:57 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Wed, 3 May 2006 09:53:57 -0700 Subject: anthropology with no apology In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Thanks Jan For your reply,sure you can use it I have a few other stories I could share with you too. One little uncomfortable event could always have been just an archaeologists bad day. But I have several others which really make me wonder sometimes. A British-born archaeologist who freely ads to his own private collection To us Wendat/Wyandots he gives the mystic answer- ?because the spirits give pipes? to him. And another where Park Rangers ask children to actually police their parents for studying a pot sherd. The analytical dominant language of English creates thought patterns that are very different than our indigenous languages. ?TAKING? patterns ...Collecting and filing of data, charting and graphing even of spirituality to seek to Comprehend (based on its own limited presumptions) and it seeks to unravel, and control that which has always been utter mystery. When a pot sherd is taken by an archaeologist it is a sacred event...(because it is ?information?) when an artist (even a native artist) picks one up,to feel the past ,its a Federal violation of the Law. But foreign thought processes alter whatever is touched or taken...without possibly realizing it. Latin based language-thought-systems have created a yearning to define all that exists. It is a conquerors tongue...and still conquering, and will not stop its quest. Knowledge becomes supreme diety, (Gnosis) Information is salvation... Fortunately,of course, it can also be used (as I?m doing here ) to question even itself. And it can create technologies which are tools we can use. But I?m concerned about its own subtle prostlytizing effects And its unspoken claim to total objectivity And.... I?ve noticed that converts seem to be increasing. Richard Zane Smith On 4/30/06 12:57 PM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > Richard, thanks for your story, I'd like to share it with my applied > anthropology class and race and ethnic relations class ....with your > permission of course. More of your perspective needs to be heard and this > story is a great way to share your perspective. I agree with you, and I can > certainly talk to some of your points, however since this is a language and > technology discussion group, I'm respectfully not going to. Let me however > apologize for those who aren't willing to even have dialogue and share this > quote by John Kenneth Galbraith Oct 15 1908-Apr 29th 2006. "The modern > conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; > that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness." and > "People of privilege will always risk their complete destruction rather than > surrender any material part of their advantage." > > Jan Tucker > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From jtucker at STARBAND.NET Wed May 3 16:12:19 2006 From: jtucker at STARBAND.NET (Jan Tucker) Date: Wed, 3 May 2006 12:12:19 -0400 Subject: anthropology with no apology In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Re: [ILAT] anthropology with no apologyRichard, Thank you for your insights and perspective again, I'd love to hear your other stories... I have one from a recent conference that I attended regarding a reference to ceremonial items as "trash". The conference was about Nature Culture and Religion, put on by a new organization with that focus. I listened to a speaker share a paper about the ecotourism of local a cenote by the indigenous people of the area and then about their own use of sacred caves for their spiritual ceremonies ( not used for ecotourism, private in other words). During the talk the indigenous people were critiqued for not picking up "trash" away from the trail to the cenote, but doing so along the "tourist" or public trail to the location. Then there were pictures of sacred offerings in plastic containers, and candles in caves which were then referred to "ceremonial trash". Indigenous people were then said to be damaging the ecology of their own sacred caves by leaving this "ceremonial trash". It was very unsettling and disturbing to hear "trash" and "ceremonial" offerings together and worries me about setting some kind of precedent for the taking of ceremonial locations to "preserve" them from indigenous "ceremonial desecration" . So what the archeologists have done in your examples is now being continued with words and talks like this one by those writing about ecological issues in indigenous environments and under their control. Jan -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Wednesday, May 03, 2006 12:54 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] anthropology with no apology Thanks Jan For your reply,sure you can use it I have a few other stories I could share with you too. One little uncomfortable event could always have been just an archaeologists bad day. But I have several others which really make me wonder sometimes. A British-born archaeologist who freely ads to his own private collection To us Wendat/Wyandots he gives the mystic answer- ?because the spirits give pipes? to him. And another where Park Rangers ask children to actually police their parents for studying a pot sherd. The analytical dominant language of English creates thought patterns that are very different than our indigenous languages. ?TAKING? patterns ...Collecting and filing of data, charting and graphing even of spirituality to seek to Comprehend (based on its own limited presumptions) and it seeks to unravel, and control that which has always been utter mystery. When a pot sherd is taken by an archaeologist it is a sacred event...(because it is ?information?) when an artist (even a native artist) picks one up,to feel the past ,its a Federal violation of the Law. But foreign thought processes alter whatever is touched or taken...without possibly realizing it. Latin based language-thought-systems have created a yearning to define all that exists. It is a conquerors tongue...and still conquering, and will not stop its quest. Knowledge becomes supreme diety, (Gnosis) Information is salvation... Fortunately,of course, it can also be used (as I?m doing here ) to question even itself. And it can create technologies which are tools we can use. But I?m concerned about its own subtle prostlytizing effects And its unspoken claim to total objectivity And.... I?ve noticed that converts seem to be increasing. Richard Zane Smith On 4/30/06 12:57 PM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: Richard, thanks for your story, I'd like to share it with my applied anthropology class and race and ethnic relations class ....with your permission of course. More of your perspective needs to be heard and this story is a great way to share your perspective. I agree with you, and I can certainly talk to some of your points, however since this is a language and technology discussion group, I'm respectfully not going to. Let me however apologize for those who aren't willing to even have dialogue and share this quote by John Kenneth Galbraith Oct 15 1908-Apr 29th 2006. "The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness." and "People of privilege will always risk their complete destruction rather than surrender any material part of their advantage." Jan Tucker -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Thu May 4 20:19:31 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 13:19:31 -0700 Subject: No subject Message-ID: I am looking for some training for information on best practices for teaching two levels of Language in the same classroom. Do you have any ideas? thanks APC -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Thu May 4 23:09:29 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 16:09:29 -0700 Subject: FYI Message-ID: http://iallt.org/ Established in 1965, IALLT is a professional organization whose members provide leadership in the development, integration, evaluation and management of instructional technology for the teaching and learning of language, literature and culture. Its strong sense of community promotes the sharing of expertise in a variety of educational contexts. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 4 23:10:02 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 16:10:02 -0700 Subject: HLT at UofA Message-ID: We are very pleased to announce the start of a new Master of Science program in Human Language Technology (HLT) at the University of Arizona. This program is currently admitting students for fall 2006. SPECIAL DEADLINE FOR FALL 2006: The deadline for admissions is *May 20, 2006*. Due to restrictions on visas, for the fall 2006 term we can only consider US citizens, US residents, and foreign students already in the US. (Regular deadlines apply for the 2007-2008 school year -- see the website below for details. International applications will be considered for the 2007-2008 year) Details of the program can be found at http://hlt.arizona.edu Application materials and information about the Linguistics Department can be found at http://linguistics.arizona.edu Questions can be directed to Sandiway Fong (sandiway at email.arizona.edu) or Andrew Carnie (carnie at email.arizona.edu) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ / \ Andrew Carnie, Ph.D. / \ Assoc. Professor of Linguistics / \ Department of Linguistics / \ Douglass 200E, University of Arizona / \ Tucson, AZ 85721 / \ Tel: (520) 621 2802 Cell: (520) 971 1166 http://linguistics.arizona.edu/~carnie From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 4 23:46:01 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 16:46:01 -0700 Subject: UA launches Web site geared toward American Indians (fwd) Message-ID: UA launches Web site geared toward American Indians Go to the full story: http://wildcat.arizona.edu/home/ Date Posted: Wed, 26 Apr 2006 http://www.arizonanativenet.com/news/newsInfo.cfm?news_item=37 Watching speeches from tribal leaders, connecting through video conferences and accessing research on American Indians is now made possible by a new UA sponsored Web site. ArizonaNativeNet was launched last week and has the goal of connecting the research and resources available at various academic programs at the UA with American Indian nations throughout Arizona and the U.S., said Robert Williams Jr., a UA law professor and director of the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program at the James E. Rogers College of Law. The site is also dedicated to nation building and the higher educational needs of American Indians. The Web site, arizonanativenet.com, contains breaking news, simulcasts and videotaped lectures, workshops and conferences, up-to-date research, and resources on American Indian governance, law, health, education, language and culture. The site is targeted to tribal leaders, policymakers, students, educators and the general public, Williams said. "It can serve all audiences, from university students to high school teachers to tribal leaders," he said. It took more than a year to make the Web site, which was designed by a team of distinguished faculty, academic professionals, and information and technology specialists. It was made possible in part by a congressional grant. The creation and launch of the site has been a universitywide effort, Williams said. Two highly regarded UA Native American academic programs led the effort: the Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management and Policy and the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program. The vice president for Research Native Programs Collaborative, an effort to improve university services and outreach to American Indian communities, has provided and contributed to much of the educational and distance-learning content on the site, Williams said. The site features a lecture series made up of scholars, experts, policymakers and tribal leaders brought to the UA by several academic programs on campus. The site also features a database that will include information on grants, research and outreach programs benefiting American Indians. Louellyn White, an American Indian studies graduate student, begin working on the site in January and said the best thing about it is that there will be an abundance of material available in one place. "Tribal communities are often left behind when it comes to technology, information and research results," she said. "(The site) will help them stay informed on the issues that effect their lives." The digital divide may prevent many on the reservations from being able to regularly access the site, but Williams said many reservations have or will soon have such access. The committee that launched the site is also working on securing grants to help American Indian nations gain broadband access, Williams said. "The Internet can be a tool of tribal sovereignty," he said. "It can bring cutting edge research and information to the reservations." Although other groups, such as rural communities, are in need of a similar online resource, the UA decided to target the American Indian community because UA has a national reputation for research in that area, Williams said. So far the Web site has gotten a positive response, with hits coming from on and off campus. "It's a great resource up and down. There's really nothing like it anywhere in the world," Williams said. Ian Record of the Native Nations Institute agreed the Web site is the first of it's kind. He said there were several entities on campus doing proactive work on American Indian issues, but said the work was not being communicated to the nations. "The site addresses the unique challenges and unique circumstances of Native nations," he said. "Ideally it will be a two way street with native communities speaking to the university." Record said the Web site also has a goal of helping to recruit American Indian students and of improving their retention rates at the UA. The Web site is still being worked on, and Record said he envisions American Indian students one day being able to talk to their friends and family at home via videoconference. This will help with homesickness because many American Indians find the university atmosphere to be very different and sometimes overwhelming, he said. "We want them to become more comfortable and to not feel so far away from home," he said. Another benefit of the videoconferencing would be that tribal leaders would be able to access the indigenous law faculty in real time, saving time and money. Record said the Web site will not just feature UA research and projects but will have the best research and resources on American Indians regardless of where it comes from. "Knowledge will flow both ways," he said. "It'll be a hub for native people everywhere." From coyotez at UOREGON.EDU Fri May 5 00:29:47 2006 From: coyotez at UOREGON.EDU (David Lewis) Date: Thu, 4 May 2006 17:29:47 -0700 Subject: No subject In-Reply-To: <0B3593EC-A8C4-4E25-9B82-C8E39A58B06E@ncidc.org> Message-ID: Hi Andre, I am not a language teacher but it seems to me that the more experienced students could become the instructors or leaders. This would allow the instructors to get better with their language because they have to think about it more and are responsible for getting it right. This worked in my Chinook Jargon clsses at Grand Ronde. I know this is not a complete solution but it still might work. David Andre Cramblit wrote: > I am looking for some training for information on best practices for > teaching two levels of Language in the same classroom. Do you have > any ideas? thanks > APC From deprees at U.ARIZONA.EDU Fri May 5 16:08:45 2006 From: deprees at U.ARIZONA.EDU (Depree ShadowWalker) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 09:08:45 -0700 Subject: Bridging Cultures: SchoolsMovingUp 5/17 Online Event Message-ID: YOU ARE INVITED TO AN ONLINE EVENT WestEd's SchoolsMovingUp Web site will feature another free Online Event, "Bridging Cultures," on Wednesday, May 17 from 10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Pacific Time (1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time). Participants in this interactive event will learn about the differences between more collaborative and individualistic cultures, and how some of those differences can show up in school settings. Using case material developed by the teacher action-researchers who originated the Bridging Cultures work, Noelle Caskey, Senior Research Associate at WestEd, will lead participants in an exploration of alternative ways of understanding the values and behavior of children and families from non-mainstream cultures that are collaboratively oriented. See the Online Events page on SchoolsMovingUp for further information, including specific topics to be addressed by this event, at http://www.schoolsmovingup.net/onlineevents. HOW IT WORKS The Online Event is a combined PowerPoint presentation and conference call. There are two ways to participate - by Web telecast or by teleconference. The Web telecast option requires that you have access to an Internet connection and a phone line at the same time. During the Web telecast, you will see slides displayed on your computer screen as you hear the presenter's voice over the phone line. You will be able to participate in online polls and questions, view related Web sites and resources, and ask questions by typing in the chat window. For the teleconference option, you'll download the PowerPoint presentation in advance and follow along while listening to the presenter over the phone. **Note: If you have special access needs (e.g., you have a hearing impairment and need special arrangements made to access the audio), please let us know ASAP so we can make the appropriate arrangements. REGISTRATION To sign up for this event, please visit http://www.schoolsmovingup.net/events/bridgingcultures and select "Sign Up." You will then be prompted to login or register for free on the site as needed. If you plan to participate via the Web telecast option, you will need to "Run the Wizard" to ensure that your computer can handle the Web telecast. If you would prefer to participate via teleconference, you can instead join the conference call and download the PowerPoint presentation, which will be available the day before the event. Registered participants will receive an email notification when the slide portion of the presentation is posted. The message will also contain further instructions for participating. If you are unable to participate in the live event, you may view an archive, which will be available beginning the day after the event. CONTACT We look forward to your participation. For more information, contact Julie Duffield at jduffie at wested.org or 415.615.3213. For technical questions, contact Dan Wilson at dwilson at wested.org or 510.302.4265. STAY INFORMED To be notified about our new Online Events each month, become a registered user of SchoolsMovingUp for free at http://www.schoolsmovingup.net/cs/wested/register. -------------------------- You have received this announcement because you are a registered user of SchoolsMovingUp. We hope you find this information useful. Unsubscribe from this announcement by sending an email to cs.unsubscribe.a.1 at email.schoolsmovingup.net. From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Fri May 5 16:34:33 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 09:34:33 -0700 Subject: Tech Chat Message-ID: LIVE CHAT TODAY "The Information Edge: Using Data to Accelerate Achievement" WHEN: Today, Friday, May 5, 2006, 3 p.m., Eastern time WHERE: http://www.you-click.net/GoNow/a15864a146633a235000156a1 How did your state do? The ninth annual edition of "Technology Counts 2006: The Information Edge: Using Data to Accelerate Achievement," grades the states on several school technology indicators, finding, for instance, that West Virginia leads the nation with an overall grade of "A," while Nevada trails with a "D-." A survey of state education officials conducted for the report finds that despite the federal government's push to make data central to instructional decisions, states are still far from putting their electronic information into a form that local educators can easily use. Join us this afternoon as we take your questions on "Technology Counts" and the states' use of technology and data. Submit your questions in advance here: http://www.you-click.net/GoNow/a15864a146633a235000156a0 Our chat guests: *Christopher B. Swanson, director, EPE Research Center; *Caroline Hendrie, project editor, "Technology Counts" For background, read the report here: http://www.you-click.net/GoNow/a15864a146633a235000156a2 then join our chat to get your questions answered today, at 3 p.m., here: http://www.you-click.net/GoNow/a15864a146633a235000156a0 No special equipment other than Internet access is needed to participate in this text-based chat. A transcript will be posted shortly after the completion of the chat. From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Fri May 5 20:42:44 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 13:42:44 -0700 Subject: Rosetta Stone Message-ID: HTTP://WWW.NATIVEVILLAGE.ORG/MAY%201%202006%20NEWS%20ISSUE%20167/MAY% 201,%202006%20I%20167%20V1.HTM ROSETTA STONE(R) RELEASES INTERACTIVE MOHAWK LANGUAGE SOFTWARE Virginia: Rosetta Stone has just released language-learning software for the Mohawk (Kanien'keha) language. Spoken by the Kanien'kehaka (People of the Flint) nation, Kanien'keha is among many of the world's Indigenous languages that are in danger of becoming extinct. Five hundred years ago, an estimated 300 languages were spoken across North America. Today, only about 25 are now spoken by children. The remaining languages are likely to disappear with their generation of speakers. "We believe the best way to preserve a language is through teaching and learning, keeping it a living language in the hands of the people to whom it belongs," says Ilse Ackerman from Rosetta Stone. "Technology can help with this task. Interactive language software is a great resource to support community language initiatives. It provides learners unlimited exposure to fluent speech, patient and tireless feedback, and an individually tailored learning pace." Software development for the Kanien'keha language was sponsored by the Mohawk language and cultural center of Kahnawake. This is the first endangered language software to be developed through Rosetta Stone, which currently teaches 30 other languages to people in over 150 countries. http://www.aborinews.com/contenu/bulletin/bulletin.asp? cat=CommuniquesEn&id=1529http://www.newswire.c -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From jeysargent at CALMAIL.BERKELEY.EDU Mon May 8 05:16:52 2006 From: jeysargent at CALMAIL.BERKELEY.EDU (=?windows-1252?Q?Jenny_Sargent?=) Date: Sun, 7 May 2006 22:16:52 -0700 Subject: Maori Radio Message-ID: I am doing research on the effectiveness on radio programs in achieving the objectives of language revitalization programs. Currently I am looking for information on the Maori radio stations. If anyone knows of studies, interviews, reports, government documents, or anything else which contains information concerning how Maori radio if affecting the language goals of the Maori community, please let me know. Thanks, Jenny Sargent-Smith From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 8 16:04:25 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 09:04:25 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) Message-ID: Unlocking the secret sounds of language: Life without time or numbers No one knew what the tiny Piraha tribe were humming to each other until one linguist really listened. What he heard is turning our understanding of language on its head By Elizabeth Davies Published: 06 May 2006 http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_technology/article362380.ece Deep in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, along the banks of the Mai ci river and shaded from the scorching sunlight by a verdant canopy of hanging branches, the linguist Dan Everett is going back to basics with his new class. "Um, dois, tres," he repeats in clearly enunciated Portuguese. "One, two, three." A row of blank faces greets his efforts. This was going to be harder than he had thought. More than 25 years ago, Professor Everett, then a missionary and now an ethnologist at the University of Manchester, decided to try to teach members of the obscure Pirah? tribe how to count. He would not succeed. Instead, he found a world without numbers, without time, one where people appeared to hum and whistle rather than speak. This isolated tribe of some 350 people in tiny villages in the depths of the Brazilian jungle could turn our understanding of language on its head and disprove the main work of one of the world's most celebrated intellectuals, Noam Chomsky. >From Professor Everett's first steps on Pirah? land in 1977, he knew the tribe was remarkable. Their language had no words capable of conveying numbers or of counting to even the most basic of figures. It could, he believed, be the world's only language without numbers. But he had to wait months before he could say for sure what made the Pirah? special, so indecipherable was their language, a kind of sing-song communication which has more in common with whistling and humming than the spoken word. During one of his first visits, in the late 1970s, he began to understand what the tribespeople were saying. It was a rude awakening. Eavesdropping one night, desperately trying to piece together what little he knew of their words, he realised with a shock that the warriors, marching along the banks of the river, were planning nothing less than to murder him by moonlight. Professor Everett ran back to the hut and locked his wife and three children inside. "I grabbed all their weapons, their bows and arrows," he says. It was an act of triumph; the outsider had caught them off guard and proved his worth. The tribe was so amazed he had actually worked out what they were saying to each other that they treated him with a cautious kind of respect. From then on, neither he nor his family had problems. In 1980, after many entreaties, Profesor Everett set about trying to teach the Pirah?. For eight months, he tried to explain rudimentary arithmetic to the more eager men and women keen to learn the skills needed to trade at fair prices with other indigenous tribes who arrived looking for brazil nuts. But after months of painstaking, often excruciatingly slow, evening classes, barely any of the Pirah? had managed to count to 10. Even one plus one had proved beyond them. "At first, they wanted to learn to read and write and count," he says. "But by the end, only a few could even manage to get from one to nine. I thought, 'This not working'." Not only did the Pirah? use no numbers in their incredibly sparse language, they also appeared unable to even conceive of them. During the seven years Professor Everett spent with them, he never heard them use words such as "all," "every" and "more". There is one word, "hoi," which comes close to the number one, but it can also mean "small," or a small amount, such as two small fish as opposed to one large one. Peter Gordon, a psycholinguist at New York's Columbia University who has also made the journey deep into the rainforest to explore the Pirah?'s numerical skills, performed experiments with the tribespeople, with the bare materials the Pirah? were used to dealing with. He asked them to repeat patterns he created on the ground with batteries, or count how many brazil nuts he had in his hand. The results seemed to show the tribe simply did not understand the concept of numbers. But the tribe's almost total lack of enumeration skills is just one of the Pirah?'s many traits which has so fascinated linguists for two decades. The tribe has survived, culture intact, for centuries. "I tried to transcribe everything I heard," says Professor Everett, now a fluent Pirah? speaker. "I tried desperately to find structures I thought every language had but I couldn't find them. I was sure it was my inexperience in not being able to see them, but actually it was that they just weren't there." He believes the Pirah? is the world's only people to have no distinct words for colours. They have no written language, and no collective memory going back further than two generations, meaning few can remember the names of all four grandparents. The members of the tribe, in villages along a 300-km stretch of the Maici, frequently starve themselves even when food is available. The concept of decorative art is alien; even the simplest of drawings provokes intense frustration. They are also believed to be the world's only society to have no creation myth; asked how their ancestors came into existence they say, "The world is created" or "All things are made". The Pirah? language is simple. For men, it can be pared down to just eight consonants and three vowels. Pirah? women have the smallest number of "speech sounds" in the world, with only seven consonants and three vowels. There is no perfect tense, no means of saying, for example, "I have eaten". The Pirah? are a unique people living without time or numbers, without colours or a shared past. And, until recently, that was more than enough to unite anthropologists in shared fascination at this obscure society which seemed to trump everything they thought they knew about language, and humans in general. Many, including Dr Gordon, interpreted the Pirah?'s inability to learn to count as evidence for the theory that language shapes the way we think, that we are capable of creating thoughts only for which we already have words. In this theory, espoused initially by the Yale lecturer Benjamin Whorf in the 1930s, the Pirah? could not get to grips with numbers in another language, Portuguese, because their own language had no capacity for it. "A people without terms for numbers doesn't develop the ability to determine exact numbers," Dr Gordon said in Science magazine. "The question is, is there any case where not having words for something doesn't allow you to think about it? I think this is a case for just that." But Professor Everett did not leave it there. "You could say these features of the language, these absences, are all coincidences. I tried to find a common thread to explain why the Pirah? were the way they were." That factor, he found, was all around and yet its significance had never been noticed: the culture and unique way of life of the Pirah?. In a paper published last year, Professor Everett says this, not their language, prevents the Pirah? from counting. Because of their culture's ingrained emphasis on referring only to immediate, personal experiences, the tribesmen do not have words for any abstract concept, from colour to memory and even to numbers. There is no past tense, he says, because everything exists for them in the present. When it can no longer be perceived, it ceases, to all intents, to exist. "In many ways, the Pirah? are the ultimate empiricists," Professor Everett says. "They demand evidence for everything." Life, for the Pirah?, is about seizing the moment and taking pleasure here and now. "I suddenly noticed how excited they were whenever planes crossed the sky then disappeared. They just love sitting around watching people coming around the bend in the jungle. Whenever I came into the village then left, they were amazed." The linguistic limitations of this "carpe diem" culture explain why the Pirah? have no desire to remember where they come from and why they tell no stories. Other aspects of the culture have also had had an undeniable impact on the Pirah? language, Professor Everett says. They have a stubborn belief in their way of doing things that has arguably prevented them from doing things taken for granted in other countries. The Pirah? are capable of, for example, drawing a straight line when they want to make a stick figure to ward off evil spirits, but find writing the number one almost impossible. Actively resistant to Western knowledge, they dropped out of Professor Everett's reading and writing classes when they realised he was trying to write down their language, which had remained purely verbal. "We don't write our language," they said. They told him the reason they had come to the classes was simply that it was fun to all get together in the evening, and Professor Everett made them popcorn. It is easy to understand why the Pirah? have fascinated so many for so long. But what makes Professor Everett's theories so particularly stunning to the linguistic world is that they fundamentally contradict the theories that have dominated the sphere since the mid-20th century. The Pirah? language, Professor Everett claims, is the final nail in the coffin of Noam Chomsky's linguistic legacy, whose hugely influential theory of universal grammar dictates that the human mind has an innate capacity for language and that all languages share certain basic rules which enable children to understand the meaning of complicated syntax. At its core is the concept of "recursion", defined as the ability to build complex ideas by using some thoughts as subparts of others, resulting in subordinate clauses. The Pirah? language has none of these features; every sentence stands alone and refers to a single event. Instead of saying "If it rains, I will not go", the tribe says: "Raining I go not." Professor Everett insists the example of the Pirah?, because of the impact their peculiar culture has had upon their language and way of thinking, strikes a devastating blow to Chomskian theory. "Hypotheses such as universal grammar are inadequate to account for the Pirah? facts because they assume that language evolution has ceased to be shaped by the social life of the species." The Pirah?'s grammar, he argues, comes from their culture, not from any pre-existing mental template. Some anthropologists claim Professor Everett attributes too much importance to a vague concept of "culture". Others suggest that, through centuries of inbreeding, the Pirah? are simply intellectually inferior, an argument ProfessorEverett says is baseless. "These people know the names of every species in the jungle. They know the behaviour of all the animals," he says. "They know their environment better than any American knows his. They know so many things we don't, but because we know a few they don't, they are somehow less intelligent. It's ridiculous. As a matter of fact, they think I'm dumb because I have a habit of getting lost in the jungle." Professor Everett's work is likely to be hotly debated. He will head back to Amazon this summer with a bevy of enthusiastic young PhD students to try to introduce others to the Pirah? and to prove his theories. A mark of how seriously the linguistic world takes his studies is that accompanying him will be W Tecumseh Fitch, one of the three architects of the original theory of universal grammar along with Chomsky and Dr Marc Hauser. The expert is keen to see whether the tribe does indeed refute their long-established theory. Professor Everett took almost three decades to solve the riddle of the mysterious Pirah? language, and it will be years before anyone else knows them enough to properly challenge his findings. For now, it seems, their secrets are safe in the heart of the rainforest. From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 8 16:10:54 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 09:10:54 -0700 Subject: Canoes still popular (fwd) Message-ID: Canoes still popular By JOHN EBY / Niles Daily Star Thursday, May 4, 2006 10:59 AM EDT http://www.nilesstar.com/articles/2006/05/04/news/ndnews2.txt DOWAGIAC - A ?renaissance? in building birch bark canoes shows no sign of abating well into its second decade, a Pokagon Band member said Wednesday night at The Museum at Southwestern Michigan College. In fact, said John Low of Niles, ?More and more people are engaging in a revival of traditional building. Individuals and small groups of Potawatomi, Ojibwe and Odawa Indians have initiated such projects. To Low, who traveled to Guam last summer to meet with master builders, a canoe is not only the ?product of indigenous engineering genius,? but also a symbol, ?a rich metaphor for carrying Great Lakes indigenous peoples into their futures on our terms.? An effort to collect and preserve the culture of indigenous peoples occurred ?presumably because we were going to disappear,? Low said. ?The delicious irony is that we did not disappear - nor did our traditions, although sometimes they were preserved in part by ethnologists. Indian peoples are cautiously appreciative of the attention paid to them and their cultures and indebted for what documentation and preservation were done by non-Natives. We recognize this. Had this not been done, much might have been lost during the last 500 years. ?The canoe-building renaissance in the Great Lakes reclaims canoes as a part of Native heritage and inheritance,? he said. ?It places the Indian centrally inside the canoe - both literally and symbolically. The 10-county Pokagon Band based in Dowagiac is part of the revival. The tribe applied for and was awarded a Michigan Native American Foundation mini-grant in 2003 to reach Native youth and to engage them in the process of gathering materials to construct a traditional 16-foot canoe. The project to complete two canoes is still under way. A language component will further help elders pass on their knowledge to younger generations. An instructional video will document the construction process and associated Potawatomi vocabulary. Building a birch bark canoe becomes ?an effort to mark, re-establish and re-assert the uniqueness of a community's history and practices and the importance of that legacy to its future,? Low said. In the Three Fires Confederacy, the Potawatomi are the ?Keepers of the Fire.? They refer to themselves as Anishnaabe, which roughly translated means ?the original people? or ?the true humans.? ?They may have had the canoe since the beginning of time,? Low said. ?Oral histories of our communities include references to a great flood? which creatures survived by clinging to a log or canoe. ?Our migration west 500 years ago may have been based upon the search for food - wild rice that grows on water. Canoes were always important to us,? he said. ?Birch bark canoes transport people and ideas. It's an important symbol of Great Lakes Indian identity. They have never ceased being built.? Non-Natives have also been ?enamored? with canoes, Low said, from early eras of fur trade and exploration to romance, art, poetry and commerce. Low read Longfellow's ?Song of Hiawatha? from 1855 as an ?appropriate example of this embrace of canoes by non-Natives.? He showed examples of products canoes pushed, including locally, Round Oak stoves and Heddon's fishing lures, plus potables, candy, medicine, canned goods, fresh fruit, vegetables and even toothpicks on his ?list of misappropriations? and a tacky toy canoe of the type sold in souvenir stands. ?Canoes have become both Native icon and symbol of conquest by non-Native appropriation,? he said. ?Native religion and ceremonies were often driven underground until the last decades of plurality. Our role in the narrative of America has too long been as a foil to the dominant non-Native. We're either colonized, devoid of our own culture, or as primitive peoples frozen in cultures on the margins of American history. As pressures to assimilate into the mainstream continue, Indians, including the Pokagon Potawatomi, are finding new ways and symbols for our reimagined indigenous identity.? Low's last installment in the museum's spring lecture series provided a prelude to an exhibit on Potawatomi Indians and the Dowagiac-based Pokagon Band running June 21 through December. July's brown bag lunch series may also focus on Native Americans, Director Steve Arseneau said. Low said he grew up on the St. Joseph River. He is a Turtle Clan member. His last talk was at an American Indian museum in Evanston, Ill. ?I took this idea of lifelong learning to the extreme because I'm back in school,? he said. His first academic tour concluded with a law degree and practicing law. His second bachelor of arts degree was in American Indian studies from the University of Minnesota. ?Then I got a scholarship to the University of Chicago,? Low said, ?and I got a master's degree in social sciences, which is all about why people do the things they do. That has fascinated me since. I've carried that forward and it was the impetus of this project I've been working on for the last year or so - trying to think about why people in the Great Lakes,? including his tribe, ?re-engage with the building of birch bark canoes. I may not have the answers, I may be completely off, but I toss off some ideas? as part of his Ph.D. program at the University of Michigan. Low introduced the topic by showing an excerpt from the 1994 WNIT program, ?Keepers of the Fire,? featuring the late Mark Alexis and Mike Daugherty talking about canoe building. The clip also mentioned Dan Rapp and Greg Ballew. Ballew and Mike's son, Kevin Daugherty, were in the audience. From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 8 16:14:38 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 09:14:38 -0700 Subject: Immersion students get shuttle funding (fwd) Message-ID: Immersion students get shuttle funding By Paul C. Curtis - The Garden Island Posted: Tuesday, May 02, 2006 - 10:38:22 pm HST http://www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2006/05/03/news/news03.txt On the scale of the state?s multimillion-dollar budget, $40,000 is a pittance. But to Nolan Rapozo and the family of a child in Waimea Valley who commutes to the Kapa?a Elementary School Hawaiian-immersion program, it?s huge. The money in the state budget will be matched by state Office of Hawaiian Affairs funds for a bus, or bus service, that will allow students outside of Kapa?a to get to Kapa?a Elementary, Middle and High schools, where the public-school immersion programs teach children the host language. ?The bus is the beginning,? said Rapozo, a Lihu?e resident whose two children will catch the bus for the 2006-07 school year if the funds are released in time. ?We have to get the kids to the school.? Students from Ha?ena to portions of Wailua whose home district isn?t Kapa?a Elementary, for example, catch the Kapa?a-bound school bus on a space-available basis. But there is nothing for those from Kekaha to Hanama?ulu. ?This is a start for us, a new beginning,? and the end of a 10-year battle to get funding for transportation for out-of-district students, Rapozo said. There are around 90 students in the Hawaiian-immersion programs at the three schools. He?d like to see the bus scheduled so that students can be picked up at their home public schools and transported to Kapa?a, and is also hopeful that those immersion students who catch the bus back to their home schools after school will be able to enroll in the after-school programs at their home schools. ?We?re really excited,? and scrambling to work to see if the funds can be released in time for the bus system to be in place by the time the 2006-07 school year begins in late July, said Rapozo, a retired Kaua?i Police Department and state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement officer. The state budget is effective July 1. The transportation system is the first step in what might be many future moves for the public-school immersion program, where students are taught primarily in the Hawaiian language. ?We?re a legitimate school. The kids love their language,? said Rapozo, president of the parent-support group of Ke Kula Kaiapuni o Kapa?a. Rapozo said they are working on a plan to bring the Kapa?a Middle School immersion students down to Kapa?a Elementary School, as a teacher shortage has been hampering the program at the middle-school level. Further, there is movement afoot to totally relocate the public school immersion program to a new site near Kaua?i Community College and the ?Aha Punana Leo Hawaiian-immersion preschool. ?Transportation is the issue,? said state Sen. Gary Hooser, D-Kaua?i-Ni?ihau. Those in the ?Aha Punana Leo Hawaiian-immersion preschool in Puhi who want to continue in Hawaiian-immersion programs in public school don?t always have ways to get to the Kapa?a campus if they live outside that district, Hooser said. State Rep. Bertha Kawakami, D-West Kaua?i-Ni?ihau, vice chair of the House Finance Committee, was instrumental in getting the funding placed in the state budget bill, Hooser said. For years, lack of bus transportation has been a deterrent for most out-of-district families wanting to enroll their keiki in the Kapa?a-based Hawaiian-immersion program, said Alohilani Rogers, one of the teachers. For over a decade, several ?Aha Punana Leo Hawaiian immersion preschool graduates (ages 3 to 5) who become fluent in the Hawaiian language at the preschool level did not continue to enroll in the Ke Kula Kaiapuni o Kapa?a Hawaiian-immersion program due to lack of transportation, she said. With the success of passing of this appropriation, enrollment is expected to increase significantly, and the strength and support needed to survive will continue for the future of the Hawaiian language and culture, Rogers said. Opened in the fall of 1989, the state Department of Education?s Ke Kula Kaiapuni Hawaiian-immersion program is located at the three Kapa?a public schools. Kula Kaiapuni?s Hawaiian-immersion program treats the indigenous language as primary and dominant in the school setting, Rogers explained. English is introduced as part of the curriculum beginning in grade five, to ensure bilingual ability at the high-school level, said Rogers. Rapozo said his younger children are already bilingual in English and Hawaiian. The Hawaiian-immersion program at Ke Kula Kaiapuni strives to provide a quality education based on knowledge of the Hawaiian language and culture as the foundation upon which individuals become responsible, sensitive and productive adults who contribute significantly to all levels of Hawai?i?s community, Rogers said. All families on the island are eligible to attend Ke Kula Kaiapuni o Kapa?a. For enrollment and other information about Ke Kula Kaiapuni o Kapa?a, contact Rogers, 635-4839. ? Paul C. Curtis, associate editor, may be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or pcurtis at kauaipubco.com. From rzs at TDS.NET Mon May 8 17:42:05 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Zane Smith) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 12:42:05 -0500 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) Message-ID: yes fascinating of course but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, some unexplored mental territory to seize to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories from within their lofty ivory towers of academia to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions yes very interesting critters these anthropologists i might have to get my own bug jar out and collect a few of these anthros. do a few experiments... hmm...what happens when you pull this? hmmm yes,very interesting... better write that one down... richard Richard Zane Smith 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. Wyandotte Oklahoma 74370 From hardman at UFL.EDU Mon May 8 20:02:32 2006 From: hardman at UFL.EDU (MJ Hardman) Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 16:02:32 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <20060508174205.BHSB9045.outaamta01.mail.tds.net@smtp.tds.net> Message-ID: Definitely in the neighborhood of my reaction. Also -- what I call a 'deficit grammar'. By listing all the stuff a language does NOT have one learns precisely nothing. I kept wondering all through the article what the people *have*. At the very end there is just a hint that they do have all kinds of interesting stuff. But that is not where the interest is. In my teaching I prohibit 'deficit grammars'. E.g., what would we thing of English if we said that English has no data source marking, English doesn't have human/non-human, English doesn't have object incorporation, English doesn't have sentence suffixes ... They tend to get the picture. MJ On 05/08/2006 1:42 PM, "Richard Zane Smith" wrote: > yes fascinating of course > but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! > studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, > some unexplored mental territory to seize > to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, > to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing > and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories > from within their lofty ivory towers of academia > to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions > yes > very interesting critters these anthropologists > i might have to get my own bug jar out > and collect a few of these anthros. > do a few experiments... > hmm...what happens when you pull this? > hmmm yes,very interesting... > better write that one down... > richard > > Richard Zane Smith > 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. > Wyandotte Oklahoma > 74370 > From jtucker at STARBAND.NET Tue May 9 13:04:55 2006 From: jtucker at STARBAND.NET (Jan Tucker) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 09:04:55 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) In-Reply-To: <20060508174205.BHSB9045.outaamta01.mail.tds.net@smtp.tds.net> Message-ID: In this article what caught my attention was that the only reason that was given for attending the "night school" was said to be getting together and popcorn and the reason for not attending was the concern that Everett was writing down the language [apparently not approved of by the people]. A clear preference for not doing so seemed to be expressed here YET the "missionary" now "ethnologists" is going back to bring in other's to "collect, process, unravel, unlock". Everett has clearly suggested that the Pirahna stopped coming because of their concern for having the language written down. I think I'd take that as a serious determent against further "extractions". Jan -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Zane Smith Sent: Monday, May 08, 2006 1:42 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) yes fascinating of course but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, some unexplored mental territory to seize to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories from within their lofty ivory towers of academia to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions yes very interesting critters these anthropologists i might have to get my own bug jar out and collect a few of these anthros. do a few experiments... hmm...what happens when you pull this? hmmm yes,very interesting... better write that one down... richard Richard Zane Smith 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. Wyandotte Oklahoma 74370 From rzs at TDS.NET Tue May 9 16:23:05 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 09:23:05 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: These are really insightful responses I'm glad others are weighing these accepted practices of members from this intrusive academia I'm no linguist so I have a question. Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? Would people who have no words for past tense be forced to live in a collective amnesia? Will they then not "remember" the anthropologist when he visits again? Just because they don't use past tense verbal expression? If a child comes smiling and says: "you have popcorn?" Wouldn't this mean its another way of expressing memory or past tense? Maybe I'm not properly awed by Academia I guess I just wonder sometimes If the new sciences are not just refined systems of conquest and ultimately...control. richard On 5/9/06 6:04 AM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > In this article what caught my attention was that the only reason that was > given for attending the "night school" was said to be getting together and > popcorn and the reason for not attending was the concern that Everett was > writing down the language [apparently not approved of by the people]. A > clear preference for not doing so seemed to be expressed here YET the > "missionary" now "ethnologists" is going back to bring in other's to > "collect, process, unravel, unlock". Everett has clearly suggested that the > Pirahna stopped coming because of their concern for having the language > written down. I think I'd take that as a serious determent against further > "extractions". > > Jan > > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Indigenous Languages and Technology > [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Zane Smith > Sent: Monday, May 08, 2006 1:42 PM > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) > > > yes fascinating of course > but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! > studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, > some unexplored mental territory to seize > to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, > to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing > and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories > from within their lofty ivory towers of academia > to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions > yes > very interesting critters these anthropologists > i might have to get my own bug jar out > and collect a few of these anthros. > do a few experiments... > hmm...what happens when you pull this? > hmmm yes,very interesting... > better write that one down... > richard > > Richard Zane Smith > 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. > Wyandotte Oklahoma > 74370 From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 9 14:53:05 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 08:53:05 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi, Richard, I am selling some books on Amazon, and waiting for one of the pages to come up. The questions you ask remind me of the to-ing and fro-ing of discussions of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. :-) In my research, I started by developing a "sieve" of words in English and in Dine Bizaad to catch materials with mathematical concepts. I used some papers from the Mathematics and Literature conference in Mykonos, Greece, last summer. From a paper written by Zizzi on statistical terms in stories, I collected 35-40 conceptual words in English. I found matches to only 3 of these in my Din? Bizaad dictionaries. However, when I looked at Din? Bizaad directly, I found: 1) That math terms related to shape, count and frequency are embedded in the grammar; 2) That a mathematical process that is used in application systems development, commonly called cascading or waterfall, is embedded in the culture and ways of knowing. I also think 2 other things about "words": 1) Words exist if people use them; usage is group-related. This means that if I use the word onomatopoeia this DOES NOT mean that use of the word is endemic to a) my family; b) my friends; c) my community; d) my community at large. 2) No single person or even a group of people from the same locale (see item 1, above) knows all the words in a language. I believe that the beliefs in the general distribution of language concepts has mislead a great number of people studying language. I don't often see people talk about register. I do see people deprecate register as "jargon" however. 3) My own personal bias is about fluency: I don't believe that someone who can grunt "gimme 'nuther beer woodja!" should be considered "fluent". On that note . . . Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 10:23 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language These are really insightful responses I'm glad others are weighing these accepted practices of members from this intrusive academia I'm no linguist so I have a question. Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? Would people who have no words for past tense be forced to live in a collective amnesia? Will they then not "remember" the anthropologist when he visits again? Just because they don't use past tense verbal expression? If a child comes smiling and says: "you have popcorn?" Wouldn't this mean its another way of expressing memory or past tense? Maybe I'm not properly awed by Academia I guess I just wonder sometimes If the new sciences are not just refined systems of conquest and ultimately...control. richard On 5/9/06 6:04 AM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > In this article what caught my attention was that the only reason that was > given for attending the "night school" was said to be getting together and > popcorn and the reason for not attending was the concern that Everett was > writing down the language [apparently not approved of by the people]. A > clear preference for not doing so seemed to be expressed here YET the > "missionary" now "ethnologists" is going back to bring in other's to > "collect, process, unravel, unlock". Everett has clearly suggested that the > Pirahna stopped coming because of their concern for having the language > written down. I think I'd take that as a serious determent against further > "extractions". > > Jan > > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Indigenous Languages and Technology > [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Zane Smith > Sent: Monday, May 08, 2006 1:42 PM > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) > > > yes fascinating of course > but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! > studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, > some unexplored mental territory to seize > to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, > to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing > and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories > from within their lofty ivory towers of academia > to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions > yes > very interesting critters these anthropologists > i might have to get my own bug jar out > and collect a few of these anthros. > do a few experiments... > hmm...what happens when you pull this? > hmmm yes,very interesting... > better write that one down... > richard > > Richard Zane Smith > 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. > Wyandotte Oklahoma > 74370 From jtucker at STARBAND.NET Tue May 9 15:06:52 2006 From: jtucker at STARBAND.NET (Jan Tucker) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 11:06:52 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Richard, Great questions! I had problems too with the discussion of "past-tense" and the illustrations such as how thrilled the people are to see someone coming down the path as some kind of example of living in the present only. Then they do remember their parents, and grandparents. They certainly planned to kill the missionary in the future during the full moon didn't they? Jan -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 12:23 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language These are really insightful responses I'm glad others are weighing these accepted practices of members from this intrusive academia I'm no linguist so I have a question. Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? Would people who have no words for past tense be forced to live in a collective amnesia? Will they then not "remember" the anthropologist when he visits again? Just because they don't use past tense verbal expression? If a child comes smiling and says: "you have popcorn?" Wouldn't this mean its another way of expressing memory or past tense? Maybe I'm not properly awed by Academia I guess I just wonder sometimes If the new sciences are not just refined systems of conquest and ultimately...control. richard On 5/9/06 6:04 AM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > In this article what caught my attention was that the only reason that was > given for attending the "night school" was said to be getting together and > popcorn and the reason for not attending was the concern that Everett was > writing down the language [apparently not approved of by the people]. A > clear preference for not doing so seemed to be expressed here YET the > "missionary" now "ethnologists" is going back to bring in other's to > "collect, process, unravel, unlock". Everett has clearly suggested that the > Pirahna stopped coming because of their concern for having the language > written down. I think I'd take that as a serious determent against further > "extractions". > > Jan > > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Indigenous Languages and Technology > [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU]On Behalf Of Richard Zane Smith > Sent: Monday, May 08, 2006 1:42 PM > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language (fwd) > > > yes fascinating of course > but what i find even more fascinating are these anthropologists! > studying the Piraha mind like some NEW specimen, > some unexplored mental territory to seize > to collect,process,unravel,unlock, and file data on, > to "reduce" another language to ink and paper writing > and to wage proper war against any leading professors theories > from within their lofty ivory towers of academia > to proclaim the LATEST cutting edge conclusions > yes > very interesting critters these anthropologists > i might have to get my own bug jar out > and collect a few of these anthros. > do a few experiments... > hmm...what happens when you pull this? > hmmm yes,very interesting... > better write that one down... > richard > > Richard Zane Smith > 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. > Wyandotte Oklahoma > 74370 From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 9 16:12:39 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 09:12:39 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: On Tue, 9 May 2006, Richard Smith wrote: > I'm no linguist so I have a question. > Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? > I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed > (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? Lack of a word means that the concept isn't something speakers of the language talk about much. Your knee is something you need to talk about-- it gets bumped, you kneel on it, you break things over it, you use it to nudge doors open--but the back of the knee isn't something that comes up much in conversation, so there's no need for a word for it (as you say, unless you're an orthopedic surgeon of some such). For example--in a Himalayan language I'm studying I recently came across a word that means 'the feeling you have when you're on a crew or team and somebody else keeps slacking off and not pulling their weight'. Now, this, I'm sure, is a feeling we're all familiar with. But can you think of a word for it? We don't have one. English, compared with a lot of other languages, doesn't have a lot of vocabulary for feelings. Why? Well, it's not something we talk about. In fact, it's *notoriously* something we don't talk about, it's one of the things that speakers of other languages often comment on about English. Notice we do have ways of talking about the situation, but they're all about that guy. I've got plenty of names to call him (goof-off, goldbrick, slacker) and ways to refer to what he's doing (not pulling his weight, slacking off), but in English I don't have a word for how the situation makes me feel, because in English feelings aren't something we talk about. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 9 16:23:17 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 09:23:17 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: On Tue, 9 May 2006, Richard Smith wrote: > Would people who have no words for past tense > be forced to live in a collective amnesia? Except possibly for Whorf (depending on what you think he was actually saying) I don't think any serious linguist has ever suggested this. Whether a language has tense, or some other grammatical category, or not isn't a question of what you *can* say, so much as of what you *have to* say. For example, English "has" plural, while Chinese doesn't. This doesn't mean that Chinese speakers can't indicate the difference between one and more than one. What it means is that English speakers *must* indicate it, even when it's not really relevant--anytime you say an English noun, it's necessarily either in the singular or plural form, and you've committed yourself to one or the other. Same with tense--any English verb is unavoidably in the present or the past form (or one of the participles). Notice, though, that that's only loosely connected to our understanding of what we're talking about, since we regularly use the "present" form to talk about both past ("So this guy comes up to me and ...") and future ("We leave for Canada tomorrow") events. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From phonosemantics at EARTHLINK.NET Tue May 9 17:48:25 2006 From: phonosemantics at EARTHLINK.NET (jess tauber) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 13:48:25 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language Message-ID: What Scott said about English and relative lack of terms for feelings made me start thinking.... Yahgan has vast numbers of short, lexicalized terms for feelings, yet very few equivalently short terms to describe people who create such feelings in us (though you can create these by deverbalization and compounding). Yahgan is serializing, but case marking. The feeling terms are largely descriptive (like 'long face', 'pursed lips', etc.) of visible symptoms of internal states. So far as I know Yahgans did not generally use such terms pejoratively as was the fashion up in the Pacific Northwestern culture area. In Eurasia we see a large swath of languages which seem to have the English pattern of relatively few lexicalized feeling terms, but a very large number of short, lexicalized insulting descriptives. These languages are embedding. At first blush one would seem to have the makings of a pattern- the question is whether it is real, or merely a flight of fantasy. IF there is something going on more than one typological factor may weigh in on the patterning. But I had noticed for some time now that this kind of distribution within the lexicon seemed to be working in tandem with the distribution of ideophones and other forms of iconicity. It would be interesting to know whether some sort of 'general attitude' - empathetic versus adversarial- colored such lexicalization preferences. Even the sound symbolism seems slaved to such things- /m/ in root-final position often has the associated notion of cumulation, gathering. But in Chinese the implication is mostly that this is 'immoral'- that it is drawn without the approval of the previous holder, when considering the entire set. Yet in Austroasiatic one sees instead approval in the same types of situations- tacit allowance of the same act. Someone rummaging through your fridge as either unwelcome theft versus host-sanctioned midnight snack. I would venture that where insults are common generosity may be partly self-promotional, and theft reacted to with viciousness. Where insults are uncommon perhaps generosity is just par for the course, and one earns no special credit for it, and theft would be just another fact of life. Protocapitalist versus protocommunist tendencies. So the question would be whether insulting behaviors are part of a larger strategy of building barriers between individuals and groups, both emotional and economic, leading to stratifications which then show up in the very structure of the language (and/or vice versa). It would also be interesting to know whether other behaviors go along with this- for instance clothing used to demarcate rank, earned merits, etc. (just as accents are in language). Yahgans used very little clothing, which was largely functional except for the occasional decorative trinket- but they had a large repertoire of body and face painting motifs, the latter denoting their feelings. Lack of permanent goods made cumulations of wealth and power impossible, very few specialists as well. It may be that as languages evolve their larger mix evolves too- clothing is becoming more expressive with time in our culture, and less so a mark of class and job. Body decoration is becoming more common and diverse- often expressing emotional state (look at use of makeup). Clothing is literally a barrier, the skin and hair literally an externalization of the body. Similarly I'd expect more emotion terms are on their way- though they may have to be fed from more concrete physiological ones. Well, too much to look at closely in a single lifetime- maybe someone will be motivated to take a stab at it. Jess Tauber From rzs at TDS.NET Tue May 9 19:50:42 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 12:50:42 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Great example,I like that one! Hey Scott you're a good teacher! Mia, you reminded me of something that happened in the 80s when my wife and I lived on the Navajo Res. for 8 years ...how one word said it all... My Navajo brother and I had been riding out by Ganado Lake checking on cows, when off in the distance, we saw a familiar old Ford Mustang make a turn and cross the cattle guard to our place. Carol, my wife was teaching at Ganado Primary School so no one was home. Daniel and I nudged our horses into a comfortable lope. It was Gus a Comanche friend coming for a visit, whose girlfriend was also a teacher at the school there in Ganado in '81. He probably was coming to inspect my new milk-goat i'd told him about. I bought her from Pastor Musgrove who was president of the mission school at Cornfields. When I went to pick her up, I'd asked him if he had learned any Navajo in all his years here on the rez. He told me that he would not let kids even speak Navajo there at the mission school. His idea of school was to educate students so that they would leave the reservation and get good money making jobs in Phoenix or Albuquerque. I noticed the more he spoke, the more his Navajo housekeeper started slamming things as she was dusting and looking agitated...but that was a few days ago and I bought the goat. We rode up. The first thing i noticed was the gate to the pen was ajar and the goat was gone! I dismounted and headed for the pen, noticing sheep tracks all over the place...and in the sandy soil were the clear footprints of an adult that led right into the pen! Someone had stolen my goat! I was furious and I had a good notion who it was. When we had first moved to that old stone house I'd found a guy and his girlfriend sitting beneath the windmill that supplied the water to our house. They were splashing their hot feet in the tank to cool off while out herding sheep. They seemed suprised that we drank that water. Well, Gus and Daniel decided they'd track the sheep, while I rode straight towards his "family camp". I dug my heels in the horse, flew over the sandy hills ,lunging across the washes, slapping past the sagebrush and pinions...I was a warrior, and I had fire in my veins! I paid good money for that goat. I paid 70 dollars, the exact amount I had just pawned my wedding ring for. I never wore it anyway and figured a goat was alot more practical and Carol didn't mind. The more I raced the more furious I became. I was young and ready for war! I came over a rise and past the empty sheep pens and rode straight up to the hogan where cedar smoke was curling from the stove pipe. Culturally it was rude to walk up and start knocking on a door, but i was mad, I knocked, and an old grandmother came to the door. My Navajo wasn't that great, but I said Yah'at'eeh shi mah ...uhh... shi t'lizi jadii usteen! I greeted her and told her my t'lizi jadii "goat-antelope",(Navajo word for milk-goat) was missing. It was an old word and she looked suprised that a non-Navajo was now using it. I heard some dogs barking someone was coming behind the hogan so I left her and got back on the horse and went to meet 'the thief'. He came walking up alone kinda slowly and i rode up charging, "Did you steal my goat?!" "No..."He sounded insulted," I didn't steal your goat!" But i had the evidence! "I saw your tracks all over and even in the pen!" He was upset,"that goat kept jumping on the fence crying when he saw the sheep, and he just pushed the gate open. So I grabbed her horns and put him back in and shut the gate...but he kept doing that, all the time! Then when I took the sheep away over the hill...here he comes, running again!" So i just let her stay with the sheep. I was going to bring him back in the pick-up tonight, when i put the sheep in our pen. (Navajo is not gender specific..."his, her" ...so a traditional speaking the foreign english sometimes will use both terms in the same sentence) I felt like a deflated balloon because I knew he was telling the truth...and I was the fool here now. Oh yeah...why else would his tracks be INSIDE the pen? We went together to find the sheep and there was Gus and Daniel with the goat on a rope. They had tried to chase her home but it would not leave the herd. She was still fighting! We untied her and let her run with the angoras and sheep. That evening I drove up to the hogan. They had her tied up and she was calmly waiting outside. I was invited in. The whole family was watching quietly in the dim light of the kerosene lamp. I apologized and thanked them for taking care of it...As i was heading for the door the old grandma spoke with a twinkle in her eye, "t'lizii jaadi" (goat-antelope) we all laughed But her word was more than just a little playful tease, it was a way of erasing tension that might linger Between any of us...and it was a peace that stayed. Richard On 5/9/06 9:12 AM, "Scott DeLancey" wrote: > On Tue, 9 May 2006, Richard Smith wrote: > >> I'm no linguist so I have a question. >> Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? >> I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed >> (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? > > Lack of a word means that the concept isn't something speakers of the > language talk about much. Your knee is something you need to talk about-- > it gets bumped, you kneel on it, you break things over it, you use it > to nudge doors open--but the back of the knee isn't something that comes > up much in conversation, so there's no need for a word for it (as you > say, unless you're an orthopedic surgeon of some such). > > For example--in a Himalayan language I'm studying I recently came across > a word that means 'the feeling you have when you're on a crew or team > and somebody else keeps slacking off and not pulling their weight'. > Now, this, I'm sure, is a feeling we're all familiar with. But can you > think of a word for it? We don't have one. English, compared with a lot > of other languages, doesn't have a lot of vocabulary for feelings. Why? > Well, it's not something we talk about. In fact, it's *notoriously* > something we don't talk about, it's one of the things that speakers of > other languages often comment on about English. > Notice we do have ways of talking about the situation, but they're > all about that guy. I've got plenty of names to call him (goof-off, > goldbrick, slacker) and ways to refer to what he's doing (not pulling > his weight, slacking off), but in English I don't have a word for how > the situation makes me feel, because in English feelings aren't something > we talk about. > > Scott DeLancey > Department of Linguistics > 1290 University of Oregon > Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA > > delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu > http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 9 18:12:07 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 12:12:07 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: What a great story! I had to remind myself at several places that this was you writing, because it seemed like a fiction novel. :-) Super storytelling. But your story reveals an assumption most people just slide over, one that says, In order to get good jobs, you have to speak English and live in a big city. With the internet, and with the improving awareness of the importance and value of language and culture, this is no longer true :-) Great story, Richard! T'lizii jaadi. Actually, though, I don't think that t'lizii has much to do with the English "goat"; but it has everything to do with the English "dark brown". Barred-l-izhin is black. :-). This is another way in which words have deep relational connections. mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 1:51 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language Great example,I like that one! Hey Scott you're a good teacher! Mia, you reminded me of something that happened in the 80s when my wife and I lived on the Navajo Res. for 8 years ...how one word said it all... My Navajo brother and I had been riding out by Ganado Lake checking on cows, when off in the distance, we saw a familiar old Ford Mustang make a turn and cross the cattle guard to our place. Carol, my wife was teaching at Ganado Primary School so no one was home. Daniel and I nudged our horses into a comfortable lope. It was Gus a Comanche friend coming for a visit, whose girlfriend was also a teacher at the school there in Ganado in '81. He probably was coming to inspect my new milk-goat i'd told him about. I bought her from Pastor Musgrove who was president of the mission school at Cornfields. When I went to pick her up, I'd asked him if he had learned any Navajo in all his years here on the rez. He told me that he would not let kids even speak Navajo there at the mission school. His idea of school was to educate students so that they would leave the reservation and get good money making jobs in Phoenix or Albuquerque. I noticed the more he spoke, the more his Navajo housekeeper started slamming things as she was dusting and looking agitated...but that was a few days ago and I bought the goat. We rode up. The first thing i noticed was the gate to the pen was ajar and the goat was gone! I dismounted and headed for the pen, noticing sheep tracks all over the place...and in the sandy soil were the clear footprints of an adult that led right into the pen! Someone had stolen my goat! I was furious and I had a good notion who it was. When we had first moved to that old stone house I'd found a guy and his girlfriend sitting beneath the windmill that supplied the water to our house. They were splashing their hot feet in the tank to cool off while out herding sheep. They seemed suprised that we drank that water. Well, Gus and Daniel decided they'd track the sheep, while I rode straight towards his "family camp". I dug my heels in the horse, flew over the sandy hills ,lunging across the washes, slapping past the sagebrush and pinions...I was a warrior, and I had fire in my veins! I paid good money for that goat. I paid 70 dollars, the exact amount I had just pawned my wedding ring for. I never wore it anyway and figured a goat was alot more practical and Carol didn't mind. The more I raced the more furious I became. I was young and ready for war! I came over a rise and past the empty sheep pens and rode straight up to the hogan where cedar smoke was curling from the stove pipe. Culturally it was rude to walk up and start knocking on a door, but i was mad, I knocked, and an old grandmother came to the door. My Navajo wasn't that great, but I said Yah'at'eeh shi mah ...uhh... shi t'lizi jadii usteen! I greeted her and told her my t'lizi jadii "goat-antelope",(Navajo word for milk-goat) was missing. It was an old word and she looked suprised that a non-Navajo was now using it. I heard some dogs barking someone was coming behind the hogan so I left her and got back on the horse and went to meet 'the thief'. He came walking up alone kinda slowly and i rode up charging, "Did you steal my goat?!" "No..."He sounded insulted," I didn't steal your goat!" But i had the evidence! "I saw your tracks all over and even in the pen!" He was upset,"that goat kept jumping on the fence crying when he saw the sheep, and he just pushed the gate open. So I grabbed her horns and put him back in and shut the gate...but he kept doing that, all the time! Then when I took the sheep away over the hill...here he comes, running again!" So i just let her stay with the sheep. I was going to bring him back in the pick-up tonight, when i put the sheep in our pen. (Navajo is not gender specific..."his, her" ...so a traditional speaking the foreign english sometimes will use both terms in the same sentence) I felt like a deflated balloon because I knew he was telling the truth...and I was the fool here now. Oh yeah...why else would his tracks be INSIDE the pen? We went together to find the sheep and there was Gus and Daniel with the goat on a rope. They had tried to chase her home but it would not leave the herd. She was still fighting! We untied her and let her run with the angoras and sheep. That evening I drove up to the hogan. They had her tied up and she was calmly waiting outside. I was invited in. The whole family was watching quietly in the dim light of the kerosene lamp. I apologized and thanked them for taking care of it...As i was heading for the door the old grandma spoke with a twinkle in her eye, "t'lizii jaadi" (goat-antelope) we all laughed But her word was more than just a little playful tease, it was a way of erasing tension that might linger Between any of us...and it was a peace that stayed. Richard On 5/9/06 9:12 AM, "Scott DeLancey" wrote: > On Tue, 9 May 2006, Richard Smith wrote: > >> I'm no linguist so I have a question. >> Does the "lack" of a word for something mean it does not exist for a people? >> I know where my "knee" is...but because the place behind the knee is unnamed >> (except for some surgeons lingo) Does that place not exist? > > Lack of a word means that the concept isn't something speakers of the > language talk about much. Your knee is something you need to talk about-- > it gets bumped, you kneel on it, you break things over it, you use it > to nudge doors open--but the back of the knee isn't something that comes > up much in conversation, so there's no need for a word for it (as you > say, unless you're an orthopedic surgeon of some such). > > For example--in a Himalayan language I'm studying I recently came across > a word that means 'the feeling you have when you're on a crew or team > and somebody else keeps slacking off and not pulling their weight'. > Now, this, I'm sure, is a feeling we're all familiar with. But can you > think of a word for it? We don't have one. English, compared with a lot > of other languages, doesn't have a lot of vocabulary for feelings. Why? > Well, it's not something we talk about. In fact, it's *notoriously* > something we don't talk about, it's one of the things that speakers of > other languages often comment on about English. > Notice we do have ways of talking about the situation, but they're > all about that guy. I've got plenty of names to call him (goof-off, > goldbrick, slacker) and ways to refer to what he's doing (not pulling > his weight, slacking off), but in English I don't have a word for how > the situation makes me feel, because in English feelings aren't something > we talk about. > > Scott DeLancey > Department of Linguistics > 1290 University of Oregon > Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA > > delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu > http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 9 19:39:06 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 12:39:06 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <32227285.1147196905717.JavaMail.root@elwamui-mouette.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Message-ID: On Tue, 9 May 2006, jess tauber wrote: > It would be interesting to know whether some sort of 'general attitude' - > empathetic versus adversarial- colored such lexicalization preferences. Indeed it would, but it's pretty tricky business, trying to say stuff like this about a language or culture that you know only from the outside. It's very easy--way too easy--to speculate about such stuff, very very hard to say anything that's substantial and not just circular (i.e. "they have a word for it so it's important to them, so that's why they have a word for it"). That's why, encountering something like the difference between English and Kurtoep that I mentioned before, I feel on much stronger ground thinking about what it says about English, where I know the language and culture as thoroughly as anyone, and a lot shakier trying to say anything about Kurtoep culture. That would be easy, too, from this one fact we could go off on wild flights of fancy about their attitude toward cooperation and responsibility, and differences in where Kurtoep and English speakers locate blame, and all kinds of stuff. But the fact is, I don't know Kurtoep, I've never been there, I've only ever met one speaker of the language, I really don't have any business telling a lot of tall tales about them. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From jenn2b4 at HOTMAIL.COM Tue May 9 21:35:31 2006 From: jenn2b4 at HOTMAIL.COM (Jennifer Henderson) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 15:35:31 -0600 Subject: Indigenous math In-Reply-To: <39a679e20604220651x5008a78ak9639cab0dccbe125@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: As I continue to teach elementary Native students (on the rez) in a public school setting. My students struggle with some of the basic westernized numeric operation. Most of my students had a 20% chance of solving a double digit muliplication problem by traditional forms. But this year we introduced an Egyptian method of solving multiplication. And now most of my students have a 98% change of solving the problems correctly. Pro: alternative non-westernized methods do help native students as developing learners. Con: The No Child Left Behind Law has left little opportunity for experimentation with various methods of teaching curriculum. NCLB states that curriculum must be "research based". I am seeing less qualitative research backing our curriculum and most quantifiable data driven curriculum. So the school are buying "packaged" curriculum developed by publishing companies with billion dollar marketing power. Our school (3,4,5,6 grades) tries to appliy the same reading, math, and writing curriculum programs to all the students. Layer that with frequent computerized monitored assessments, then we are seeing some potentially bright native students falling through the cracks at an earlier age. >From: Susan Penfield >Reply-To: Indigenous Languages and Technology >To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU >Subject: Re: [ILAT] Indigenous math >Date: Sat, 22 Apr 2006 06:51:22 -0700 > >Thanks Rudy, Jess and Mia >This discussion is very interesting but, to me, what it underscores is the >need to have more fluent, trained Native teachers involved in curriculum >development. (an old refrain...) > >Years ago, I was heavily involved with training teachers for public schools >which served tribal communities. These cullturally-appropriate math stories >were shared, and may have served to raise awareness, but did little to >really change the way math was taught overall. The only places where real >active involvement and inclusion of culturally grounded math activities >happened were in the rare classrooms where the teacher was a member of the >community. > >Although the numbers of certified Native American teachers have increased >since then, there are still not nearly enough and it is still such an up >hill battle for them to make substantial changes to established and, now, >standardized test-driven curricula of most schools. > >Certainly, the charter school movement offers more potential for the >inclusion of culturally-appropriate and guided math activities and >certainly >there are some such curricula developed for non-public schools serving >reservation communities, but it is still a difficult task to lay out more >than a few isolated lessons, i.e., establish a complete set of lessons, >which reflect a range of culturally-grounded math activities. > > >Susan > > >On 4/22/06, jess tauber wrote: > > > > With regard to Rudy's post and mine, just wondering whether language >TYPE > > might also have any relevance as to what kind of mathematical knowledge >and > > operations might be found, statistically, in a normal cultural setting >(that > > is unmodified by formal Western-style or other imposed-from-outside > > training)- how much does level of culture influence? > > > > Jess Tauber > > > > > >-- >Susan D. Penfield, Ph.D. > >Faculty Affiliations: > Department of English (Primary) > American Indian Language > Development Institute > Department of Linguistics > Second Language Acquistion and > Teaching Ph.D. Program > Dept. of Language,Reading and Culture > >Phone for messages: (520) 621-1836 From rzs at TDS.NET Tue May 9 23:58:02 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 16:58:02 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <003701c67394$17f787d0$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: Mia, Yeah that guy at that mission really got under my skin too Plus he didn't even mention to me that the goat always had birthing troubles.... (slash l)izhin... It never dawned on me that the name for "goat" might be related to the color we call "black" t'oh daaht'si (maybe!) And as the descriptive words for coins, like: (slash-l)ichiiegii' (the red one) "penny" Or the geometric: Hoghan nimazii (house-the round kind) It might be Navajo slang...but I like the word used for "elephant" which I guess roughly translates as "the one who ropes his food" Or one slang used for balogna : "gh?malii bi kwos" (mormon neck) I like the Navajo tongue twisters the best But I'd have one heck of a time spelling them Without being able to type slashed ls ! richard On 5/9/06 11:12 AM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > What a great story! I had to remind myself at several places that this was > you writing, because it seemed like a fiction novel. :-) Super storytelling. > > > But your story reveals an assumption most people just slide over, one that > says, In order to get good jobs, you have to speak English and live in a big > city. With the internet, and with the improving awareness of the importance > and value of language and culture, this is no longer true :-) > > Great story, Richard! T'lizii jaadi. Actually, though, I don't think that > t'lizii has much to do with the English "goat"; but it has everything to do > with the English "dark brown". Barred-l-izhin is black. :-). This is another > way in which words have deep relational connections. > > mia From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 9 22:56:45 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 16:56:45 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Do you have Outlook? If you do, I can fix the slash-l problem. And the nasalized, rising tone vowels, also. . . . Plus we could test the fonts as an email option. That would certainly help me a lot. :-) Whatcha think? -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Richard Smith Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 5:58 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language Mia, Yeah that guy at that mission really got under my skin too Plus he didn't even mention to me that the goat always had birthing troubles.... (slash l)izhin... It never dawned on me that the name for "goat" might be related to the color we call "black" t'oh daaht'si (maybe!) And as the descriptive words for coins, like: (slash-l)ichiiegii' (the red one) "penny" Or the geometric: Hoghan nimazii (house-the round kind) It might be Navajo slang...but I like the word used for "elephant" which I guess roughly translates as "the one who ropes his food" Or one slang used for balogna : "gh?malii bi kwos" (mormon neck) I like the Navajo tongue twisters the best But I'd have one heck of a time spelling them Without being able to type slashed ls ! richard On 5/9/06 11:12 AM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > What a great story! I had to remind myself at several places that this was > you writing, because it seemed like a fiction novel. :-) Super storytelling. > > > But your story reveals an assumption most people just slide over, one that > says, In order to get good jobs, you have to speak English and live in a big > city. With the internet, and with the improving awareness of the importance > and value of language and culture, this is no longer true :-) > > Great story, Richard! T'lizii jaadi. Actually, though, I don't think that > t'lizii has much to do with the English "goat"; but it has everything to do > with the English "dark brown". Barred-l-izhin is black. :-). This is another > way in which words have deep relational connections. > > mia From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 10 04:25:48 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:25:48 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <005801c673bb$dc4cff30$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: No... I don't have Outlook ...shucks I'm on an iMac10 I use Entourage...its kinda like Outlook... ? For my Wyandot writing I do have a special keyboard installed for nasal hooks and rising tones ...we have glottal stops too but always after vowels unlike Navajo consonant stops k'a t'a ts'a Is there really a font I can install for emailing Din?h Bizaad ? yeah lets try to figure this out! Do you have the huge Navajo dictionary "ALCHINI BI NAALTSOOSTSOH" ? It was published 1983 Alice Neundorf its great with all those hundreds of hand drawn illustrations I love to sit with Shi Mah Hubbard in Ganado and go through it with her She gets a real good laugh from those drawings Haagoshil?h rz On 5/9/06 3:56 PM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > Do you have Outlook? > > If you do, I can fix the slash-l problem. And the nasalized, rising tone > vowels, also. . . . > > Plus we could test the fonts as an email option. That would certainly help > me a lot. :-) Whatcha think? From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 10 04:44:12 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:44:12 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: yeah Jan, You found some I missed! Yes,planning does take some projection - using present tenses even I could do that "Ok we take this guy out and put some arrows in him. we show the moon he traps our words on white bark" rzs On 5/9/06 8:06 AM, "Jan Tucker" wrote: > Richard, > > Great questions! I had problems too with the discussion of "past-tense" and > the illustrations such as how thrilled the people are to see someone coming > down the path as some kind of example of living in the present only. Then > they do remember their parents, and grandparents. They certainly planned to > kill the missionary in the future during the full moon didn't they? From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 04:35:00 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:35:00 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: After reading the article, I have to root for the Pirah? here as I am ever more convinced that as more and more indigenous languages become documented that the natural genius of human language will become evident.? With 6,000 (est.) languages in the world we seem to know so little about how or why a language should be in our mouth making sounds but we do pretty good when it does.? Too it seems most appropriate now that it takes a fairly remote indigenous speech community to revolutionize the way we think about language!? I do hope that the Pirah? continue to remain Pirah? as I do not wish them to be like us even though Universal Grammar says it should be so and linguists labor to make it so.? Phil Cash Cash ....>~~~@>.... -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From phonosemantics at EARTHLINK.NET Wed May 10 06:48:11 2006 From: phonosemantics at EARTHLINK.NET (jess tauber) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 02:48:11 -0400 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language Message-ID: Universal Grammar? UG(h)! There may be a universal supergrammar, but my own guess is that it will be quite a bit vaster than Chomsky envisions, with myriad typological interconnections, not merely linear, but some cyclic as well (thus no particular origin point). Chomsky has nothing to say about how sound symbolism, ideophones, etc. are to be dealt with, or much about pragmatics, or grammaticalization, etc. The situation reminds me very much of that of physics before the discovery of radioactivity, which opened up a whole new world. So sure were physicists that they had discovered all that there was to discover that prospective students were being warned off. The story of the drunk looking for his keys under the lamp also comes to mind... In a cyclic system, utilizing fixed processing resources, no language is more or less advanced than any other- just at different points in a hierarchical chain that only SEEMS linear when you don't look at the entire picture. I'm sure both structuralists and functionalists will object to different parts of this scenario. So language A doesn't seem to have trait B- so what? It may have trait C which language D lacks. Maybe speakers of D overvalue its traits and assume universality, and try to force square pegs into round holes by various means. So everyone has to be just like us? Sounds like the UG-ly American syndrome to me. Jess Tauber From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Wed May 10 14:00:22 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 08:00:22 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <20060509213500.v8usssw808oosc4g@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: * even though Universal Grammar says it should be so and linguists labor to make it so If you look at the exceptions to the UG rules, and the exceptions to the exceptions, and the general applicability of UG to PIE languages, and you incorporate the understanding that Chomsky wanted to be a programmer, the ?Rules? of UG become very suspect. Story: Chomsky was speaking at UNM in Albuquerque here in NM, and he was saying that all languages contain all the words that describe the world. It was a pretty sweeping statement, and a person in the audience asked, Does that mean that every language has words for ?carburetor?? , the implication being of course that since words needed to be invented, they couldn?t all be encapsulated just waiting to be activated or awakened. :-) And OF COURSE PIE languages are going to look similar in UG: They are all derived from the same root :-) ?Course, people don?t tell you this. Everyone is so baffled by Chomsky and his metanarrative, that they don?t feel that what they see is worth putting forth. ?Cept of course for little renegades like me, who have actually BEEN to MIT, who actually KNOW Minsky, and Yngve, and lots of other people involved in the various projects. Although I haven?t actually had the misfortune of having to deal with Chomsky face to face. People put him in a building far, far away. The man is driven, and I think between him and the one-armed man, they have done more damage to indigenous languages than maybe even religion. Good morning everyone, guess I?m feeling feisty in the beautiful cool air. But like Mihesuah writes, someone has to start telling the truth. The upshot of UG, by the way, is that it doesn?t work. UG was supposed to process language for the military. And the military actually CARE whether stuff works or not. NOT. :-) Mia _____ From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of phil cash cash Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2006 10:35 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language After reading the article, I have to root for the Pirah? here as I am ever more convinced that as more and more indigenous languages become documented that the natural genius of human language will become evident. With 6,000 (est.) languages in the world we seem to know so little about how or why a language should be in our mouth making sounds but we do pretty good when it does. Too it seems most appropriate now that it takes a fairly remote indigenous speech community to revolutionize the way we think about language! I do hope that the Pirah? continue to remain Pirah? as I do not wish them to be like us even though Universal Grammar says it should be so and linguists labor to make it so. Phil Cash Cash ....>~~~@>.... -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Wed May 10 15:37:48 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 08:37:48 -0700 Subject: Indigenous math In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Check Out Chisenbop from Korea http://www.cs.iupui.edu/~aharris/basicComputing/bc5a.html On May 9, 2006, at 2:35 PM, Jennifer Henderson wrote: As I continue to teach elementary Native students (on the rez) in a public school setting. My students struggle with some of the basic westernized numeric operation. Most of my students had a 20% chance of solving a double digit muliplication problem by traditional forms. But this year we introduced an Egyptian method of solving multiplication. And now most of my students have a 98% change of solving the problems correctly. Pro: alternative non-westernized methods do help native students as developing learners. Con: The No Child Left Behind Law has left little opportunity for experimentation with various methods of teaching curriculum. NCLB states that curriculum must be "research based". I am seeing less qualitative research backing our curriculum and most quantifiable data driven curriculum. So the school are buying "packaged" curriculum developed by publishing companies with billion dollar marketing power. Our school (3,4,5,6 grades) tries to appliy the same reading, math, and writing curriculum programs to all the students. Layer that with frequent computerized monitored assessments, then we are seeing some potentially bright native students falling through the cracks at an earlier age. > From: Susan Penfield > Reply-To: Indigenous Languages and Technology > > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Indigenous math > Date: Sat, 22 Apr 2006 06:51:22 -0700 > > Thanks Rudy, Jess and Mia > This discussion is very interesting but, to me, what it underscores > is the > need to have more fluent, trained Native teachers involved in > curriculum > development. (an old refrain...) > > Years ago, I was heavily involved with training teachers for public > schools > which served tribal communities. These cullturally-appropriate math > stories > were shared, and may have served to raise awareness, but did little to > really change the way math was taught overall. The only places > where real > active involvement and inclusion of culturally grounded math > activities > happened were in the rare classrooms where the teacher was a member > of the > community. > > Although the numbers of certified Native American teachers have > increased > since then, there are still not nearly enough and it is still such > an up > hill battle for them to make substantial changes to established > and, now, > standardized test-driven curricula of most schools. > > Certainly, the charter school movement offers more potential for the > inclusion of culturally-appropriate and guided math activities and > certainly > there are some such curricula developed for non-public schools serving > reservation communities, but it is still a difficult task to lay > out more > than a few isolated lessons, i.e., establish a complete set of > lessons, > which reflect a range of culturally-grounded math activities. > > > Susan > > > On 4/22/06, jess tauber wrote: > > > > With regard to Rudy's post and mine, just wondering whether > language TYPE > > might also have any relevance as to what kind of mathematical > knowledge and > > operations might be found, statistically, in a normal cultural > setting (that > > is unmodified by formal Western-style or other imposed-from-outside > > training)- how much does level of culture influence? > > > > Jess Tauber > > > > > > -- > Susan D. Penfield, Ph.D. > > Faculty Affiliations: > Department of English (Primary) > American Indian Language > Development Institute > Department of Linguistics > Second Language Acquistion and > Teaching Ph.D. Program > Dept. of Language,Reading and Culture > > Phone for messages: (520) 621-1836 From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Wed May 10 15:52:20 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 08:52:20 -0700 Subject: Call for Artists - Relations Exhibition at IAIA Message-ID: __________________________________________________________ Call for digital submissions for the RELATIONS exhibition __________________________________________________________ Please Note: If you are unable to participate in this project, please forward this email to others who might be able to. It is our goal to create a statement that involves Indigenous artists from throughout the world. Please help us spread the word. Introduction The RELATIONS exhibition is an inaugural biennial of contemporary Indigenous art, to be held at the Institute of American Indian Arts Museum in Santa Fe beginning in July 2006. The project, of which the exhibition is the focal point, is intended to stimulate ongoing global dialogue on the need for self-determination in Indigenous art, to emphasize the critical role of Indigenous artists in creating a sustainable future for Indigenous people, and to promote a more inclusive public and scholarly understanding of art and human creativity. The RELATIONS project is not being curated in the typical manner. Instead, there are a core group of artists (presently including Joseph Sanchez, Bob Haozous, Rocky Ka'iouliokahihikolo'Ehu Jensen, Art Oomittuk, Harry Fonseca, Roxanne Swentzell, Rose Simpson, Michah Wesley, Simon Ortiz, Sara Ortiz, Alex Janvier, Jake Fragua, and Anthony Dieter) who are working collaboratively on the project, as both artists and conceptual developers. The inaugural RELATIONS exhibition is intended to stimulate worldwide response ? from both the Indigenous and non-Indigenous world. The RELATIONS project is ongoing. The resulting discourse will, in turn, inform the next RELATIONS biennial exhibition (2008), as well as workshops, symposia, and lectures, during the intervening period. How will the exhibition be structured? RELATIONS has five major components: 1) interior and exterior installations in the IAIA Museum galleries; 2) a multimedia "embassy" space that serves to connect Indigenous artists and cultural leaders from around the world; 3) changing digital art installations; 4) an active schedule of programs ? dialogues, cultural protocol, performances of music and dance; 5) web and print-based resources which serve to disseminate various aspects of the Indigenous dialogue that has led up to the RELATIONS project. What countries will be represented in the exhibition? The core group of artists represents twelve Indigenous nations from North America and Hawaii. The complete list of participating artists is still in development. By the time the exhibition opens, we expect that it will include the work of 100 artists, representing Indigenous nations in the Americas, Europe, Africa , Asia, and Oceania. Will the show travel? At this time, there are no confirmed plans for the exhibition to travel. Will there be a catalog? There won't be a conventional catalog, but instead a companion publication featuring the extensive, seminal dialogue that has occurred between the artists as they have developed the RELATIONS project. Since many of the works will be based in digital media, and other installations which will be completed close to the opening date, we are anticipating that the publication will be bundled with an DVD, which will serve as a digital checklist. What is the importance of the RELATIONS exhibition, relative to other biennial exhibitions, in Santa Fe and beyond? The RELATIONS exhibition is a challenge to mainstream art exhibitions and biennials, and dominant western notions of art ? which have rarified art, and tended to turn it into an elite commercial enterprise. The artists involved in the RELATIONS project seek to move away from such biases, toward an Indigenous understanding of art, in which creativity is an integral aspect of life, for everyone. In doing so, the RELATIONS artists also hope to begin to propose, for everyone, new ways of understanding art ? ways that are far more inclusive of the infinitely diverse multicultural creativity that exists in the world. About the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) www.iaiamuseum.org Museum. The IAIA Museum in Santa Fe and the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) in Washington and New York are the two leading national institutions devoted to Native American art and culture. While NMAI encompasses thousands of years of art and culture in the Americas, it is the special role of the IAIA Museum to showcase the contemporary art of Native America and its connection to Indigenous art movements around the world, seeking to bring together the best and brightest Native American and Indigenous artists and cultural leaders for residencies, lectures, demonstrations, and performances. In addition to this national role, the IAIA Museum serves as a vital hub in global network of indigenous art and culture. The Museum provides training and experience for students who want to pursue careers in museums and the arts. Finally, it plays a critical role as a meeting place between the Native and non-Native worlds, a place where education and dialogue can take place in a humane, respectful atmosphere. The Museum is located in downtown Santa Fe, at 108 Cathedral Place. Telephone 505-983-8900 . Academic Campus. A Tribal college and 1994 Land Grant Institution, the Institute of American Indian Arts, throughout its history, has gained national and international recognition, respect and acclaim as the creative stimulus for the contemporary Indian art movement. The United States Congress has declared it a national treasure. Both UNESCO and the International Association of Art view IAIA as one of the most significant arts and cultural education institutions in the world. Founded as a secondary school in 1962 by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, today, the Institute is an accredited baccalaureate institution offering degrees in Creative Writing, Indigenous Studies, Museum Studies Studio Arts, and Visual Communication at its 140-acre academic campus located south of Santa Fe, New Mexico . A leader in Indian arts education for 42 years, IAIA has made a difference in the lives of more than 4,000 students. The academic campus is located at 83 Avan Nu Po Road, twelve miles south of Santa Fe center. Telephone 505-424-2351 __________________________________________________________ Call for digital submissions for the RELATIONS exhibition __________________________________________________________ HOW TO PARTICIPATE: We Need Your Help!!!! Your active participation in the exhibition is critical to the whole concept of a world wide Indigenous dialogue. We want the RELATIONS Project to demonstrate that there is a vital network of involved Indigenous people in the world, who share a common concern for Indigenous self-determination. RELATIONS asks participating artists to reanalyze their contemporary juxtaposition as world citizens. We will consider all material in any medium (digital images, poetry, prose, statements, quotes, Indigenous words, audio and video art) that reflect the various concepts highlighted by the RELATIONS project (see below for details). Submissions should address and speak to the indigenous world view that everything is related as opposed to Western thought of individualism. We would like you to share your thoughts on prayer, breath, identity, elders, youth and the future of Indigenous peoples. What is the future for our children? Works will be reviewed by the core team of artists. EMAIL SUBMISSION CRITERIA: All media must be supplied by email (please email large files as attachments) or on CD or DVD. Deadline for submissions is June 7, 2006 . We will accept submissions after this date for consideration in the catalog but they will not be included in the exhibition. All submissions must be accompanied by a statement authorizing use of the material in the exhibition, catalog, and promotional materials. If accepted, a separate contract may be sent to you. We are not able to return any work that is submitted however we will pay a modest honorarium for work we do accept (see below). Please include in your email submission a valid mailing address. Please include English translations if your submission is written in your Indigenous language. We reserve the right to excerpt material from large text. Payments of honoraria will be dispersed during June and July, 2006. Media type Themes Format Honoraria for ACCEPTED submissions Digital pictures Indigenous views of the world, All our Relatives (rocks, plants, birds, people, animals, sky, etc.) 300 dpi TIF or JPEG $25 US for each image Poetry and original prose/statements (must include translations if not English) Prayer Breath Identity Elders and youth Future of Indigenous People Meaning of Indigenous Names of Indigenous People WORD, RTF, or ASCII file $2 per word for poetry and quotes of 50 words or less $1 per word for essays and other works of more than 50 words Quotes (must be attributed, must include translations if not English) Words in Indigenous Language (must include translations) Audio mixes 5 to 10 separate audio tracks, each 30 sec to 5 min length, consisting of spoken words, chant, song, instrumental music, or synthetic compositions that address one or more of the following themes, from an Indigenous perspective: Prayer Breath Identity Elders and youth Future of Indigenous People Meaning of Indigenous Names of Indigenous People MP3 or .wav file $5 per 30 sec segment (for example, 5 x 2 min segments = 5 x $20 = $100.) Sounds of new life Audio recordings of first sounds of Indigenous babies ? first breath, cries, or heartbeat MP3 or .wav file $5 per 30 sec segment (for example, 5 x 2 min segments = $100. Video art Video art, including short subjects or full length videos, dealing with: Prayer Breath Identity Elders and youth Future of Indigenous People Meaning of Indigenous Names of Indigenous People Standard DVD $5 per 30 sec segment (10 min video = $100) In Addition, we are compiling an edited volume of essays and texts to accompany the exhibition. If you have written short or medium length essays dealing with the RELATIONS themes (Prayer, Breath, Identity, Elders and youth, The Future of Indigenous People, The Meaning of Indigenous, The Names of Indigenous People), OR IF YOU ARE AWARE OF ESSAYS WRITTEN BY OTHERS that are especially relevant to this project, PLEASE let us know. All email responses to this call for submittals should be sent to IAIARELATIONS at gmail.com Thank you for your time and consideration, from the entire RELATIONS team. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From manuela_noske at HOTMAIL.COM Wed May 10 16:27:42 2006 From: manuela_noske at HOTMAIL.COM (Manuela Noske) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 09:27:42 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language Message-ID: Incidentally, you might want to check out this website here if you need a font for Din?h Bizaad that is compatible with different platforms and applications. Chris Harvey owns the site; he specializes in creating Unicode fonts and keyboard lay-outs for different Native American and First Nations languages. He has a lot of useful information and stuff on that site! http://www.languagegeek.com/ Manuela ---------------------------------------- > Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:25:48 -0700 > From: rzs at TDS.NET > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > > No... I don't have Outlook ...shucks > I'm on an iMac10 I use Entourage...its kinda like Outlook... ? > > For my Wyandot writing I do have a special keyboard installed for nasal > hooks and rising tones ...we have glottal stops too but always after vowels > unlike Navajo consonant stops k'a t'a ts'a > > Is there really a font I can install for emailing Din?h Bizaad ? > yeah lets try to figure this out! > > Do you have the huge Navajo dictionary "ALCHINI BI NAALTSOOSTSOH" ? > It was published 1983 Alice Neundorf > its great with all those hundreds of hand drawn illustrations > I love to sit with Shi Mah Hubbard in Ganado and go through it with her > She gets a real good laugh from those drawings > > Haagoshil?h > rz > > On 5/9/06 3:56 PM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > > > Do you have Outlook? > > > > If you do, I can fix the slash-l problem. And the nasalized, rising tone > > vowels, also. . . . > > > > Plus we could test the fonts as an email option. That would certainly help > > me a lot. :-) Whatcha think? _________________________________________________________________ Enter the Windows Live Mail beta sweepstakes http://www.imagine-msn.com/minisites/sweepstakes/mail/register.aspx From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Wed May 10 16:44:15 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 10:44:15 -0600 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Thanks, Manuela, but I made my own. Unicode doesn't support all the characters for Athapascan. I am more concerned that I have spell-check and dictionary support in Microsoft Office, as well as support for the various graphics programs I used to build my materials, than that I have partial support on various platforms. I use tool bars, using the Microsoft macro function, rather than physical keyboards. :-) Thanks for thinking of me. Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Manuela Noske Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2006 10:28 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language Incidentally, you might want to check out this website here if you need a font for Din?h Bizaad that is compatible with different platforms and applications. Chris Harvey owns the site; he specializes in creating Unicode fonts and keyboard lay-outs for different Native American and First Nations languages. He has a lot of useful information and stuff on that site! http://www.languagegeek.com/ Manuela ---------------------------------------- > Date: Tue, 9 May 2006 21:25:48 -0700 > From: rzs at TDS.NET > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Unlocking the secret sounds of language > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > > No... I don't have Outlook ...shucks > I'm on an iMac10 I use Entourage...its kinda like Outlook... ? > > For my Wyandot writing I do have a special keyboard installed for nasal > hooks and rising tones ...we have glottal stops too but always after vowels > unlike Navajo consonant stops k'a t'a ts'a > > Is there really a font I can install for emailing Din?h Bizaad ? > yeah lets try to figure this out! > > Do you have the huge Navajo dictionary "ALCHINI BI NAALTSOOSTSOH" ? > It was published 1983 Alice Neundorf > its great with all those hundreds of hand drawn illustrations > I love to sit with Shi Mah Hubbard in Ganado and go through it with her > She gets a real good laugh from those drawings > > Haagoshil?h > rz > > On 5/9/06 3:56 PM, "Mia Kalish" wrote: > > > Do you have Outlook? > > > > If you do, I can fix the slash-l problem. And the nasalized, rising tone > > vowels, also. . . . > > > > Plus we could test the fonts as an email option. That would certainly help > > me a lot. :-) Whatcha think? _________________________________________________________________ Enter the Windows Live Mail beta sweepstakes http://www.imagine-msn.com/minisites/sweepstakes/mail/register.aspx From anggarrgoon at GMAIL.COM Wed May 10 16:49:06 2006 From: anggarrgoon at GMAIL.COM (Claire Bowern) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 11:49:06 -0500 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <00aa01c67450$fd5faf70$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: Which characters aren't supported? Even in the private use area for fonts like Chris Harvey's? (which I really like because it's the only nice looking unicode font that has both underlined letters for Yolngu retroflection AND the right version of capital engma) Claire Mia Kalish wrote: > Thanks, Manuela, but I made my own. Unicode doesn't support all the > characters for Athapascan. I am more concerned that I have spell-check and > dictionary support in Microsoft Office, as well as support for the various > graphics programs I used to build my materials, than that I have partial > support on various platforms. I use tool bars, using the Microsoft macro > function, rather than physical keyboards. :-) > > Thanks for thinking of me. > > Mia > From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 17:16:56 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 10:16:56 -0700 Subject: Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication (fwd link) Message-ID: fyi, Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication http://www.physorg.com/news66397476.html From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 17:21:34 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 10:21:34 -0700 Subject: Hip-hop for the masses (fwd link) Message-ID: fyi, Hip-hop for the masses An anthology edited by Lee Tonouchi explores Hawaii's hip-hop culture http://starbulletin.com/2006/05/09/features/story01.html From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 17:27:11 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 10:27:11 -0700 Subject: Computer center opens doors for rural Guatemalans (fwd) Message-ID: Computer center opens doors for rural Guatemalans Maya Tech the mission of St. Francis parishioners By Lenore Christopher http://www.catholiccincinnati.org/tct/may0506/050506computer.html DAYTON DEANERY ? What started as a personal donation of some old computers to the Guatemalan town of Nahual? has multiplied into a full commitment to open doors of communication and education for the residents of the Guatemalan town where Camilo Macario was born and reared and where his wife, Karen, a former Peace Corps volunteer, once lived. [COURTESY PHOTOS A man in the typical Mayan dress of Nahual? learns how to use a computer.] A key ingredient to this blossoming technological outreach that ? in less than two years ? includes Guatemala?s first community computer lab, a training center, Internet caf?, youth programs and a children?s library, is gratitude. It was Camilo?s gratitude for a scholarship, allowing him to study in the United States and share his insight when he returned home, that prompted his initial donation. It was the community?s grateful response to that gift that encouraged Camilo, aided by private donations, including a grant from his parish, St. Francis of Assisi Church in Centerville, to expand the operation. And, judging by the grateful requests for similar centers in adjacent Guatemalan towns and, hopefully, with financial and spiritual support from those who see the merits in his project, Camilo?s dream to, one day, offer learning centers throughout Guatemala and Central America, will become a reality. The mission of Maya Tech Learning Centers Inc. is to provide computer technology and education to Guatemala?s underserved communities. It was officially founded as a non-profit corporation in the state of Ohio in 2004 and last year became a federally tax-exempt organization with a voluntary board of directors and advisory council. Its first project is the Centro de Computaci?n Swan Tinamit, founded in 2004, in Nahual?. Its name is derived from the town?s indigenous language, K?iche?, which translates to "communal town," and refers to the community?s involvement in maintenance and use of the center. "The original idea was to give rural communities access to technology," Camilo said, because, on return visits, he and Karen observed the growing "digital divide" between the indigenous people in rural communities, 70 percent of whom are Mayan descendants, and those in the larger cities, who have access to more resources. In 1992, for example, he said, there were no computers in Nahual?. So Camilo donated a few used computers. The gift generated such interest, he knew it would not be enough. Following additional college study in computer technology and moving his family to the Dayton area, "I decided I wanted to do something more substantial to help out the community," he said. Camilo and Karen, in 2003, personally financed the start of the Maya Tech Learning Centers Inc. [Curiosity and eagerness bring all ages to the Computer Center Swan Tinamit.] "We are calling this the pilot project," he said. "Once we get this one set up and we think it will be self-sustainable in the future, it will be time to open new centers." And, he said, the main center "and the people from the smaller communities (who come to the center) will help us grow." The community computer lab and learning center opened a year later with five computers, providing access for personal, school and business use. The center relies heavily on free software, such as Open Office and Linux. A group in Guatemala is translating the programs into different languages, including K?iche?. "The idea is, why teach people to use a computer if they can?t afford to use the products?" he said. Camilo remembers thinking if 12 students signed up when the doors first opened, "I?d be happy. A week later, we had 24," and the numbers have been growing ever since. "They were all ages, from third-grade to university students and teachers." An Internet caf? at the center enables people to access the Web and obtain and send emails in a community atmosphere. The training center began with the start of the academic year in January, offering a curriculum and classes on various levels of computer operation. Seventy students are currently enrolled in the classes that are accredited through the Guatemalan Ministry of Education. The center now has 12 computers, with the help of donations, including five laptops from Lexis Nexis. "The town has grown in the last 10 years," Camilo said, and there are now banks, an attorney ? more commerce that will use computers and technology" and, therefore, a place where new job skills will be needed. With a certificate, students will qualify for jobs in computer operation. "I hope the kids who come to the classes will feel a part of the center, not just take classes and leave," he said. "I want to build a community feeling ? (so that people) feel it belongs to them." The center, lab and caf? have been so successful that Maya Tech is soliciting at least 30 new or slightly new functional computers and any available software that can be donated. Additional computers, especially laptops, will allow the center, lab and classes to operate simultaneously. The cost of building a new computer in Guatemala is approximately $450, he explained. Checks may be made payable to Maya Tech Learning Centers Inc. and mailed to P.O. Box 139, Bellbrook, Ohio 45305. All donations are tax deductible, and board members are available for presentations. For information, contact Camilo at camilo.m at mayatechlc.org. Within the center is also an educational area equipped with books, puzzles and educational games for family use. Youth activities, including study groups, school newspaper and academic clubs, are also available, all under the direction of the center?s program manager. A children?s library is a work in progress, Camilo said. The hope is to eventually expand the library to include reading material for all ages. "Schools in general do not provide textbooks," he explained. "The main idea is that a lot of the schools ask people to buy (particular) books, and a lot of families can?t afford it. If we know what books they need, we could buy a supply, and those who can?t afford the books can use it at the center." Maya Tech is supported by private monetary donations and is hoping to spread the word of their pilot?s success so that people will want to invest in the future of this and other centers. "I know how it is (there). I have experienced it, those who are marginalized and who do not have the opportunities," said Camilo. "Now I know what I can do to help, even if it is a small thing. I think it will make a difference." "This is not just a charity for poor people in Guatemala," Karen emphasized. "It is a social justice project and creating an awareness. "We are constantly looking for funding opportunities," she said, as well as ways to share their work and to connect with other people and groups who have similar missions. For the second year in a row, Camilo and Karen will represent Maya Tech Learning Centers and Guatemala with a cultural display and booth at A World A?Fair May 19-21 at the Dayton Convention Center. "We will be selling various Guatemalan artisan products," said Karen. Maya Tech was named "business of the month" by a local bank branch and also offers Fair Trade, organic, Guatemalan coffee at $10 for a one-pound foil bag. Proceeds support the computer center and small coffee cooperatives in the rural areas of the country. Maya Tech will also hold a fund-raising dinner at Benham?s Grove in Centerville June 23 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $45. For information on Maya Tech Learning Centers Inc., access www.mayatechlc.org or email learnmore at mayatechlc.org or call 937-654-0669. From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Wed May 10 17:47:41 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 11:47:41 -0600 Subject: Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication (fwd link) In-Reply-To: <20060510101656.tcmlhq8g4g0g0c84@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: I read this article. The mathematics is cute, (IMHO). But they follow concepts --> after eliminating "meaningless" words such as pronouns' ?????? Pronouns? Meaningless? I think not. We wouldn't have the words anaphor and cataphor if pronouns were "meaningless". Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of phil cash cash Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2006 11:17 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: [ILAT] Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication (fwd link) fyi, Scientists Have Identified Basic Principles of Communication http://www.physorg.com/news66397476.html From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 10 20:16:24 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 13:16:24 -0700 Subject: Saving Languages (fwd) Message-ID: forwarded from? LINGUIST List 17.1012 http://linguistlist.org/issues/17/17-1012.html Saving Languages Subtitle: An Introduction to Language Revitalization Published: 2005 Publisher: Cambridge University Press ???????? ??????? http://us.cambridge.org Author: Lenore A. Grenoble, Dartmouth College Author: Lindsay J. Whaley, Dartmouth College Hardback: ISBN: 0521816211 Pages: 244 Price: U.K. ? 45.00 Paperback: ISBN: 0521016525 Pages: 244 Price: U.K. ? 17.99 Abstract: Language endangerment has been the focus of much attention over the past few decades, and as a result, a wide range of people are now working to revitalize and maintain local languages. This book serves as a general reference guide to language revitalization, written not only for linguists and anthropologists, but also for language activists and community members who believe they should ensure the future use of their languages, despite their predicted loss. Drawing extensively on case studies, it sets out the necessary background and highlights central issues such as literacy, policy decisions, and allocation of resources. Its primary goal is to provide the essential tools for a successful language revitalization program, such as setting and achieving realistic goals, and anticipating and resolving common obstacles. Clearly written and informative, Saving Languages will be an invaluable resource for all those interested in the fate of small language communities around the globe. 1. Language revitalization as a global issue; 2. Issues in language revitalization; 3. Models for revitalization; 4. Case studies; 5. Literacy; 6. Orthography; 7. Creating a language program. Linguistic Field(s): Applied Linguistics ??????????????? ?????????????Sociolinguistics Written In: English (eng ) See this book announcement on our website: http://linguistlist.org/get-book.html?BookID=18916 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From pasxapu at DAKOTACOM.NET Wed May 10 21:17:06 2006 From: pasxapu at DAKOTACOM.NET (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 14:17:06 -0700 Subject: Maori Radio In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi Jenny, I have been meaning to respond to show solidarity with your research. It seems radio is an unexplored area and rich for inquiry on how indigenous languagea are or are not being used in broadcasting. Please feel free to share some of your preliminary findings at some point here on ILAT. Thanks, Phil Cash Cash ilat mg On May 7, 2006, at 10:16 PM, Jenny Sargent wrote: > I am doing research on the effectiveness on radio programs in achieving > the objectives of language revitalization programs. Currently I am > looking > for information on the Maori radio stations. If anyone knows of > studies, > interviews, reports, government documents, or anything else which > contains > information concerning how Maori radio if affecting the language goals > of > the Maori community, please let me know. > Thanks, > Jenny Sargent-Smith > From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Wed May 10 21:36:55 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 14:36:55 -0700 Subject: Maori Radio In-Reply-To: <49580f188278d2e811415624c54ab382@dakotacom.net> Message-ID: This header reminds me of a song I recreated: Sung to the Tune of Mexican Radio by Wall Of Voodoo I feel a cool breeze on my shoulder Off the river at the reservation border I have my walkman and check the station I listen for Tribal News of the Native nations I hear the talking of the DJ Is it Hopi, Maybe Hoopa, perhaps Lakota Sometimes even Bellagana (sp?) Can't understand just what does he say? I'm on an Indian radio I'm on an Indian radio I dial it in and tune the station They talk about Council business, and commodity allocations There is a tourney on the next Rez Guess its time for a road trip journey I'm on an Indian radio I'm on an Indian radio I wish I was in Albuquerque Dancing at the Midnight Rodeo I call my request in on the phone Can?t We hear ?One Eyed Ford? I want to taste some food from home Maybe Salmon, even deer meat, Mutton stew just doesn?t cut it There is the guy, with no teeth That I met at the 49er Can't understand just what does he say? I'm on an Indian radio I'm on an Indian radio Radio radio... From Tracy.Jacobs at ARCHIVES.GOVT.NZ Wed May 10 23:29:25 2006 From: Tracy.Jacobs at ARCHIVES.GOVT.NZ (Tracy Jacobs) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 11:29:25 +1200 Subject: Maori Radio Message-ID: Kia ora Jenny I haven't had time to delve too deeply into this, but you might like to check out the following websites and/or contact these government agencies (apologies if you've already checked these out): Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Maori / Maori Language Commission http://www.tetaurawhiri.govt.nz Te Mangai Paho / Maori Broadcasting Funding Agency http://www.tmp.govt.nz Te Puni Kokiri / Ministry of Maori Development http://www.tpk.govt.nz Particularly: http://www.tpk.govt.nz/publications/subject/default.asp#broadcasting Or their newsletter, Kokiri Paetae: http://www.tpk.govt.nz/publications/paetae/default.asp I had a quick look at http://www.maori.org.nz as well, and found a link to Nga Iwi FM http://www.ngaiwifm.irirangi.net/ which looks like it runs on-air Maori language lessons. The Te Mangai Paho site has links to other iwi radio stations. Good luck with your research. E noho ora mai Tracy Jacobs -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Jenny Sargent Sent: Monday, 8 May 2006 5:17 p.m. To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: [ILAT] Maori Radio I am doing research on the effectiveness on radio programs in achieving the objectives of language revitalization programs. Currently I am looking for information on the Maori radio stations. If anyone knows of studies, interviews, reports, government documents, or anything else which contains information concerning how Maori radio if affecting the language goals of the Maori community, please let me know. Thanks, Jenny Sargent-Smith From rzs at TDS.NET Thu May 11 14:45:00 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 07:45:00 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <007201c6743a$18e083d0$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: I don?t know why people do what they do But obviously I wonder a lot... After leaving the Santa Fe area And moving here in Oklahoma on the very gut bulge above the bible belt I see people existing A kind of automated living Who sell out for very little Life slashed half/price One can live and die here Leaving only garbage in the woods And its acceptable patriotic living. Human beings reduced to herds of mall clones happy littering churchgoers the inevitable walmart shopper Its no wonder why a few americans All of a sudden want to leave it all To pack up and head for the jungles,the reservations To become a missionary to ?save? the poor ndns Or to become an archaeologist to study coprolites Escaping to go study some OTHER people as anthropologists, as an anywhere-but-here-ist Far AWAY from this seducing pull towards sameness This relentless drive towards standardizing the humanbeing To get out of this sink hole sucking after our souls And because there seems to be no cure For this standardizing of the humanrace Alarmed, people escape to any distant holdouts Places where soul-beings still exist freely But at what price? What we have called the march of civilization Isn?t it truthfully a form of cultural-domestication? We need to look carefully at what?s become of our animal relatives. A living traditional sensory sharpened human-being Is reduced to ?data for study, conversion or betterment? Once domesticated a species no longer retains sharp senses To detect actual threats to its survival, And instead usually develops weird phobias of all kinds Ripe for mass definition and control And eventually and inevitably becomes The educated and true world class citizen Where culture is expressed on the tee-shirt And not from the heart The perfect walmart shopper Richard Zane Smith -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From coyotez at UOREGON.EDU Thu May 11 14:40:07 2006 From: coyotez at UOREGON.EDU (David Gene Lewis) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 07:40:07 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi Richard, I am enjoying your prose and perspectives. I understand your feeling about anthropologists and their ilk. However please be aware that many people, such as myself, are trained anthropologists, linguists, and now part of the ilk. And even so we still work locally, within our tribal context, as well as in the surrounding American context. There is really a sea change in the way anthropologists are doing their work. It is a generational thing. Each new generation appears to be more aware that native people exist as rational, thinking and feeling humans. And so while I understand the "native" perspectives on the "anthropologists", and truly validate those feeling in my writing, and teaching, In my mind I can no longer generalize about "them" all. As many times, "They" are "Us". Thanks again Richard, David Lewis Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde University of Oregon ------------------- > I don?t know why people do what they do > But obviously I wonder a lot... > After leaving the Santa Fe area > And moving here in Oklahoma > on the very gut bulge above the bible belt > I see people existing > A kind of automated living > Who sell out for very little > Life slashed half/price > > One can live and die here > Leaving only garbage in the woods > And its acceptable patriotic living. > Human beings reduced > to herds of mall clones > happy littering churchgoers > the inevitable walmart shopper > > Its no wonder why a few americans > All of a sudden want to leave it all > To pack up and head for the jungles,the reservations > To become a missionary to ?save? the poor ndns > Or to become an archaeologist to study coprolites > Escaping to go study some OTHER people > as anthropologists, as an anywhere-but-here-ist > Far AWAY from this seducing pull towards sameness > This relentless drive towards standardizing the humanbeing > To get out of this sink hole sucking after our souls > > And because there seems to be no cure > For this standardizing of the humanrace > Alarmed, people escape to any distant holdouts > Places where soul-beings still exist freely > But at what price? > What we have called the march of civilization > Isn?t it truthfully a form of cultural-domestication? > We need to look carefully at what?s become of our animal relatives. > A living traditional sensory sharpened human-being > Is reduced to ?data for study, conversion or betterment? > Once domesticated a species no longer retains sharp senses > To detect actual threats to its survival, > And instead usually develops weird phobias of all kinds > Ripe for mass definition and control > And eventually and inevitably becomes > The educated and true world class citizen > Where culture is expressed on the tee-shirt > And not from the heart > The perfect walmart shopper > > Richard Zane Smith > David Lewis University of Oregon Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 11 15:58:22 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 08:58:22 -0700 Subject: Venezuela Revitalizes Indigenous Culture (fwd) Message-ID: Venezuela Revitalizes Indigenous Culture http://www.plenglish.com/Article.asp?ID=%7B6CE0882F-B913-4163-9160-71058D59FA0F%7D&language=EN Caracas, May 10 (Prensa Latina) Venezuelan experts and officials supported by the UN Children?s Fund (UNICEF) will meet in Maracaibo on Thursday to revitalize the "Anu" culture and language. Indigenous communitarian promoters, teachers and other officials of the Education Ministry and the Venezuelan Central and Zuli universities will converge at this important meeting. The preservation and recovery of the "Anu" culture and language are part of the great national efforts in the field of Bilingual and Intercultural Education. This process of revitalization includes the development of actions to contribute with the linguistic training of professionals and the creation of didactic aids and methods to be used at classrooms. Thus, the process becomes perfect opportunity to open new spaces for the interchange among the communitarian factors, main promoters of the initiative. From jblackbu at UOREGON.EDU Thu May 11 23:04:23 2006 From: jblackbu at UOREGON.EDU (Jesse Blackburn Morrow) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 16:04:23 -0700 Subject: NILI Summer Inst. & Hinton Master-Apprentice Workshop Message-ID: Hello all-- I don't believe ILAT was included in earlier mailings of this announcement -- apologies for that. Please distribute to anyone you know who's involved with or developing an Indian language program in the Northwest U.S. Thanks, Jesse Blackburn Morrow Assistant to the Director Northwest Indian Language Institute ****** The Northwest Indian Language Institute (NILI) will be holding its Summer Institute ?From Language Learner to Language Teacher? at the University of Oregon July 5-21, 2006, including a Master-Apprentice workshop led by Leanne Hinton, July 6-8. Since 1998, NILI's Summer Institute has offered training in teaching methods, applied linguistics, curriculum and materials development to those involved with the teaching of Native languages here in the Northwest. The Institute is a setting where the unique situations of the region?s various Tribal language programs are respected, and we seek to provide skills and materials that will enhance your own language revitalization efforts. Participants have said they attend partly for the knowledge they gain from other participants, and the enjoyment of spending time with others involved in the same quest for language revitalization. See below for more details of the Institute and Master-Apprentice Workshop. Please let us know as soon as possible if you?re interested in attending either the Workshop or full Institute (and tell us a bit about your situation with teaching/learning a NW language) so that we may send you a registration form, and plan with you in mind. Hope to see you in July! MASTER-APPRENTICE WORKSHOP (JULY 6-8) Led by Dr. Leanne Hinton (UC-Berkeley), who was instrumental in development of the successful California Master-Apprentice Program in 1993. This method of language learning is a great way to create new speakers of a language when only a few Elder speakers remain, and to pass along traditional values and customs in a natural setting. INSTITUTE COURSES (JULY 5-21) *Methods, Materials, and Technology for NW Indian Language Teaching ? content will be shaped to fit the needs of registrants [3 credits] *Sahaptin Language Class [1 credit] *Chinuk Wawa Language Class [1 credit] *Intro to Linguistics for Teachers and Students of NW Languages [1 credit] *Advanced Linguistic Study (of the language of your choice) [1 credit] RATES *Tuition for the full NILI Summer Institute July 5-21 (a total of 5 UO credit hours) is $1300. This includes the 3 day Master-Apprentice Workshop, textbook, and a computer lab fee. *For those wanting to attend ONLY the Master-Apprentice Workshop July 6-8, the workshop fee is $250, which includes the cost of the textbook. The cost of campus housing/meals for 3 nights (or hotel costs) and parking are additional. For housing/meals and parking rates, a registration form, or more information, please contact NILI Director Janne Underriner, or Assistants Jesse Blackburn Morrow or Racquel Yamada. Northwest Indian Language Institute 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290 Email Voicemail 541.346.3199 Fax 541.346.5961 http://babel.uoregon.edu/nili From rzs at TDS.NET Fri May 12 02:03:23 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 19:03:23 -0700 Subject: Unlocking the secret sounds of language In-Reply-To: <200605111440.k4BEe7Ix001186@smtp.uoregon.edu> Message-ID: Great points David, Well appreciated too... Yes its easy to "stereotype" Even easier In writings meant to create a mood of light and shadow And perhaps I even forget these are mere caricatures myself! There are GREAT exceptional anthropologists working today Naahw, I checked...theres no David Lewis In my odd anths specimen case richard On 5/11/06 7:40 AM, "David Gene Lewis" wrote: > Hi Richard, > I am enjoying your prose and perspectives. I understand your feeling > about anthropologists and their ilk. However please be aware that many > people, such as myself, are trained anthropologists, linguists, and > now part of the ilk. And even so we still work locally, within our > tribal context, as well as in the surrounding American context. There > is really a sea change in the way anthropologists are doing their > work. It is a generational thing. Each new generation appears to be > more aware that native people exist as rational, thinking and feeling > humans. And so while I understand the "native" perspectives on the > "anthropologists", and truly validate those feeling in my writing, and > teaching, In my mind I can no longer generalize about "them" all. > > As many times, "They" are "Us". > > Thanks again Richard, > David Lewis > Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde > University of Oregon From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Fri May 12 15:48:25 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 08:48:25 -0700 Subject: Potawatomi Language Conference Message-ID: 4th Annual Potawatomi Language Conference E ?Nodmok I Zheshmowen (Hearing the Language) July 23-26, 2006 ? Niles, Michigan The Conference is being hosted by the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. The conference will take place at the Niles Inn Conference Center Niles, Michigan. Please make your own arrangements with the Niles Conference Center for lodging. You can contact them at (269) 684-3000. They are located at 930 South 11th Street Niles, Michigan 49120. Room cost are $49.99 a night. Please try to submit your Application by June 19, 2006. Please submit your registration form to the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, Attention Language Conference, 58620 Sink Road, Dowagiac, MI. 49047. For questions please call (269) 782-0887 or 1.888. 330.1234. Megwetch. From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Fri May 12 16:03:14 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 09:03:14 -0700 Subject: U.S. House panel votes to retain bilingual ballots (fwd) Message-ID: U.S. House panel votes to retain bilingual ballots Billy House Republic Washington Bureau May. 11, 2006 12:00 AM http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0511bilingual-ballots0511.html WASHINGTON - A key House panel on Wednesday voted to continue requiring bilingual ballots and translation assistance for voters in 31 states, including help for Native Americans and Hispanics in Arizona who are not fluent in English. The House Judiciary Committee rejected efforts to cut the language-assistance provision from a bill to renew the 1965 Voting Rights Act, set to expire next year. The action also signaled that, with legislation still pending to curb illegal immigration and beef up border security, there is little appetite among House Republican leaders to further upset Hispanic voters in an election year. "It wouldn't help them, and it could certainly hurt them. It would just look like they were going overboard, especially on something as important and sensitive as voting rights," said David Mark, a political analyst and former editor of Campaigns & Elections magazine. A House bill could be ready by Memorial Day. An identical 25-year voting rights extension is being considered in the Senate. With support from both chambers, a bill is expected to get President Bush's blessing and be signed into law. In Arizona, civil rights groups and others agreed language assistance still is needed at the polls. Under current law, polling places in all 15 Arizona counties must provide Spanish-language assistance and ballots; those in nine counties are required to also provide assistance in Native American languages. Extending the language provisions of the Voting Rights Act will ensure the services continue. In addition, some Arizona jurisdictions this year will begin using voting machinery with earphones for audible instructions in Spanish and other languages to help voters understand the ballot and voting procedures. Added when the 1965 Voting Rights Act was revised in 1975, language assistance is required when at least 5 percent of a jurisdiction's citizens belong to a language minority group and the English illiteracy rate exceeds the national average. Lawmakers determined then that certain "language minorities," including Spanish-speakers, Asian-Americans, Native Americans and Alaskan Natives, faced similar problems as Blacks had in the South. The landmark civil rights law initially was designed to end such tactics as poll taxes, literacy tests and intimidation used against Blacks. Today, more than 300 counties and municipalities across the nation are required to provide language assistance, mostly Spanish, at polling places. But dozens of other languages also are covered by the rules, and some jurisdictions have multilingual requirements. For instance, Apache County in Arizona must provide ballots and language assistance in Spanish, as well as oral help for Apache, Navajo and Pueblo voters. In Los Angeles County in California, help is required to be provided in Spanish, Filipino, Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese. But Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, joined by 55 House Republicans, in February wrote to Rep. James Sensenbrenner, Judiciary chairman, urging that the Wisconsin Republican let that section expire, in part because it encourages a "linguistic division" of the country. Among those signing the letter was Rep. J.D. Hayworth, R-Ariz. He has been a longtime supporter of making English the official language of the United States, said his spokesman, Matt Lambert. On Wednesday, King formally proposed an amendment to strip the provision from the voting act renewal bill. He told fellow Judiciary Committee members that "reauthorizing the multilingual voting mandate" contradicts the nation's immigration law because knowledge of English is a condition of naturalization, and in order to vote, a person must be a U.S. citizen. But King's amendment was defeated by the committee, which includes Arizona GOP Reps. Jeff Flake and Trent Franks. Flake was among 11 Republicans who opposed the amendment; Franks was among nine Republicans who voted in favor of it. "I'm just convinced that it is a good trend in our society that our government have a common language," Franks said. "My desire is to see everyone in this country, every citizen, to have equal access to voting and to the polls. I believe that the best way to provide a consistent, fair and just system is to have the voting materials and ballots printed in a common language, which in America should be English." But Alessandra Soler Meetze, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona, disagreed. "Here you've got huge Latino populations, who are not yet proficient enough in English to fully read and understand complicated ballot questions and referendums in English," she said. "Keeping this requirement will show that we are serious that every citizen can participate fully." Some Native American languages do not even have written forms, said John Lewis, a Mohave member of the Colorado River Indian Tribes who is executive director of the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona. Although increased educational opportunities have helped, Lewis said, many Native Americans are more comfortable understanding concepts and positions contained in ballot propositions when they are translated orally for them. "It's important that this (proposition) be extended," Lewis said. Reach the reporter at 1-(202) 906-8136. From anguksuar at YAHOO.COM Fri May 12 21:52:36 2006 From: anguksuar at YAHOO.COM (Richard LaFortune) Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 14:52:36 -0700 Subject: NIEA Survey on Title VII of No Child Left Behind In-Reply-To: <20060512090314.z44oco084gwws8kc@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: National Indian Education Association 110 Maryland Avenue, N.E. Suite 104 Washington, D.C. 20002 P: (202) 544-7290 / F: (202) 544-7293 May 11, 2006 Broadcast #06-026 NIEA Survey on Title VII of No Child Left Behind The National Indian Education Association would like to hear from you regarding Title VII of the No Child Left Behind Act (Title VII) and how it is working within your schools. NIEA is collecting specific information on any program challenges or obstacles in implementing programs under Title VII that meet the educational and culturally related academic needs of American Indian/Alaskan Native/Native Hawaiian children. NIEA plans to use your survey responses in a testimony for a possible oversight hearing on Indian education before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs in mid-May. Your participation in this survey will also be helpful in a follow up to last year's field hearings on the No Child Left Behind Act. Please take a few moments to answer the following questions. Your insight will provide valuable information that will be considered as NIEA continues to prepare for the reauthorization of NCLB. 1. Please describe the types of programs and services your school provides through funding under Title VII of the No Child Left Behind Act. 2. Please advise on any challenges to your educational plan or directives that have been given when trying to implement Title VII programs that meet the unique educational and culturally related academic needs of Native students. 3. Please advise if your school has been instructed to use Title VII funding to support programs that do not meet the unique educational and culturally related academic needs of Native students. 4. Please advise if your school has been instructed to use Title VII funding to support programs that should be supported by funding from other Titles within the No Child Left Behind Act. 5. Please advise if your school has made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). If your school has not made AYP, please advise if this has impacted how you are able to provide programs under Title VII. Also, if you could, please explain the reasons that your school did not make AYP, especially as it relates to the needs of Native students. 6. Please advise on how your Title VII program is achieving positive results or is assisting Native students in positive ways. 7. Please provide any additional information you may feel is helpful. If possible, please provide your responses to Jack Soto of NIEA at niea at niea.org or by fax at (202) 544-7293 by May 10th so review of the information can be incorporated it into the testimony on Indian Education. NIEA will send additional information about the upcoming hearing on education once information is made available. NIEA thanks you for your participation in this survey! --------------------------------------- If you would like to be removed from our list-serve, please send your request to niea at niea.org. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Sun May 14 21:53:42 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sun, 14 May 2006 14:53:42 -0700 Subject: Preserving a language Message-ID: http://www.record-eagle.com/2006/may/14native.htm Author preserves dying language Over 1,000 words translated from Odawa to English BY CRAIG McCOOL mccoolrecordeagle at sbcglobal.net ? Special to the Record-Eagle/Kevin Johnston Ray Kiogima, co-author of the book "Odawa Language and Legends," the Odawa Bands Governmental Center in Harbor Springs. HARBOR SPRINGS ? Ray Kiogima rarely gets a chance anymore to talk with others in his native language. The number of people who speak Odawa has dwindled over the years. Now, Kiogima said, you could count on a single hand the number of locals who are fluent in the old language. "In the tribe, we've probably got four people besides me," Kiogima said. "I used to enjoy talking Odawa to people who were fluent in it, but they die off." Kiogima, 73, an elder with the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, has done something about it, recently publishing a book containing Odawa/English translations of more than 1,000 common words and hundreds of phrases. The book, "Odawa Language and Legends," is the culmination of decades of work. It is the only known instance in which the regional Native American language has been translated to English. Kiogima broke down the Odawa words ? historically spoken but rarely written ? to their syllable sounds, then transcribed them, phonetically, into English equivalents. Ah-nee, for example, means "Hello." There is no Odawa word for Goodbye, Kiogima, said. The closest thing is Bah mah pee: "Later." The language of the Odawa people is apparent everywhere in northern Michigan. The word Cheboygan, for example, comes from the Odawa phrase Zhah boo guhn, or "The way through." But while traces of the language are ever-present, the heart of the language is dying, said Carla McFall, who runs the Little Traverse Bay Band's language preservation and revitalization program. "Ray's generation is the last generation that is fairly fluent," McFall said. "This is the very last chance" to preserve the language. Kiogima ? Ki means 'land'; Ogima means 'boss' or 'ruler' ? lived as a teenager in Harbor Springs with his grandmother, who spoke little English and insisted her grandson become fluent in Odawa. "She told me right out that if I was going to live with her and talk to her, I was going to talk Odawa," Kiogima said. His five brothers also learned Odawa, but only Kiogima retained the knowledge into adulthood. He taught his own children a few words, but realized that, by-and-large, the younger generation would never learn the language. "I thought, if we can write it, we can preserve it, and that's what I want," he said. "It's always been a dream of mine, to have it written down. We want to get it to the younger crowd." Preserving and resurrecting the language is important, said McFall. "A people is defined by its language," she said. "Without it, we lose a lot. Not just the language, but culturally as well." Kiogima offered an analogy: "It would be like a person without a home or a man without a country," he said. "He would be lost." Translation? "Kah mah-buh duh yah zeen gojibi wah daht." "This man has nowhere to live." -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: 14native.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 17185 bytes Desc: not available URL: From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Mon May 15 03:37:28 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sun, 14 May 2006 20:37:28 -0700 Subject: Revitalizing Culture & Language Message-ID: Venezuela Revitalizes Indigenous Culture Caracas, May 10 (Prensa Latina) Venezuelan experts and officials supported by the UN Children?s Fund (UNICEF) will meet in Maracaibo on Thursday to revitalize the "Anu" culture and language. story @:http://www.plenglish.com/Article.asp?ID=%7B6CE0882F- B913-4163-9160-71058D59FA0F%7D&language=EN From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 16 14:14:45 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 08:14:45 -0600 Subject: Usitative Message-ID: Hi, Everyone, I am interested in what people on this list working in linguistics have to say about the Usitative. I am about to say that the usitative is a semantic function in English ? as opposed to a grammatical function in Din? Bizaad. In Din? Bizaad, the usitative is very Bayesian, while in English, people specify with particular words such as usual, customary. (Regularly is repetitive rather than usitative). What would you say? Best, Mia -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Tue May 16 16:18:58 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 09:18:58 -0700 Subject: Hopi elder gets anthropology degree (fwd) Message-ID: Hopi elder gets anthropology degree http://vocuspr.vocus.com/VocusPR30/DotNet/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=nau&Entity=PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=108611&XSL=PressRelease FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (May 11, 2006) -- When Ferrell Secakuku was a boy growing up on the Hopi reservation, his elders encouraged him to get a modern education as a way to preserve his tribe's culture. Now Secakuku, 68, is graduating from Northern Arizona University with a master's degree in anthropology to do just that. "As an anthropologist my aim is to preserve the value of the Hopi life and to help record traditions so they may pass to future generations," Secakuku said. "I'm really concerned that our culture is dying away because our young people are not learning our traditions and language." Secakuku is one of 2,600 students to graduate this week during four commencement ceremonies at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. March 12 and 13 in the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome on the university campus. Secakuku, a member of the Hopi Snake Clan and Hopi Tribal chairman from 1994-1997, received his bachelor of science degree from NAU in 1964 and decided to pursue a master's in anthropology to not only help safeguard his experiences, but "to develop formal research skills to use when investigating the Snake Clan, religion and societal roots," he said. Secakuku's research at NAU confirmed his beliefs that Hopi cultural roots, especially Snake Clan ceremonies, took shape in Mexico. His thesis: "Hopi and Quetzalcoatl: Is there a Connection?" explores the connection of Mesoamerican linguistic and religious ceremonies with Hopi history. "While working on my degree I had the opportunity to travel down to Mexico with my professor, Dr. Miguel Vasquez. I saw many similarities of the Snake Clan culture at the Teotihuacan pyramid," Secakuku said. "The pyramid was built around A.D. 200 to honor the serpent Quetzalcoatl?a symbol of power and religious ritual in that area. I believe the Hopi brought that religion from there. We still practice it today." Secakuku notes other commonalities among the Hopi and Mesoamerican cultures, including language connections and the belief that the Maya and Aztec also emerged from an underworld to this world. He is currently writing grants to fund further research. "It's very amazing to discover some of these similarities that I have come across. It really goes to show we must have shared life together at one time," Secakuku said. Secakuku, born and raised in the village of Sipaulovi, is a businessman, a farmer, a fine art painter and a Hopi elder who prepares his clan's religious ceremonies. He speaks about his life to students at NAU and community events. He's cultivating a nonprofit business, Mesa Media, Inc., to produce and market Hopi teaching language CDs and DVDs, and he is looking forward to graduation so he can spend more time at home. "I've been working on my degree for two and a half years. The only time I've left Hopi was for educational purposes. At first, it was very foreign being here. I was away from the Kiva, the planting of corn, and I had to learn how to really read and write," Secakuku said. "Now I am ready to write about what I know so it will be remembered." Chris Downum, an associate professor in anthropology, said, "Ferrell's thesis defense was historically important not just for NAU but for the discipline of anthropology. It marks the transformation of Hopi as subject to Hopi as scholar and expert. Non-Hopi anthropologists have taken so much from the Hopi over the past century, it was very gratifying to see Ferrell find his voice as an anthropologist and tell his part of the Hopi story in his own words." -NAU- CONTACT: Diane Rechel NAU Office of Public Affairs (928) 523-0611 Diane.Rechel at nau.edu From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 16 18:57:55 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 11:57:55 -0700 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <007501c678f3$18e7d370$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > I am about to say that the usitative is a semantic function in English ? as > opposed to a grammatical function in Din? Bizaad. In Din? Bizaad, the > usitative is very Bayesian, while in English, people specify with particular > words such as usual, customary. (Regularly is repetitive rather than > usitative). English has it as a semi-grammatical category in the past tense: We used to [usta] go there all the time. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 16 19:08:05 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 13:08:05 -0600 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi, Scott, thanks. :-) I wonder what we make of the difference between 'usta' being (kinda) optional, and the grammar-dependence of the Usitative? What I mean is that there is no usitative rule in English, but there is a formal position for it in Din? Bizaad. I think the psychology of this is intriguing. Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Scott DeLancey Sent: Tuesday, May 16, 2006 12:58 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > I am about to say that the usitative is a semantic function in English ? as > opposed to a grammatical function in Din? Bizaad. In Din? Bizaad, the > usitative is very Bayesian, while in English, people specify with particular > words such as usual, customary. (Regularly is repetitive rather than > usitative). English has it as a semi-grammatical category in the past tense: We used to [usta] go there all the time. Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 17 04:48:00 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Smith) Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 21:48:00 -0700 Subject: Hopi elder gets anthropology degree In-Reply-To: <20060516091858.9vpc4sso4wsc44gk@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: Great article! I'm really glad to hear Ferrell Secakuku is trained and will be working with his own,Hopi people . Al Qoyawayma,a good friend,and fellow potter has been sharing with me some pretty fascinating work being done concerning Plasma ray formations and Z-pinch research.Some of these researchers are almost certain that such visual displays of light created by these plasma sightings might have been visible in the sky 5,ooo years ago or so ,day or night creating unusual formations that people all over the world would have seen. These guys are cautious in their research,though a book is soon coming I hear They have been looking at pictograph sites all over the world for certain consistant patterns and shapes that might yield clues...who knows? Al gave me a stack of scientific journal material on the investigations Sheeesh...and i thought Mia uses some weird words Hey,when I gave the word "usitative" to my iMac dictionary it said: doh shilth behoziin dah ! richard On 5/16/06 9:18 AM, "phil cash cash" wrote: > Hopi elder gets anthropology degree > http://vocuspr.vocus.com/VocusPR30/DotNet/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=nau&Ent > ity=PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=108611&XSL=PressRelease > > FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (May 11, 2006) -- When Ferrell Secakuku was a boy > growing up on the Hopi reservation, his elders encouraged him to get a > modern education as a way to preserve his tribe's culture. Now > Secakuku, 68, is graduating from Northern Arizona University with a > master's degree in anthropology to do just that. > > "As an anthropologist my aim is to preserve the value of the Hopi life > and to help record traditions so they may pass to future generations," > Secakuku said. "I'm really concerned that our culture is dying away > because our young people are not learning our traditions and language." > > Secakuku is one of 2,600 students to graduate this week during four > commencement ceremonies at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. March 12 and 13 in the J. > Lawrence Walkup Skydome on the university campus. > > Secakuku, a member of the Hopi Snake Clan and Hopi Tribal chairman from > 1994-1997, received his bachelor of science degree from NAU in 1964 and > decided to pursue a master's in anthropology to not only help safeguard > his experiences, but "to develop formal research skills to use when > investigating the Snake Clan, religion and societal roots," he said. > > Secakuku's research at NAU confirmed his beliefs that Hopi cultural > roots, especially Snake Clan ceremonies, took shape in Mexico. His > thesis: "Hopi and Quetzalcoatl: Is there a Connection?" explores the > connection of Mesoamerican linguistic and religious ceremonies with > Hopi history. > > "While working on my degree I had the opportunity to travel down to > Mexico with my professor, Dr. Miguel Vasquez. I saw many similarities > of the Snake Clan culture at the Teotihuacan pyramid," Secakuku said. > "The pyramid was built around A.D. 200 to honor the serpent > Quetzalcoatl?a symbol of power and religious ritual in that area. I > believe the Hopi brought that religion from there. We still practice it > today." > > Secakuku notes other commonalities among the Hopi and Mesoamerican > cultures, including language connections and the belief that the Maya > and Aztec also emerged from an underworld to this world. He is > currently writing grants to fund further research. > > "It's very amazing to discover some of these similarities that I have > come across. It really goes to show we must have shared life together > at one time," Secakuku said. > > Secakuku, born and raised in the village of Sipaulovi, is a businessman, > a farmer, a fine art painter and a Hopi elder who prepares his clan's > religious ceremonies. He speaks about his life to students at NAU and > community events. He's cultivating a nonprofit business, Mesa Media, > Inc., to produce and market Hopi teaching language CDs and DVDs, and he > is looking forward to graduation so he can spend more time at home. > > "I've been working on my degree for two and a half years. The only time > I've left Hopi was for educational purposes. At first, it was very > foreign being here. I was away from the Kiva, the planting of corn, and > I had to learn how to really read and write," Secakuku said. "Now I am > ready to write about what I know so it will be remembered." > > Chris Downum, an associate professor in anthropology, said, "Ferrell's > thesis defense was historically important not just for NAU but for the > discipline of anthropology. It marks the transformation of Hopi as > subject to Hopi as scholar and expert. Non-Hopi anthropologists have > taken so much from the Hopi over the past century, it was very > gratifying to see Ferrell find his voice as an anthropologist and tell > his part of the Hopi story in his own words." > > -NAU- > > CONTACT: > Diane Rechel > NAU Office of Public Affairs > (928) 523-0611 > Diane.Rechel at nau.edu From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Wed May 17 16:49:09 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 09:49:09 -0700 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <00c901c6791c$145444f0$6401a8c0@LFPMia> Message-ID: On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > What I mean is that there is no usitative rule in English, but there is a > formal position for it in Din? Bizaad. I think the psychology of this is > intriguing. How we'd say that is, the semantic category is more grammaticalized in Din? Bizaad than in English. And yes, that kind of observation often looks interesting, and gets you thinking about cultural differences. But, as I pointed out in a post last week, that can be really dangerous. It's easy to make up stories about "other" folks that neatly explain why their grammar is different from yours. Too easy, and the problem is that there's no way to ever confirm your particular story. The other danger is misunderstanding your own language. Whorf got great mileage out of contrasting how Hopi and other Native languages deal with time with the "Standard Average European" system which he said is found in English. The problem is that, although the "SAE" concept is more-or-less what's taught in school, if you look at how English grammar actually deals with time, it's not an example of the SAE system at all. So, while there surely are differences between Hopi and English means of talking about time, the differences that Whorf found were only in his own head. For your question, notice that, although English doesn't have a formally distinct usitative verb construction, that's one of the main meanings that go with the simple present tense: "What do you do for fun? I watch movies." Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Wed May 17 17:18:21 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 11:18:21 -0600 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Hi, Scott, Your points are well-made and well-taken. :-) However, one of the underlying bigotries in this country - and perhaps across the world - is that Indigenous people do not have sophisticated mathematical or scientific concepts. There is an enormous amount of physical material that demonstrates that this is not true. So what I am proposing is to use constrained technology to watch the system emerge. Using constrained technology eliminates the opportunity for people to make up stuff in their own heads. Certainly we have seen enough academic stories. However, relations can be found and traced, and put together, these define a System. It's a lot like saying X + 2 = 4, where in this case, X can only be "2". In English, you look for math in semantics (usual & customary, numerosity, and the abstract semantics of equations); in Din? Bizaad, you look for it in the grammar. These grammatical positions form little "sites" that then show up like stars in the sky. The emergent system are the lines that the stories that employ these sites describe. Thus you can find an emergent mathematic system or construct in a story that you can't read. Because you can't read it, you can't apply your own mathematical understanding. (One of the areas of my research is how to stifle people's cognitive elaboration; this forces an accommodation rather than an assimilation, which in a lot of cases is what you want). And the nice thing about such an emergent system is that others can see it as it emerges on its own. Others don't have to wade through any elaborated explanation. Its delightfully visual (multimedia lets you color the sites like points of light, and connect the dots based on theme (numerosity, frequency, mass nouns, shapes, and so on). Cool, eh? I don't suspect this is going to be an altogether popular approach in some circles because it doesn't have any sites for making up stories. . . or what some people kindly call, Theorizing. Powell did a lot of "theorizing"; look where it got us! Ideas? mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Scott DeLancey Sent: Wednesday, May 17, 2006 10:49 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > What I mean is that there is no usitative rule in English, but there is a > formal position for it in Din? Bizaad. I think the psychology of this is > intriguing. How we'd say that is, the semantic category is more grammaticalized in Din? Bizaad than in English. And yes, that kind of observation often looks interesting, and gets you thinking about cultural differences. But, as I pointed out in a post last week, that can be really dangerous. It's easy to make up stories about "other" folks that neatly explain why their grammar is different from yours. Too easy, and the problem is that there's no way to ever confirm your particular story. The other danger is misunderstanding your own language. Whorf got great mileage out of contrasting how Hopi and other Native languages deal with time with the "Standard Average European" system which he said is found in English. The problem is that, although the "SAE" concept is more-or-less what's taught in school, if you look at how English grammar actually deals with time, it's not an example of the SAE system at all. So, while there surely are differences between Hopi and English means of talking about time, the differences that Whorf found were only in his own head. For your question, notice that, although English doesn't have a formally distinct usitative verb construction, that's one of the main meanings that go with the simple present tense: "What do you do for fun? I watch movies." Scott DeLancey Department of Linguistics 1290 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html From rzs at TDS.NET Wed May 17 17:44:52 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Zane Smith) Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 12:44:52 -0500 Subject: Usitative Message-ID: Scott, i enjoy reading your posts. one thing i've appreciated about your writing is the clarity even in dealing with abstract issues.. A Wyandot man here often ends a speech by saying "there is no word for 'goodbye' in Wyandot" and of course, he refers only to the current understanding of the word "goodbye" after all...where did "bye" come from ? "bye and bye"? or the 16th century "God-be-with you"? so actually there might be no "goodbye" (as we understand it today) even in the older english. Its meaning has evolved to become only the sounds you verbalize at a parting,yet with no obvious inherent expression or wish. richard > > From: Scott DeLancey > Date: 2006/05/17 Wed AM 11:49:09 CDT > To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU > Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative > > On Tue, 16 May 2006, Mia Kalish wrote: > > > What I mean is that there is no usitative rule in English, but there is a > > formal position for it in Din? Bizaad. I think the psychology of this is > > intriguing. > > How we'd say that is, the semantic category is more grammaticalized in > Din? Bizaad than in English. And yes, that kind of observation often > looks interesting, and gets you thinking about cultural differences. > But, as I pointed out in a post last week, that can be really dangerous. > It's easy to make up stories about "other" folks that neatly explain > why their grammar is different from yours. Too easy, and the problem > is that there's no way to ever confirm your particular story. > > The other danger is misunderstanding your own language. Whorf got > great mileage out of contrasting how Hopi and other Native languages > deal with time with the "Standard Average European" system which he > said is found in English. The problem is that, although the "SAE" > concept is more-or-less what's taught in school, if you look at how > English grammar actually deals with time, it's not an example of the > SAE system at all. So, while there surely are differences between > Hopi and English means of talking about time, the differences that > Whorf found were only in his own head. For your question, notice that, > although English doesn't have a formally distinct usitative verb > construction, that's one of the main meanings that go with the simple > present tense: "What do you do for fun? I watch movies." > > Scott DeLancey > Department of Linguistics > 1290 University of Oregon > Eugene, OR 97403-1290, USA > > delancey at darkwing.uoregon.edu > http://www.uoregon.edu/~delancey/prohp.html > Richard Zane Smith 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. Wyandotte Oklahoma 74370 From rtroike at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 18 07:57:44 2006 From: rtroike at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (Rudy Troike) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 00:57:44 -0700 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Mia, Good question. It's commonplace for languages to evolve "grammaticalization" of certain distinctions/features, while other languages express these distinctions/features "periphrastically" (to use a good term from traditional grammar), others lexically, and still others not at all. A good example is plural, which most European languages express grammatically, while other languages such as some of those in South-east Asia, express the distinction only lexically, by using numbers or quantifier words. Scott's example of English "used to" belongs in the grammatically gray (grey?) area of what Martin Joos called "quasi-modals". These involve the use of verbs which have been "bleached" of their primary meaning, and are in the process of becoming purely grammatical markers (we are inhibited in seeing this because of the practice of putting white spaces around "words" (whatever those are)). Examples are things like "be going to", "have to", "want to" (= desiderative), "start" (=inceptive), "stop" (=cessative), + a main Verb. Often these are reduced phonologically, as in "ahmonna" ('I'm going to'), Scott's "usta", and "hafta", "wanna", etc., showing further (again obscured by spelling) how these are becoming grammaticalized. Whether something is clearly part of the purely grammatical structure of a language, or somewhere on the slippery slope toward becoming grammaticalized, may be an accident of the historical point at which we examine the language, since a thousand years earlier or later, the language might show very different grammatical/structural features. Rudy Troike From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Thu May 18 14:40:38 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 08:40:38 -0600 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <20060518005744.ugl5w0cogskog4go@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: Hi, Rudy, Grammaticalization was one of the first things I researched when I came back to school. I think it makes a big difference whether you look at a) how people influenced the development of common parlance; vs. b) how the language changes when you just look at the surface. Jesperson did a lot with the disappearance of the dative (the pears were pleasing to the king) in common parlance. His theory was that because each generation wishes to distance itself from the previous one, that it stopped using the dative. Hopper looks at grammaticalization, but doesn?t spend too much time looking at how people influence that process. He looks at it in diachronic terms, for example, how long will it take for a form to appear or disappear in the common parlance. Penelope wrote a whole book about how people use grammaticalization, making subjects appear and disappear. She talks about how bias influences the use of grammaticalized forms (the man beat his wife, vs. the beaten wife). In the first case, we see the man beating his wife, but in the second case, ?beaten? has become a property of wife, the focus is entirely on her, and the wife-beater has disappeared from the scene. I am going to tender a maybe-new hypothesis :-). I?m going to say that grammar is more stable, harder to change. (And there are probably lots of people who have already said this.) But the hypothesis is that ?Concepts that are embedded in the grammar are culturally older than concepts that are added on in the semantics.? A recent article by Sara Solla (http://biology.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1371/ journal.pbio.0040122) looks at neurons. In this article, she states what should be obvious but what many people don?t seem to see: ?A crucial function of our brains, as well as the brains of many other organisms, is to provide an interface with the external world. This interface has two fundamental components: the processing of sensory information and the control of movement.? When we look at Din? verbs, we see a close connection between the grammatical forms and the reference to the kinesthetic properties related to moving the object(s) of the specified shape and number. Solla looks at the number of variables needed to describe features vs. the width of the tuning curve, which I think is interesting in itself (the article is free, by the way. You can read the whole thing at the link I gave you). What if I extrapolate from this and say that Southern Athapascan languages more closely reflect an awareness and understanding of psychological perception than English? Then, what if I go one step further, and say that English is deficit because it sees the world only on the surface and has no inherent awareness of the depth of complexity in the world? Addressing complexity is then a function of the sophistication of the English-language user, rather than of the sophistication of the tool. Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Rudy Troike Sent: Thursday, May 18, 2006 1:58 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative Mia, Good question. It's commonplace for languages to evolve "grammaticalization" of certain distinctions/features, while other languages express these distinctions/features "periphrastically" (to use a good term from traditional grammar), others lexically, and still others not at all. A good example is plural, which most European languages express grammatically, while other languages such as some of those in South-east Asia, express the distinction only lexically, by using numbers or quantifier words. Scott's example of English "used to" belongs in the grammatically gray (grey?) area of what Martin Joos called "quasi-modals". These involve the use of verbs which have been "bleached" of their primary meaning, and are in the process of becoming purely grammatical markers (we are inhibited in seeing this because of the practice of putting white spaces around "words" (whatever those are)). Examples are things like "be going to", "have to", "want to" (= desiderative), "start" (=inceptive), "stop" (=cessative), + a main Verb. Often these are reduced phonologically, as in "ahmonna" ('I'm going to'), Scott's "usta", and "hafta", "wanna", etc., showing further (again obscured by spelling) how these are becoming grammaticalized. Whether something is clearly part of the purely grammatical structure of a language, or somewhere on the slippery slope toward becoming grammaticalized, may be an accident of the historical point at which we examine the language, since a thousand years earlier or later, the language might show very different grammatical/structural features. Rudy Troike From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Thu May 18 16:03:13 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 09:03:13 -0700 Subject: Fwd: UK premiere of film "The Last Speakers" Message-ID: Subject: UK premiere of film "The Last Speakers" Dear friends and colleagues, This is to announce the UK premiere of the film "The Last Speakers" which took place yesterday in London at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). The film is slated for US release in the fall of 2006, on PBS. More info at: http://www.hrelp.org/events/thelastspeakers/ and a preview at http://www.ironboundfilms.com/lastslides.html ? ------------------------------------ K. David Harrison, PhD http://www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/dharris2/ Department of Linguistics Swarthmore College 500 College Avenue Swarthmore, PA 19081 tel. 610-690-5785 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: unknown.gif Type: image/gif Size: 45529 bytes Desc: not available URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 18 16:39:03 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 09:39:03 -0700 Subject: Cultural Differences, Technological Imperialism and Indigenous GIS (fwd) Message-ID: Cultural Differences, Technological Imperialism and Indigenous GIS By David Mark (May 18, 2006) http://www.directionsmag.com/article.php?article_id=2173&trv=1 Directions Magazine The Worldwide Source for Geospatial Technology Do all people, from all cultures and all languages, think about geographic space and geographic processes in more or less the same way? Or are there significant cross-cultural variations in how different peoples conceptualize and reason about geographic processes, features and places? Do geography and spatial relations parallel the infamous case of the many "Eskimo [Inuit] words for snow," the linguistics factoid that every cocktail party conversationalist thinks he or she knows? (The snow words situation turns out to be mostly a misinterpretation, but that's another story!) Or is spatial cognition and related linguistic development governed by universal principles? Coming closer to home, we can ask similar questions about GIS. Are GIS software products and Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDIs) the same for all, a universal foundation based only on the true nature of geographic phenomena, universal principles of computing and cognitive primitives? Or are the GIS packages and SDIs that we know today biased toward a European worldview and a so-called 'Western' scientific approach? If GIS is universally easy-to-use (or universally difficult, but GIS usability is another topic!), then that is good news both for humanitarians and for software vendors, and we can move forward with a one-size-fits-all solution to the world's geospatial problems. But if GIS is biased toward the culture that produced it, then it could be yet another case of North Atlantic Imperialism, another brick in the darker side of globalization, posing an ethical dilemma, especially for those working in indigenous GIS or GIS and international development. Mark Twain once wrote: "There is something fascinating about science. One gets such wholesale returns of conjecture out of such a trifling investment of fact." We have very few facts about cultural differences in spatial cognition. For almost 20 years, I have been intrigued by questions of possible cultural biases in GIS software, but until recently I had not found much in the way of solid answers. I now think I had been looking for cultural differences in spatial cognition in all the wrong places, in at least two different dimensions. I'll explain, and then draw some implications for GIS. In the 1990s, I wrote numerous papers on spatial cognition, GIScience and GIS. A frequent justification for spatial cognition research was that it relates to GIS usability and especially to GIS universality. Papers at Latinamericanist and Latin American GIS meetings speculated that cultural and linguistic differences between Spanish and English might lead to added barriers to easy GIS use by Spanish speakers. But testing human subjects on spatial relations and language in the United States, Spain and Costa Rica failed to reveal significant differences for line-region spatial relations. Was the concern unfounded? On sabbatical in 2002, I was fortunate indeed to have the opportunity to visit Andrew Turk at Murdoch University in Perth, Australia. Turk, in turn, took me a thousand miles north to Roebourne, Australia, where about 500 Yindjibarndi speakers were keeping their language alive after being forcibly removed from their traditional lands almost a century ago. Through semi-structured interviews and other ethnographic methods, Turk and I learned details of the Yindjibarndi terms for features of the landscape, things that in English would be called hills and valleys, pools and cliffs, gullies and riverbeds. While a dictionary published in the 1980s appeared to show term-by-term translations, we found that in most (if not all) cases, the terms and their definitions did not line up! There was a many-to-many relation between Yindjibarndi terms for elevated areas and their English equivalents. The relation between rivers and their beds was turned inside out in this tropical desert area. Rivers in English are fundamentally composed of water, even if some are sometimes dry; whereas a wundu in Yindjibarndi is a (dry) channel that on rare occasions might contain water. When water is present after the rare heavy rains following a tropical cyclone, the water is categorized by its intensity of flow and is always distinct from the permanent feature that might get named "river" in English. The conceptual systems that underlie the semantics of geographic expressions in the Yindjibarndi language do not seem strange, but they definitely are different. Working with Turk, David Stea, Carmelita Topaha, and many Navajo friends, we have found similar differences in Navajo language landscape categories in the arid highlands of northern Arizona and New Mexico. These tendencies do not appear to be unique to the languages we have examined to date. Discussions with researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics (Nijmegen, The Netherlands) indicate that they are finding similar results for a wide variety of languages, cultures and environments: terminology for landforms, as well as systems of place naming, vary considerably between peoples living in different sorts of environments, in different cultural traditions and lifestyles. Interesting perhaps, but how does this relate to GIS? Spatial data infrastructures encode entity types or feature codes in order to enhance the semantics of geospatial data. But such codings might not add value from an indigenous perspective, unless data are also encoded according to the categorical systems of the indigenous people. We might try to avoid categories altogether and just store entities and attributes, and then try to infer categories later on. But theories from cognitive science tell us that inferring categories from observable properties will be difficult, if not impossible, to implement. All of the above might raise ivory tower curiosity and fuel esoteric dissertation research. But these issues have important theoretical implications for indigenous GIS and indigenous mapping. If there are significant cultural differences in any aspect of spatial cognition or language, surely this must in turn imply that current GIS is Eurocentric. As it turns out, unmodified commercial GIS has proved to be a valuable and at times powerful tool for indigenous people. Just as maps were powerful tools of European imperialism in the 18th and 19th Centuries, GIS returned the favor by supporting aboriginal land claims with presentations in a language that dominant-culture courts could appreciate. And many tribes in the western United States use unmodified commercial GIS to manage tribal lands and maximize productivity of forests and grazing lands, just as private land holders or government agencies might do. But in most (if not all) of these, the GIS was wielded by tribal members with university degrees or by consultants from the dominant culture. It is not clear whether tribal GIS experts can think in their own language and culture while using GIS, or whether traditional and spiritual values can be incorporated directly into GIS solutions. Earlier, we found few differences in spatial conceptualization for spatial relations, but more recently we believe we have solid evidence that spatial feature categories can be quite different across languages. We were also working mainly comparing English with Spanish and French, other Indo-European languages. Moving to geographic entity types rather than spatial relations, to non-Indo-European languages in Australia and the western United States, and to arid landscapes rather than humid, we still see broad cross-language similarities but also many differences in the details. Indigenous GIS faces all of the challenges of "Geographic Information and Society," a research agenda within Geographic Information Science. But indigenous GIS also faces additional challenges due to the cognitive and linguistic factors mentioned above. GIS for community empowerment requires qualitative methods and ease of use, whether in Indian country, in low-income urban settings or in suburbia. Socioeconomic and educational barriers to GIS use and the steep "Digital Divide" may be greater than the cultural and linguistic issues raised here. But if there is any truth in our recent findings, indigenous GIS will never be on an equal footing with, or fully interoperable with, the main stream of GIS until indigenous spatial cognition and conceptualization are understood as well in the indigenous cultures in question as they are for English and the dominant culture of North America and Europe. Reprinted with permission, Copyright 2006, Directions Media From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 18 17:13:50 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 10:13:50 -0700 Subject: AN ABORIGINAL BASIS IN AUSTRALIAN ENGLISH (fwd media link) Message-ID: AN ABORIGINAL BASIS IN AUSTRALIAN ENGLISH 17.5.2006 17:04:13 SBS Radio http://www9.sbs.com.au/radio/index.php?page=wv&newsID=135072 Today we begin a series looking at the development of Australian English. If you weren't born in Australia, you might have wondered how much Aboriginal language or culture has seeped into the nation's English. For instance, do you know what "within cooee" means, and where it came from? And, what about "hard yakka"? Bruce Moore from the Australian National Dictionary Centre is with Caroline Davey to demystify some of these words. From rick_harp at YAHOO.COM Thu May 18 21:39:41 2006 From: rick_harp at YAHOO.COM (=?windows-1252?Q?Rick_Harp?=) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 14:39:41 -0700 Subject: Could role-playing video games help with language learning? Message-ID: This is an article from the March 2006 edition of 'PC Gamer' Magazine. It made me wonder if what they did here with math and english in a "RPG" could work for language instruction. Rick Harp, a Cree language student in Alberta http://www.bluequills.ca/cree_language_certificate.htm Education Through Gaming - Learning Quest ----------------------------------------- Instructor uses popular RPG to Math, English Lessons come with a nice carrot for pupils at West Nottinghamshire College in Nottinghamshire, England. They're learning Math and English with the educational aid of PC RPG Neverwinter Nights. Pupil-pleasing teacher Gavin Smith has built a custom Neverwinter Nights module that reinforces math and English courses for post-16 students. At the end of each lesson, students get a chance to test what they've learned in a fantasy quest. For math, students are asked to shop for supplies for a boat journey. "It's designed to test ratios and fractions," Gavins explains. "And students immediately want to learn. They come to their teachers demanding knowledge." West Nottinghamshire College believes that the RPG module has helped the local school achieve remarkable academic success. More than 500 students have passed through the course, the team won a BECTA "Beacon" award, and the exam boards now endorse the module as an official teaching product. The national average for students' "retention and achievement" hovers around the 34% mark, but this college averages 94%. Gavin describes the effect the game is having on the pupils as "a minor miracle." "We've got something here. Games captivate students in a very different way than traditional teaching. It's really quite special." copyright PC Gamer Magazine > http://pcgamer.gamesradar.com From susan.penfield at GMAIL.COM Thu May 18 22:22:48 2006 From: susan.penfield at GMAIL.COM (Susan Penfield) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 15:22:48 -0700 Subject: Could role-playing video games help with language learning? In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Rick, Good question -- I can tell you that we have submitted a proposal to work with NeverWinter Nights as a framework for Indigenous language learning with a Charter School in Arizona. It is a very attractive software for lots of reasons. We are working with a group here at the UA called the 'Learning Games Initiative' http://www.mesmernet.org/lgi/--- There are some exciting possibilities -- also lots of questions to be raised where Indigenous languages/communities are involved... I'll keep you posted and describe the project in detail soon... Best, susan On 5/18/06, Rick Harp wrote: > > This is an article from the March 2006 edition of 'PC Gamer' Magazine. It > made me wonder if what they did here with math and english in a "RPG" > could > work for language instruction. > > Rick Harp, > a Cree language student in Alberta > http://www.bluequills.ca/cree_language_certificate.htm > > > > Education Through Gaming - Learning Quest > ----------------------------------------- > > Instructor uses popular RPG to Math, English > > Lessons come with a nice carrot for pupils at West Nottinghamshire College > in Nottinghamshire, England. They're learning Math and English with the > educational aid of PC RPG Neverwinter Nights. > > Pupil-pleasing teacher Gavin Smith has built a custom Neverwinter Nights > module that reinforces math and English courses for post-16 students. At > the end of each lesson, students get a chance to test what they've learned > in a fantasy quest. For math, students are asked to shop for supplies for > a > boat journey. "It's designed to test ratios and fractions," Gavins > explains. "And students immediately want to learn. They come to their > teachers demanding knowledge." > > West Nottinghamshire College believes that the RPG module has helped the > local school achieve remarkable academic success. More than 500 students > have passed through the course, the team won a BECTA "Beacon" award, and > the exam boards now endorse the module as an official teaching product. > The > national average for students' "retention and achievement" hovers around > the 34% mark, but this college averages 94%. > > Gavin describes the effect the game is having on the pupils as "a minor > miracle." "We've got something here. Games captivate students in a very > different way than traditional teaching. It's really quite special." > > copyright PC Gamer Magazine > http://pcgamer.gamesradar.com > -- Susan D. Penfield, Ph.D. Department of English(Primary) American Indian Language Devel.Institute Department of Linguistics Second Language Acquistion &Teaching Ph.D. Program Dept. of Language,Reading and Culture The Southwest Center (Research) Phone for messages: (520) 621-1836 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 18 22:28:00 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 15:28:00 -0700 Subject: Budget 2006: Help to revitalise Pacific languages (fwd) Message-ID: Budget 2006: Help to revitalise Pacific languages Thursday, 18 May 2006, 3:39 pm Press Release: New Zealand Government Hon Phil Goff, Minister of Pacific Island Affairs Hon Luamanuvao Winnie Laban, Associate Minister of Pacific Island Affairs http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0605/S00436.htm Help to revitalise Pacific languages The government will spend $600,000 over the next three years on a programme to revitalise the Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau languages that are at risk of becoming extinct in New Zealand. Pacific Island Affairs Minister Phil Goff and Associate Minister Luamanuvao Winnie Laban said Budget 2006 would fund an expansion of their Ministry's successful Mind Your Language pilot involving the Niue community last year. "The 2001 census found only six per cent of Cook Islanders, 12 per cent of Niueans and 30 per cent of Tokelauans born in New Zealand could hold an everyday conversation in their mother tongue," Phil Goff said. "The people from all three island groups are New Zealand citizens and the centre of population of each group is now in New Zealand. "Those languages risk being lost within the next 30 years if cultural knowledge and language skills cannot be maintained and passed onto younger generations. Given the small populations still resident in the islands, this put the culture and language heritage of these areas are at risk. "The key aim of Mind Your Language is to build a critical mass of people who are able to hold every-day conversations in the tongue of their forebears. "The funding will see resources developed for Cook Island and Tokelau tutors who are fluent speakers but not necessarily teachers, and it will also allow a new group of learners from the Niue community to undertake the programme. Luamanuvao Winnie Laban said helping Pacific languages to survive and flourish was an important part of New Zealand's identity as a Pacific nation. "At a practical level it also allows people to fully participate in symbolic family and cultural activities, which in turn helps builds strong, confident communities." ENDS From rtroike at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Fri May 19 09:00:24 2006 From: rtroike at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (Rudy Troike) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 02:00:24 -0700 Subject: Usitative, etc. In-Reply-To: Message-ID: Mia, You are in danger of sounding like Rousseau. The GIS article amused me with one point about a term for a passageway for water after a rain, in an area like the Southwest U.S. where surface water is a temporal thing. Here in Arizona and New Mexico, we have a similar feature which has a label, "wash", which finds no counterpart in the better-watered parts of the English-speaking world, and might equally confound the GIS article author. I was amused recently by a story told by a man here in Tucson, who took his sons back to his own childhood home in Ohio for a visit. When they got into the Midwest, at one point they crossed a river, and one son excitedly pointed out "Dad, look! The river has water in it!" Unlike the assumption of the GIS author that "river" is defined as water moving in a stream bed, here in Arizona children grow up understanding "river" as a stream bed that may occasionally have some water in it. Do we speak the same language? Do Arizona children have a "deeper" conceptual-cognitive understanding of "river" than speakers of English in most of the rest of the globe? Or has the dessication of the atmosphere impoverished their cognitive competence? Ever since the rise of cities, country-dwellers have been ridiculing their "city-slicker" visitors for their atrophied awareness of country features, while the urbanites retaliate by making fun of the rural "yokels" for their ignorance of the citysphere. But their grammars don't differ in profound ways, although rural linguistic features earn the label of "solecisms", going back to the Greeks, and urban features may draw private rural scorn, but public envy, which is why historically, cities show rings of isoglosses around them as the surrounding rural populations have imitated urban speech. Language changes for the same basic reason that any other form of human behavior changes -- fashion, and the desire to imitate someone or some group who/which is admired. Grammar is usually the most resistant part of language to change, in part because it is so largely out of awareness, but that is not always true. On the one hand, the -m in "am" is a first-person marker that goes back to Indo-European, but has disappeared in all English verbs except "be". On the other, "like" has emerged as a quotative marker in American teen speech with lightning speed, and "you guys" has become the new 2nd person plural pronoun with equal rapidity. Evidentials in verbs, an old element in the Turkic language family, was borrowed into Bulgarian, alone of the Slavic languages, as a result of the Ottoman occupation of the area. And Gumperz has documented a village in India where three languages are spoken, two related and one not, where all three, while retaining their native vocabulary, have developed perfectly identical patterns of morphology and syntax. Grammatical borrowing is so common, in fact, that linguists are now suspicious of grammar as a major evidence for genetic relatedness between languages. The interpretation of identical grammatical structures may differ between languages, even closely related languages, because of fashion-driven change. We have little micro-evidence to prove why, when, or how changes start, but we are able to catch them only after the fact, when it is too late to reconstruct their orgins, except speculatively. So as Scott warns, attributing understandings of the universe to grammar is a hazardous and largely unvalidated undertaking, best avoided. Rudy From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Fri May 19 14:18:20 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 08:18:20 -0600 Subject: Usitative, etc. In-Reply-To: <20060519020024.ltp4elqy0o88s4c8@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: Hi, Rudy, Where do I sound like Rousseau? I must admit to having only a passing familiarity with Rousseau. However, I am not influenced by religion (Rousseau was Calvinist, then Catholic, then Calvinist). I don't associate nature with savage man. I do admit, like Rousseau, to taking the minority position. When people look at me, they see a person who they expect will support the majority opinion. When I speculate, often with data, that the majority opinion is not necessarily the "true" opinion, it makes people think in different ways. There is a particular psychological conflict between that they biases tell them is "true" about me because of how I look, and my words. I also don't deal so much with the political. I don't characterize the world in terms of the rich and powerful vs. everyone else. I see this as particularly evident in the recent elections, where there was a huge influence of the middle class . . . When I was in Florida, I happened to be talking with a Cuban woman about a current election. She and her friends were voting Republican because they associated themselves with the elite and they saw Republicans as elite. So they were voting their perceived status rather than their day-to-day reality. GIS: Poor Dr. Mark. His is still stuck in the Enlightenment Grand Narrative. Notice how he separates "indigenous" from the unmarked category. He even has hypothesized that Spanish speakers might have difficulty with an English interface because of linguistic differences. To borrow from Fauconnier, who I am more like, but also Rousseau, I can say that the issues of language and culture are a battle of compressions. Language in human use tends to be reduced to human scale for ease of communication, while in becoming part of common parlance, these compressions represent the pressures of social expectation. I spent 25 years of my life building computer systems for people all over the world. I can tell you with an assurance based on strong differences in the custom systems we used to build that registers vary not only between organizations and institutions, but also between departments, and between functional levels in those departments. Understandings and registers vary with the organizational history that people have assimilated and accommodated. And like Hebb and Freeman, I also see that the knowledge that people gather and fashion for themselves is based on what they have previously gathered and fashioned. I am perpetually amazed at how much the Enlightenment Grande Narratives still influence people's ways of looking at the world and evaluating what might be possible. Mark hopes (and hopes and hopes to no avail) that something will turn out to be "universal" so - like Chomsky, I might remark - someone can develop a one-size software that fits all. I don't know if this hope is laziness, greed, or disregard for humanity beyond all belief. What I still hear reflected in such writings are the views of Morton, Galton, Agassiz, and the measures and mis-measures of (hu)man. Speaking of Agassiz, he was head of Eugenics at Harvard. This was the first discipline for which America because highly regarded by European scholars. I often hear people talking about how Hitler's philosophies and tactics. I don't often hear the knowledge that Hitler learned from Harvard, from Agassiz and his faculty. Eugenics - or ethnic cleansing - is an American tradition. Is this Rousseauian? Believing that a discipline that characterizes people as those who are deserving of a future and those who are not is a classic and perpetual example of Human Savagery? Ironically, the lake around which some of the earliest Athapascans lived has been named for Louis Agassiz! Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Rudy Troike Sent: Friday, May 19, 2006 3:00 AM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: [ILAT] Usitative, etc. Mia, You are in danger of sounding like Rousseau. The GIS article amused me with one point about a term for a passageway for water after a rain, in an area like the Southwest U.S. where surface water is a temporal thing. Here in Arizona and New Mexico, we have a similar feature which has a label, "wash", which finds no counterpart in the better-watered parts of the English-speaking world, and might equally confound the GIS article author. I was amused recently by a story told by a man here in Tucson, who took his sons back to his own childhood home in Ohio for a visit. When they got into the Midwest, at one point they crossed a river, and one son excitedly pointed out "Dad, look! The river has water in it!" Unlike the assumption of the GIS author that "river" is defined as water moving in a stream bed, here in Arizona children grow up understanding "river" as a stream bed that may occasionally have some water in it. Do we speak the same language? Do Arizona children have a "deeper" conceptual-cognitive understanding of "river" than speakers of English in most of the rest of the globe? Or has the dessication of the atmosphere impoverished their cognitive competence? Ever since the rise of cities, country-dwellers have been ridiculing their "city-slicker" visitors for their atrophied awareness of country features, while the urbanites retaliate by making fun of the rural "yokels" for their ignorance of the citysphere. But their grammars don't differ in profound ways, although rural linguistic features earn the label of "solecisms", going back to the Greeks, and urban features may draw private rural scorn, but public envy, which is why historically, cities show rings of isoglosses around them as the surrounding rural populations have imitated urban speech. Language changes for the same basic reason that any other form of human behavior changes -- fashion, and the desire to imitate someone or some group who/which is admired. Grammar is usually the most resistant part of language to change, in part because it is so largely out of awareness, but that is not always true. On the one hand, the -m in "am" is a first-person marker that goes back to Indo-European, but has disappeared in all English verbs except "be". On the other, "like" has emerged as a quotative marker in American teen speech with lightning speed, and "you guys" has become the new 2nd person plural pronoun with equal rapidity. Evidentials in verbs, an old element in the Turkic language family, was borrowed into Bulgarian, alone of the Slavic languages, as a result of the Ottoman occupation of the area. And Gumperz has documented a village in India where three languages are spoken, two related and one not, where all three, while retaining their native vocabulary, have developed perfectly identical patterns of morphology and syntax. Grammatical borrowing is so common, in fact, that linguists are now suspicious of grammar as a major evidence for genetic relatedness between languages. The interpretation of identical grammatical structures may differ between languages, even closely related languages, because of fashion-driven change. We have little micro-evidence to prove why, when, or how changes start, but we are able to catch them only after the fact, when it is too late to reconstruct their orgins, except speculatively. So as Scott warns, attributing understandings of the universe to grammar is a hazardous and largely unvalidated undertaking, best avoided. Rudy From rrlapier at AOL.COM Fri May 19 14:36:17 2006 From: rrlapier at AOL.COM (rrlapier at AOL.COM) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 10:36:17 -0400 Subject: Senate Votes English as 'National Language' Message-ID: Senate Votes English as 'National Language' Bill Keeps in Place Multilingual Laws By Jonathan Weisman and Jim VandeHei Washington Post Staff Writers Friday, May 19, 2006; A01 After an emotional debate fraught with symbolism, the Senate yesterday voted to make English the "national language" of the United States, declaring that no one has a right to federal communications or services in a language other than English except for those already guaranteed by law. The measure, approved 63 to 34, directs the government to "preserve and enhance" the role of English, without altering current laws that require some government documents and services be provided in other languages. Opponents, however, said it could negate executive orders, regulations, civil service guidances and other multilingual ordinances not officially sanctioned by acts of Congress. That vote, considered a defeat for immigration-rights advocates, was followed last night by an important victory: By 58 to 35, the Senate killed an amendment that would have blocked eventual citizenship for future immigrants who arrive under a temporary work permit. Democrats and Republicans agreed that the amendment would have destroyed the fragile, bipartisan coalition backing the Senate bill. The Senate action came hours after President Bush, who visited the border town of Yuma, Ariz., asked Congress to approve a $1.95 billion budget request to deploy National Guard troops and 1,000 additional enforcement agents to the U.S.-Mexico border. Bush also endorsed for the first time the construction of 370 miles of southern border fences to cut down on illegal immigration. The English language vote continued the conservative turn that a major overhaul of the nation's immigration laws has taken since the Senate began debate this week. The comprehensive legislation would strengthen border security, allow illegal immigrants who have been in the country five years or more to remain and eventually become citizens, and create a guest-worker program. With approval of a triple-layered border fence Wednesday, the capping of the annual number of guest-worker visas at 200,000 and the English-language amendment yesterday, Republicans say the bill is tougher than the original version and comes closer to what is needed to satisfy many conservatives. But immigrants-rights groups say their support is teetering. "This is devastating," said Raul Gonzalez, legislative director of the National Council of La Raza, after the English-language vote. "For us, this is a tough issue to bring back to the community." Only nine Senate Democrats voted for the amendment and one Republican, Sen. Pete V. Domenici (N.M.), voted against it. Maryland's two Democratic senators voted against it, and Virginia's two GOP senators voted for it. The English-language debate has roiled U.S. politics for decades and, in some quarters, has been as controversial and important as an amendment to ban flag burning. The impact of the language amendment was unclear even after its passage. The wording negating claims to multilingual services appears straightforward. It also sets requirements that immigrants seeking U.S. citizenship know the English language and U.S. history. The amendment would require more thorough testing to demonstrate English-language proficiency and knowledge of U.S. history and elements of U.S. culture such as the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem. But its author, Sen. James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.), made two last-minute changes that some opponents said would reduce its effect significantly. By stipulating that the English-only mandates could not negate existing laws, Inhofe spared current ordinances that allow bilingual education or multilingual ballots. By changing the amendment to label English the "national language" rather than the "official language" of the country, Inhofe may have lessened its symbolic power. "In my view, we had it watered down enough to make it acceptable," said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), one of the chief architects of the immigration bill. But pro-immigration groups and some Democrats said the amendment would obliterate executive orders issued by President Bill Clinton that mandated multilingual services and communications in a variety of federal agencies, and could undermine court orders, agency regulations, civil service guidances, and state and local ordinances that call for multilingual services. Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) called the amendment "racist," and Sen. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.) dismissed it as divisive and anti-American. Further complicating the picture, moments after approving the Inhofe amendment, the Senate voted 58 to 39 to approve a competing amendment by Salazar. It declared English the "common unifying language of the United States," but mandated that nothing in that declaration "shall diminish or expand any existing rights" regarding multilingual services. Senators said the conflict will have to be worked out in negotiations with the House. During his appearance in Arizona with Gov. Janet Napolitano (D) in attendance, Bush offered some tough talk. After touring a porous section of the border that has helped turn Yuma into a hotbed for illegal workers, Bush told a group of federal patrol agents that the White House is committed to sending reinforcements soon, and to significantly expanding security and staff over the next several years. "It's time to get immediate results," Bush said at the Yuma Sector Border Patrol headquarters. But administration officials made it clear that the $1.95 billion for the president's border initiative should come out of the same money approved by the Senate in its version of an emergency war spending bill. That angered Senate Budget Committee Chairman Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who had secured that money solely for capital expenditures, such as fences, sensors and watchtowers, not border security operations. But Gregg said he has "been told rather bluntly" some of those expenditures will have to wait. The White House said the new budget request by Bush would cover the $750 million-plus Guard deployment, new agents, fences and barriers, five helicopters and two new unmanned surveillance aircraft. The money would be offset by delaying other military purchases, according to the White House. VandeHei reported from Yuma. ? 2006 The Washington Post Company Rosalyn LaPier Piegan Institute www.pieganinstitute.org -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From rzs at TDS.NET Fri May 19 16:00:47 2006 From: rzs at TDS.NET (Richard Zane Smith) Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 11:00:47 -0500 Subject: Senate Votes English as 'National Language' Message-ID: kweh om?t?r? More steps towards a gradual standardization of the american citizen Being exposed to all the great discussion we are having here i hope we are also daily working against this --sameness-- drive sing a song, use a prayer in your OWN language resist this conquest....by being John Kyarahoo(Wyandot) saw it coming in 1911 and it was recorded in text: "...? taw?t? da?' d 'ay?hshany?kyerata' tuh?sha' da? yarih?gy?h tuteny? tizh? d' a?mets?yeh..." meaning: "its impossible to hold on to anything anymore the reason is (there seems to be) a change covering(clothing) the land..." (He died the following year) to understand we are dying is no cure of itself and we can waste alot of time articulating our death we can only resist conquest by being richard > > Senate Votes English as 'National Language' > Bill Keeps in Place Multilingual Laws > > > After an emotional debate fraught with symbolism, the Senate yesterday voted to make English the "national language" of the United States, declaring that no one has a right to federal communications or services in a language other than English except for those already guaranteed by law. Richard Zane Smith 18474 S.Cayuga Rd. Wyandotte Oklahoma 74370 From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 22 03:31:47 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 20:31:47 -0700 Subject: Voice of the Ainu speaks to the people (fwd) Message-ID: Voice of the Ainu speaks to the people 05/22/2006 BY EIJI ZAKODA, THE ASAHI SHIMBUN http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200605220128.html BIRATORI, Hokkaido--There was a time when the Ainu culture seemed nearly extinct, drowned in the long-standing Japanese assimilation policy. Now a new wave is swelling. A tiny community FM radio station that opened five years ago in Biratori, southern Hokkaido, is keeping the Ainu voice alive and reaching audiences on a global scale. And the local community of Nibutani, where the station is based, has become a global gathering place for the international movement to protect indigenous culture. In fact, almost 10 years since the passing of the Law for the Promotion of Ainu Culture and Dissemination and Advocacy of Ainu Traditions, Ainu culture is practically blossoming. A new generation of leaders is eager to follow in the footsteps of Shigeru Kayano, who until his death on May 6 at 79 had been the undisputed voice of the Ainu for as long as most people could remember. Kayano became the first Diet member of Ainu descent in 1994, and acted as representative for the Ainu radio station. "Listen to our radio broadcast and you can actually hear the language that has been revived," Kayano said in an interview shortly before his death. "Words fly to you through the air. It is my dear wish that the Ainu words will reach listeners and tell our story." Kayano's son, Shiro, is one of several volunteers who now make broadcast content for the station. "I know that our broadcast won't boost the number of Ainu speakers immediately," Shiro, 47, said. "But there is great significance in sending out word of our Ainu culture to the wider world." The idea for the station came to the elder Kayano when he heard of indigenous people in Canada who have radio programs in their own language. He chose Nibutani library, near his house, to house the station. In April 2001, it went on the air. Though officially called FM-Nibutani, around here people call it FM-Pipaushi, meaning "a place with many shells." Shiro contributes to a monthly hourlong variety show of folk tales, Ainu epic poetry called yukara, Ainu language lessons and tongue twisters, and local news in both Ainu and Japanese. On one day there might be an interview with a local elder recounting tales of times past; on another a graduate student from Alaska might speak about education for indigenous people. Pipaushi is a community FM station, so the broadcast can only be heard only locally. Thanks to the Internet, though, it can attract listeners worldwide. Shiro's "International Indigenous Peoples' Network" Website gets about 300 visitors for each broadcast; as of early April they had gotten about 20,000 hits. "It is a great idea to promote the Ainu language through the Internet," one Japanese person living in Seattle commented online. "I want to learn about the Ainu," wrote a high school student in Germany. The station now has a special wall covered with messages from various indigenous people around the world. Other areas in Japan are pricking up their ears. A community FM station in Sapporo relays the Pipaushi broadcast, and just last month a Kobe station began airing the Ainu variety program. "The more languages you speak, the deeper understanding of others you cultivate," said naturalist and writer C.W. Nicol, a guest on the Feb. 12 broadcast. "If the Ainu language makes a comeback, that will certainly give more depth to the Japanese language." "Words have a certain magic," he said. "Once you master the language, you start feeling proud about your own roots." Society has not always been so tolerant of the Ainu culture. Like many minorities and indigenous peoples, the Ainu endured a history of repression and assimilation. In 1593, the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598) officially gave the Matsumae clan the right to govern the island of Ezo--now Hokkaido, the ancestral Ainu homeland. The Hokkaido Colonial Office was set up in 1869. Thirty years later, in 1899, the Meiji government enacted the Hokkaido Former Aborigines Protection Law. The act was essentially a major assimilation program. Certain tracts of land were designated for Ainu people, their common property placed under the control of the governor of Hokkaido, and education guidelines outlined by the state. After World War II, the Ainu took steps to assert their cultural independence. In 1946, the Ainu Association of Hokkaido was formed to improve the people's livelihood and education. It was renamed Utari Kyokai in 1961. A major step for the Ainu was Kayano's election in 1994 to a seat in the Upper House, making him the first Diet member of Ainu descent. He was also instrumental in getting the 1899 assimilation-oriented law replaced in 1997 with the Ainu culture promotion law. A Hokkaido government census two years later noted that after falling fairly continuously from 26,256 in 1807 to a low of 15,969 in 1931, the Ainu population in Hokkaido had increased to about 24,000 in 1999. Much of the damage had already been done, though. The Ainu language was hit particularly hard. Japan's unflinching assimilation policy had almost succeeded in stamping the language out, especially during the 1970s and 1980s. Many parents simply felt beaten down, as though their language no longer served any purpose in Japanese society. Some stopped speaking it with their children. Now, the Utari Kyokai offers Ainu language lessons in 14 places around Hokkaido. The Ainu culture promotion law also supports higher-level classes with the goal of educating future language teachers. And Nibutani has become a gathering place for supporters of indigenous culture around the world. In 1993 and 2005, more than 10 minorities and indigenous groups, including Native American tribes and the Ami from Taiwan, came together for the Nibutani Forum to discuss how to encourage harmonious co-existence. Even the central government is taking a few tentative steps forward. It launched a program to revive the ioru, the traditional Ainu living space. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, together with the Agency for Cultural Affairs, has budgeted 50 million yen to start the project in fiscal 2006 in Shiraoi, southwest Hokkaido. The whole ioru, including the chise house at the center, will be recreated. The living space is closely intertwined with the natural environment, a harmony that Ainu culture emphasizes strongly. A new forest will be planted in Shiraoi, with 16 kinds of trees and 22 other plant species, including the cattail used in the making of special ornaments and garments for use in traditional Ainu ceremonies. Despite all this, the road ahead will be tough for Ainu culture. The bitter truth is that few fluent native Ainu speakers remain. Shigeru Kayano was one of them. "There was a time when we almost lost our language because they only taught Japanese at our schools," he said. "However, now we have textbooks and dictionaries. Times have changed. People can now learn the language, if they wish to do so." He called language "the symbol of a people." "It is the soul. As long as we keep our language alive, our soul will continue on its shining path."(IHT/Asahi: May 22,2006) From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 22 03:34:51 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 20:34:51 -0700 Subject: Aborigines tell their own tale in mystic film (fwd) Message-ID: Aborigines tell their own tale in mystic film Fri May 19, 2006 8:29 PM ET By Kerstin Gehmlich http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=filmNews&storyID=2006-05-20T002905Z_01_L19149818_RTRIDST_0_FILM-LEISURE-CANNES-ABORIGINE-DC.XML&archived=False CANNES, France (Reuters) - Director Rolf de Heer had to hire crocodile hunters and learn how to build canoes out of trees for his new film, which he made with Aboriginal actors speaking their own language. Heer, a native of the Netherlands who moved to Australia at age 8, said he developed "Ten Canoes" with members of the Yolngu community in northern Australia because he wanted to let the indigenous people tell its own history. "I think the greatest importance to them is to show their story and to have their culture valued by our culture," Heer told Reuters on Friday after he presented the film, which is showing at the Cannes festival outside the main competition. "In the end, the film can, in Australia, provide some sort of little extra step in reconciliation and understanding -- and just enjoyment. I think if we can enjoy indigenous culture, that is more important than anything else." Heer's gentle parable on pride, love, jealousy, and tribal ties is set in an Australia of some 1,000 years ago. Hunter Minygululu takes the young Dayindi on his first goose egg hunt into the marshland, where he learns that Dayindi fancies one of his wives. To ward off the young man and to teach him how to respect tribal law, Minygululu recites the story of a similar incident involving their hunting ancestors centuries ago. Heer said it was a challenge to film in the Yolngu languages -- the movie has English subtitles -- and to transfer the tale into a plot accessible to Western viewers. "(The Yolngu's) storytelling is based on repetition and building in off-directions. We are more direct," Heer said. Aborigine actor David Gulpilil, who starred in "Crocodile Dundee" and Heer's "The Tracker," takes on the role of ironic narrator. Heer said his crew had demonstrated nerves of steel during shooting. "If you stand in a swamp, up to your waist for 6 hours at a stretch, and leeches are getting at you from the waist down, and mosquitos from the waist up, and the local says there's a big one coming, a crocodile, then in the end you just have to say ... 'Tell me when it gets closer. Keep shooting'," he said. Showing the film to the local community of Ramingining where it was shot was a moving experience, he said. "They made so much noise, laughing and cheering, that they could understand perhaps only 30 percent of the dialogue. But it didn't matter because they understood what was going on. They were laughing at jokes that I didn't know were there," he said. "It's the first time they have seen that sort of drama ... that is their own story, with their own people doing it, particularly in their own language. So it's been fantastic." Reuters/VNU From coyotez at UOREGON.EDU Mon May 22 04:15:27 2006 From: coyotez at UOREGON.EDU (David Gene Lewis) Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 21:15:27 -0700 Subject: Fwd: [thx Jeff Kopp] Now possible to recover oldest recordings Message-ID: David Lewis University of Oregon Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde ------ Forwarded message ------- From: David Robertson Reply-to: David Robertson To: CHINOOK at LISTSERV.LINGUISTLIST.ORG Date: Sun, 21 May 2006 17:47:26 -0400 Jeff Kopp sent along amazing news that something we'd hoped for has become possible. Some scientists have succeeded in recovering the sound from old wax cylinder recordings using optical scanning. Nothing touches the disk (which would wear it out, ruining valuable information). The recordings at the following links are impressive. I think they've managed to clean up so much surface noise that we now hear versions better than a wax cylinder player ever delivered. The potential for recovering detailed phonetic and other linguistic data from old recordings of NW languages is huge. For example, there's quite a bit of recorded Chinook Jargon waiting for this treatment, when it becomes available and easy to use. Thanks, Jeff. --Dave R "...they're working on optical recovery. This sounds pretty complicated (it's done with a particle accelerator at the DOE's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory), but besides being totally non-destructive (every play of a wax cylinder can damage it a little), it gets more of the sound out. http://www.newsobserver.com/303/story/234530.html Here's another: http://playlistmag.com/features/2005/08/preserve3/index.php" To respond to the CHINOOK list, click 'REPLY ALL'. To respond privately to the sender of a message, click 'REPLY'. Hayu masi! From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Mon May 22 18:58:32 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 11:58:32 -0700 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <000001c67a89$0bbf1c20$0efd7b80@LFPMia> Message-ID: Mia, You ought to take a look at: James R. Hurford's article "The neural basis of predicate-argument structure" in BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES (2003) 26, 261?316 Quite an interesting read and it seems to fit well with some of ideas you are considering with the grammar of D?ne. I get the impression that Hurford is proposing a kind of "primitive mental representation," one independent of language, that makes a grammar happen. Pretty cool idea I think as I've been trying to find ideas or "stuff" like this to come to an understanding of Nez Perce. l8ter, Phil (cayuse/nez perce) From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Tue May 23 12:53:14 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 05:53:14 -0700 Subject: A Unique Sound (fwd) Message-ID: A Unique Sound [Photo credit: Amanda Stone Sequoyah Indians girls basketball coach Bill Nobles] [Download Listen to clips from the game (2:00) Need an mp3 player? Get Quicktime] By Amanda Stone TAHLEQUAH, Okla.??Sequoyah Indian girls won.? Radio host Dennis Sixkiller spoke these words after the Tahlequah Sequoyah girls won their second consecutive Oklahoma state high school basketball championship. Listeners heard those words in Cherokee. ["Sequoyah Indian Girls Won" as written in the Cherokee syllabary.] Among broadcasters airing the state games, Sixkiller and partner David Scott were the only ones in Oklahoma using the tribe?s native language. ?We enjoy doing it in Cherokee, and I?m glad we?re able to,? Sixkiller said. ?We get all kinds of responses.? In winning the 3A Oklahoma state championship, Sequoyah defeated Verdigris High School of Claremore, 60-45, before a crowd estimated at more than 5,000. The Sequoyah game aired on Cherokee Voices and Cherokee Sounds, a radio program sponsored by the Oklahoma Cherokee Nation. It airs on stations at 101.7 FM and 1350 AM and carries community stories, sports and Cherokee music. [Photo credit: Amanda Stone Oklahoma girls 3A state basketball championship trophy is on display at Sequoyah High School.] Sixkiller said both stations carried the games. The FM station broadcast in English and the AM station in Cherokee, he said. ?I think it?s awesome,? said Gina Stanley, superintendent of Sequoyah High School. ?I don?t miss a game, but once they make it that far, there are a lot of others out there listening and taking advantage of it.? Although unsure how many listeners tuned in for the games, Sixkiller said many people in the Tahlequah area told him that they enjoyed the broadcasts. ?About a month before the games, we had people wanting to know if we were going to do it again,? Sixkiller said. ?People really like it. Some people in Jay drove around a parking lot until they could hear it.? The Sequoyah basketball program has a good fan following, said Bill Nobles, the girls? basketball coach. Buses made the two-and-a-half hour trip to Oklahoma City for the games, and school was dismissed so the 355-member student body could attend. The radio station sufficed for students and other fans who could not support the team in person, he said. ?It?s great there are so many Cherokee speakers around,? Nobles said. ?This is very much a community and family-based program. There?s a lot more speakers than people realize.? Amanda Stone, Cherokee, attends Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Okla. She is a 2004 graduate of the Freedom Forum's American Indian Journalism Institute. Article Link: http://www.reznetnews.org/news/060505_cherokee/ Copyright ? 2006 Reznet. Reznet is a project of The University of Montana School of Journalism and the Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education. From MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US Tue May 23 23:19:22 2006 From: MiaKalish at LEARNINGFORPEOPLE.US (Mia Kalish) Date: Tue, 23 May 2006 17:19:22 -0600 Subject: Usitative In-Reply-To: <20060522115832.s8wgo4ok084sk408@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: Hi, Phil, Thanks. Hope both you and the trout are well. I will check this out when I am home. I currently in Gallup. What I'm actually doing is untangling the mathematics in the language, and a ton is buried in the grammar. :-) Fairly complex ideas, too, repetition and recursion, Bayesian statistics :-). I understand there is a ton in the details in the Hoogan, also. I can hardly wait. :-) I'll let you know when I have read the Hurford. I know we have the journal in the NMSU library. Best, Mia -----Original Message----- From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of phil cash cash Sent: Monday, May 22, 2006 12:59 PM To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU Subject: Re: [ILAT] Usitative Mia, You ought to take a look at: James R. Hurford's article "The neural basis of predicate-argument structure" in BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES (2003) 26, 261?316 Quite an interesting read and it seems to fit well with some of ideas you are considering with the grammar of D?ne. I get the impression that Hurford is proposing a kind of "primitive mental representation," one independent of language, that makes a grammar happen. Pretty cool idea I think as I've been trying to find ideas or "stuff" like this to come to an understanding of Nez Perce. l8ter, Phil (cayuse/nez perce) From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 25 16:24:01 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 09:24:01 -0700 Subject: Language preservation focus of meeting (fwd) Message-ID: Published on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 3:53 PM MST Language preservation focus of meeting http://www.silverbelt.com/articles/2006/05/23/apache_moccasin/apache01.txt The San Carlos Apache Administration of Native American (ANA) Language Preservation Office will be holding a public meeting to inform the public of the ANA grant awarded to the San Carlos Apache Tribe for language preservation last year. The meeting will be held in the education conference room on Tuesday, May 30, at 10 a.m. The overall goal of the project is to assess the status of the Apache language on the San Carlos Apache Reservation. The San Carlos Planning Department established a Language Preservation Office upon receiving word on the grant approval. Joyce Johnson was hired as the language coordinator in April and will continue to work to design a formal assessment tool that captures the information identified during the design of the language project program, conduct an actual assessment of the community, collect and analyze the information generated. An overall concern, identified throughout the reservation includes the general agreement that the San Carlos Apache people are rapidly losing the ability to understand and speak the Apache language. In the grant application, the planning department states, “It is felt that this is a critical problem as language is a key component of one's culture and one's identityŠ.there is a tremendous need to formally assess and determine the actual status of the Apache language.” The language coordinator will be involved with the Elder's Cultural Advisory Council and the support of a Project Evaluation Team. A language committee will also be established as a part of the grant. Community members who are interested in providing input into the assessment tool, conducting surveys, and helping in the development of the long term language goals are strongly encouraged to participate. For more information regarding the Language Preservation Program, please contact Joyce Johnson at 475-2331. From stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU Thu May 25 19:14:24 2006 From: stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU (Bruce Stonefish) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 15:14:24 -0400 Subject: Article - Technology Revitalizes Endangered Languages In-Reply-To: <1e3.392e79e.2b96307a@aol.com> Message-ID: Hello All, I know some may not of heard from me in awhile - have been doing fine, as I am back in my community. Recently we (Myself and Glen Jacobs) have released a Lunaape Lanaguage resource. You can check it out at the following website - www.mohican.com - then log on to 'community' then 'Lunaape Language'. We have to date sold approximately 50 or so. We are currently in the process of make a bulk order for the CD's. The resource is a Booklet and 3 CD Set (4hrs) of Lunaape Language. There are words in this booklet that cannot be found anywhere else. This booklet is a product of the Lunaapge Language Immersion Camp that we held last August- it is actually the booklet we used. We recieved funding from the Stockbridge Munsee Tribe in Wisconsin. (We will be hosting this camp again this August in our community if you are interested - let me know) This e-mail is intended help advertise the sale of our Language Resource as well as to give you a glimpse into what I have been doing. Check it out - order one for yourself or some for you community. We are approaching our chief and council as well as the Chief and Council in Munsee. So let me know if you need any. Got to keep the language alive. Anushiik waak Laapichkuneewal, Bruce Stonefish (519) 692-7226 stonefbr at gse.harvard.edu On Tue, 04 Mar 2003 11:38:18 -0500 (EST) Jim Rementer wrote: > A recent article of interest. > > Jim Rementer > > > Innovative use of technology breakthrough revitalizes endangered languages > > VICTORIA, BC, March 4 /PRNewswire/ - There is an urgent need for Aboriginal > communities worldwide to have the tools to document, archive and revitalize > their endangered languages while enough fluent speakers still survive. > > Two Victoria-based organizations - The First Peoples' Cultural Foundation > (FPCF) and Trafford Publishing - are exploring ways to support and enhance > existing First Nations language programs and encourage the revitalization of > endangered languages around the world. > > They have begun to use Trafford's breakthrough service in full-color book > publishing to create a series of customized full-color primers-in several > Aboriginal languages. Language revitalization is critical to cultural > survival; primers like this are much-needed by Aboriginal language > instructors. > > "There are more than 6,500 languages spoken around the world," says Simon > Robinson, Executive Director of the FPCF. "It is estimated that 90 per cent > of these languages will be extinct by the end of the 21st century. Unless we > act now to support their revitalization, thousands of years of accumulated > human knowledge is at risk of disappearing without record." In Canada, > British Columbia is home to 32 of the country's 50 Aboriginal languages. By > building tools and providing resources that support community language > initiatives, Robinson's organization aims to help endangered languages thrive > again. > > In their initial collaboration, Trafford and the FPCF will publish primers on > colors and numbers. There will be five different versions of the book - each > featuring a different First Nations language. As a testament to the speed and > accessibility of Trafford's new publishing tool, a proof of the first book in > the series - a book in Sencoten created by students of the Lau,Welnew Tribal > School on the Saanich Peninsula - was produced in under one week. > >Future work includes expanding the series to include an alphabet primer, > books on conversational phrases, and dictionaries; and translating the > primers into other First Nations languages. The new technologies will enable >First Nations communities and individuals to produce their own wide range of > books in their own languages. > > "We are really excited about the work of the First Peoples' Cultural >Foundation," states Bruce Batchelor, co-founder and CEO of Trafford > Publishing. "Our on-demand publishing system can provide the FPCF with an > accessible and cost-effective way to produce dictionaries, children's books - > any imaginable printed resource - in First Nations languages." > > Generally, once a manuscript and accompanying artwork are complete, Trafford > can have the book ready for distribution to classrooms and retail outlets in > as little as four weeks. It will be stored as a digital file and printed > on-demand using a Xerox DocuColor system > > "Xerox has been a leader in Print On Demand since the initial launch of > high-speed digital print engines more than 20 years ago. Our latest > generation of digital printing devices, particularly the DocuColor family of > digital color presses, enables the cost-efficient production of full-color > books such as these First Nations primers," said Peter W. Perine, vice > president and general manager, Xerox Publishing Segment Marketing. "In this > high-growth area of Print On Demand, Xerox is helping customers produce > high-quality books in short run lengths and quick turnaround times." > > The FPCF and Trafford Publishing are making their announcement at iSynergy, a > technology showcase in Vancouver that was sponsored by Apple Computers. The >FPCF's programs and enabling tools (website interactivity, remapped keyboards > and customized fonts, for example) are built on Apple technology. Trafford > uses Apple Macintosh computers for its prepress and production processes, and > Apple 0SX servers for its data-intensive networking. > > The First Peoples' Cultural Foundation is committed to the documentation, > protection and revitalization of the full diversity of Aboriginal language, > arts and cultures. It has garnered worldwide attention for FirstVoices.com, > an impressive web-based Indigenous language archiving application that it has > developed and made available online. Indigenous groups from Canada, > Australia, Europe and the USA are preparing to use the FPCF's tools. > www.fpcf.ca > > Trafford is a Canadian-registered private company currently serving close to > 2,000 authors from over 40 countries. It has offices in Victoria, BC > (Canada), New Bern, NC (USA), Drogheda, Co. Louth (Ireland), and Crewe, > Cheshire (UK). Trafford is credited with inventing the on-demand publishing > process for authors of black and white paperback books-now over 10% of all > new titles launched in North America use this process. Extending this service > to affordable full-color children's books is another world first. > > See www.trafford.com/journalists for a backgrounder on this publishing > breakthrough. From stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU Thu May 25 19:16:01 2006 From: stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU (Bruce Stonefish) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 15:16:01 -0400 Subject: Tribal College Journal In-Reply-To: <5.2.0.9.2.20030222144707.00ab3810@oregon.uoregon.edu> Message-ID: Hello All, I know some may not of heard from me in awhile - have been doing fine, as I am back in my community. Recently we (Myself and Glen Jacobs) have released a Lunaape Lanaguage resource. You can check it out at the following website - www.mohican.com - then log on to 'community' then 'Lunaape Language'. We have to date sold approximately 50 or so. We are currently in the process of make a bulk order for the CD's. The resource is a Booklet and 3 CD Set (4hrs) of Lunaape Language. There are words in this booklet that cannot be found anywhere else. This booklet is a product of the Lunaapge Language Immersion Camp that we held last August- it is actually the booklet we used. We recieved funding from the Stockbridge Munsee Tribe in Wisconsin. (We will be hosting this camp again this August in our community if you are interested - let me know) This e-mail is intended help advertise the sale of our Language Resource as well as to give you a glimpse into what I have been doing. Check it out - order one for yourself or some for you community. We are approaching our chief and council as well as the Chief and Council in Munsee. So let me know if you need any. Got to keep the language alive. Anushiik waak Laapichkuneewal, Bruce Stonefish (519) 692-7226 stonefbr at gse.harvard.edu On Sat, 22 Feb 2003 14:55:05 -0800 David Lewis wrote: > Dear ILAT, > > The newest issue of Tribal College Journal has devoted the issue to History > and Native Americans. I see this as very related to our Linguistics as when > the languages went or should they disappear, our history goes with > them. If you want to order this Journal the address is : > Tribal College Journal > P.O. Box 720 > Mancos, CO 81328 > > (970) 533-9170 > (888) 899-6693 > > or www.tribalcollegejournal.org > > David From stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU Thu May 25 19:19:02 2006 From: stonefbr at GSE.HARVARD.EDU (Bruce Stonefish) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 15:19:02 -0400 Subject: BRIEF intro In-Reply-To: <200301242148.h0OLmmC20453@lisbon.ucdavis.edu> Message-ID: Hello All, I know some may not of heard from me in awhile - have been doing fine, as I am back in my community. Recently we (Myself and Glen Jacobs) have released a Lunaape Lanaguage resource. You can check it out at the following website - www.mohican.com - then log on to 'community' then 'Lunaape Language'. We have to date sold approximately 50 or so. We are currently in the process of make a bulk order for the CD's. The resource is a Booklet and 3 CD Set (4hrs) of Lunaape Language. There are words in this booklet that cannot be found anywhere else. This booklet is a product of the Lunaapge Language Immersion Camp that we held last August- it is actually the booklet we used. We recieved funding from the Stockbridge Munsee Tribe in Wisconsin. (We will be hosting this camp again this August in our community if you are interested - let me know) This e-mail is intended help advertise the sale of our Language Resource as well as to give you a glimpse into what I have been doing. Check it out - order one for yourself or some for you community. We are approaching our chief and council as well as the Chief and Council in Munsee. So let me know if you need any. Got to keep the language alive. Anushiik waak Laapichkuneewal, Bruce Stonefish (519) 692-7226 stonefbr at gse.harvard.edu On Fri, 24 Jan 2003 13:48:48 -0800 Kirsten Meyer wrote: > Osiyo, > > I have been hesitating on introducing myself because I am not doing > anything nearly as important as most of the other people on the listserve. > I am a first year graduate student in Native American Studies at the > University of California, Davis. I am fortunate to have Martha Macri as my > advisor here, and am studying Cherokee language and linguistics. > Eventually I would like to design curriculum for use in Native > communities, especially for language revitalization, and I am very > interested in integrating technology and multimedia into language > acquisition programs. In addition to Cherokee, I also have a special > interest in Yavapai and Lenape language revitalization efforts. Reading > about the projects everyone is working on in their communities has been > very inspiring. I hope to meet some of you in person before too long. > > Kirsten Meyer From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Thu May 25 23:13:36 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Thu, 25 May 2006 16:13:36 -0700 Subject: Students Document a Disappearing Language (fwd) Message-ID: Students Document a Disappearing Language By Kerry Grens Durham, New Hampshire 25 May 2006 Grens report (MP3) - Download 984k Grens report (Real) - Download 653k Listen to Grens report (Real) http://www.voanews.com/english/AmericanLife/2006-05-25-voa60.cfm In the highlands of southwest Kenya, about a million and a half people speak an unwritten language called Kisii. Halfway around the world from the coffee and maize farms of Kisii district, students at the University of New Hampshire are developing a rulebook for the language. They have only the help of one transplanted native speaker. And he's learning just as much about Kisii as they are. In a typical session, seven linguistics students gather around Henry Gekonde and pepper him with questions. "Can you say that it's 'not red' in Kisii?" asks one. "Yeah," he responds, "You can say yaya teri mbariri. Yaya means no." Gekonde grew up in Kenya, speaking Kisii at home. The students are trying to learn as much as they can from him about his native tongue. Over the past several months, they have developed a keen ear for a language that none of them had ever heard before. They transcribe Gekonde's answers using the International Phonetic Alphabet, just about as quickly as he speaks. Today, they are trying to understand how to say "not" in Kisii. Aside from a translation of the Bible and a few children's books, the class has been unable to find anything written in Kisii. [photo inset - The words banana, fish, hand and book are from some of the 8 noun classes the students discovered as they documented the Kisii language] The purpose of this linguistics course is to teach students how to document a largely unknown language. And with the semester coming to a close, the students have made considerable progress. They started with simply collecting the sounds Kisii uses, and translating vocabulary. Now they've got the basic sentence structure down. It is the same as English: subject, verb, direct object. But Adam Jardine says he and his classmates have also uncovered some bewildering differences. "It's kind of like in French and Spanish where there's a masculine/feminine distinction. In Kisii, there (are) 8 of those distinctions. So depending on what type of noun a word is, all these different things in the sentence change." Another difference is that Kisii does not have the verb "to be". It does, however, have many different past tenses. All of these complexities were also somewhat of a surprise to Henry Gekonde, who admits he didn't really analyze his language until now. "Even the way it works -- the tenses, the noun system and all that -- I never thought about that. I'm uncovering things about Kisii that I didn't know before. And for some of the questions that the students ask me, I don't really have an answer." He says it's very exciting. "We're figuring it out together." Gekonde never learned about Kisii grammar. Kenyan schools teach only the country's dominant languages, Swahili and English. "It's a dying language anyway, not that many people speak it," he says, adding, "it's not used in academic research or work or writing, so what's the point of studying it?" To preserve it, according to linguistics professor Naomi Nagy, who teaches this class. There are very few texts that describe anything of Kisii grammar, she says, adding that even though Kisii is not included on the endangered list, hundreds of unwritten languages are at risk of going extinct within the next hundred years. "I think that a really important step for people who are trying to preserve endangered languages is to get the speakers of those languages to realize that their language is just as good." [photo inset - New Hampshire linguist Naomi Nagy and Henry Gekonde grill a goat at a Kenyan dinner to mark the end of the semester] So Professor Nagy asked Henry Gekonde to be the subject of her language documentation class. He says he was happy to do it. He sees Kisii eroding among the younger generation in Kenya, and being replaced by English. Gekonde's hope is that documenting Kisii will help keep his native language alive and with it, the Kisii way of interpreting the world. "You have computers and cars and things like that. That makes you view the world in a different way," he explains. "We have bananas and maize and walks to the market on foot, lots of rain, and we have words that describe that lifestyle that people lead, and that's the way we view the world. That's really what distinguishes us from people who speak other languages." Henry Gekonde says he's determined to preserve those distinctions. Although he came to the University of New Hampshire as a linguistics graduate student to study English, he now plans to return to Kenya to develop the first Kisii dictionary. From mona at ALLIESMEDIAART.COM Fri May 26 17:57:42 2006 From: mona at ALLIESMEDIAART.COM (MSmith) Date: Fri, 26 May 2006 12:57:42 -0500 Subject: Open Source Award Message-ID: > > >14) Mellon Foundation Announces Awards for Open Source Software > > Deadline: August 15, 2006 > > The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has announced a Call for > Nominations for the 2006 Mellon Awards for Technology > Collaboration. These awards, to be bestowed for the first time > at an international technology conference in the fall of 2006, > will recognize notprofit organizations that have demonstrated > exceptional leadership in the collaborative development of open- > source software through the contribution of substantial, self- > funded organizational resources to the open-source project for > which they are nominated. > > MATC awards will be made at two levels -- $25,000 and $100,000 > -- for significant contributions to collaborative, open-source > software development that serves one of the foundation's > traditional constituencies. The level of the award will depend > on the scale and significance of the nominated project. > > Any U.S. or foreign organization that meets the foundation's > legal criteria for receiving grants and its strict standards for > excellence is eligible for consideration. The board of trustees > of the Mellon Foundation has authorized multiple awards at each > level. > > Visit the Mellon Foundation Web site for the complete Call for > Nominations. > > RFP Link: http://fconline.fdncenter.org/pnd/10002728/mellon > > For additional RFPs in Science/Technology, visit: > http://fconline.fdncenter.org/pnd/10002729/science > > From andrekar at NCIDC.ORG Sat May 27 15:45:06 2006 From: andrekar at NCIDC.ORG (Andre Cramblit) Date: Sat, 27 May 2006 08:45:06 -0700 Subject: KILI Radio Message-ID: Native American Indigenous Cinema & Arts homepage: www.thenaica.org blog: http://thenaica.org/nucleus/carole.php NO MORE SILENCE: BRINGING BACK THE VOICE OF KILI RADIO For anybody driving west through the prairie expanse of South Dakota, something changes once you cross the Missouri. You soon come upon the moonscape terrain of the Badlands followed by the dramatic melding into the pine-covered Black Hills. If you?re into drinking in the local ambience and turn off your iPod and satellite radio you?ll discover something else. The intermittent radio signal of a station that is nothing like what most of us have listened to before. The DJs occasionally speak in Lakota; sometimes interspersing the dialect with English in the same conversation. They broadcast live from pow wows, inform listeners about healthy lifestyles, school events and tribal meetings, discuss local issues, and play music. The playlist is especially eclectic; traditional and pow wow along with with pop, contemporary Native music and hip hop to appeal to younger listeners. KILI Radio, broadcast ?high atop Porcupine Butte? on the Pine Ridge Reservation, calls itself the ?Voice of the Lakota Nation.? Recognizing the physical isolation of Pine Ridge and nearby reservations, you appreciate the importance of having a venue residents can tune into to keep in touch with neighbors who may literally live an hour?s drive away. But that voice has been silenced. This past April a lightning strike knocked out their transmission tower, and with it, the community connection in Pine Ridge. The station is still broadcasting and is accessible through live streaming on their website. Whereas you and I and thousands across the globe can find out about the upcoming school board meeting, a majority of those in Pine Ridge cannot. Access to the internet is simply not an option for many in this poorest of poor reservations and the fact that a housewife from Stuttgart can tune in while an elderly resident of Kyle is unable to seems more than ironic. Repairing the tower could cost up to $200,000. Raising that amount, which will enable the station to receive a matching grant, may seem insurmountable. It?s not?literally millions of tourists travel through South Dakota each year, many stopping in at the local pow wows and sipping a soda at Big Bats. These folks might be tiresome and at times obnoxious fixtures to Lakota residents but they are also potential supporters of the reservation they swarm each summer. For that reason, let?s hope KILI puts the word out beyond South Dakota and Indian media outlets. Let?s do our part as well. The voice of the Lakota nation has already been silenced too long. Website: http://www.kiliradio.org (KILI radio is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. All donations are tax-deductible.) -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Sat May 27 16:53:03 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Sat, 27 May 2006 09:53:03 -0700 Subject: UN asked to approve indigenous rights declaration (fwd) Message-ID: UN asked to approve indigenous rights declaration The Philippine Star 05/28/2006 http://www.philstar.com/philstar/News200605280404.htm UNITED NATIONS (AP) ? Indigenous groups from around the world called for UN approval of a declaration on indigenous rights despite opposition from the United States, Australia and New Zealand. At the end of a two-week meeting, 1,200 native leaders representing more than 370 million indigenous people in 70 countries on Friday approved a final report urging the General Assembly at its next session starting in September to adopt the draft declaration. The declaration, the culmination of more than 20 years of work, states that indigenous peoples have the right to their own identity, culture and language, and to self-determination. It says governments should respect their rights to traditional lands and resources, and it states that native peoples have the right to decide on any development project in their community. In a joint statement, the US, Australia and New Zealand called the proposed text "fundamentally flawed" and said any attempt to seek UN endorsement "would be disingenuous and irresponsible" and would "potentially undermine the cause of advancing human rights internationally." The three countries protested that self-determination could threaten "the political unity, territorial integrity and indeed the security of existing UN member states." They called the provisions on lands and resources "particularly unworkable and unacceptable" because they appear to require recognition of indigenous rights to lands now lawfully owned by other citizens. The proposed declaration was negotiated for 11 years by a working group in the UN Human Rights Commission which reached an agreement in February, just before the discredited body was about to become defunct. The indigenous leaders called on the new Human Rights Council, which replaced it, to endorse the declaration and send it to the General Assembly. Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, chairperson of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, said the declaration?s adoption is supported by the European Union, a group of Scandinavian countries, parts of Asia and almost all countries in Latin America. The declaration would strengthen the indigenous peoples movement "both on the ground and globally," she said. "Even if it?s not legally binding, it still has a moral power to make the governments agree and adhere to the basic rights that are recognized internationally." Tauli-Corpuz, executive director of the Tebtebba Foundation in the Philippines which promotes research and education on indigenous people, said the final report also calls on the new Human Rights Council to provide more resources for the UN special investigator on indigenous issues and to allow the forum to participate on issues related to its work. The forum also requested an immediate suspension of a project to collect and analyze genetic samples from 100,000 indigenous people around the globe, according to Debra Harry, a Northern Paiute activist from Nevada who heads the Indigenous Peoples Council on Biocolonialism. From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Sat May 27 16:57:08 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Sat, 27 May 2006 09:57:08 -0700 Subject: Navajo teacher discusses language and the Beauty Way (fwd) Message-ID: Navajo teacher discusses language and the Beauty Way http://www.cibolabeacon.com/articles/2006/05/26/news/news6.txt GRANTS - Navajo speaker Leonard Anthony gave a talk on ?Hozho Naa Has Dlii? - The State of the Beauty Way? at Grants High School Tuesday. Sponsored by the Office of Indian Education of the Grants/Cibola County School District, the talk centered on the importance of language and tradition in the Navajo worldview. Anthony started by breaking down the phrase, ?Hozho Naa Has Dlii? into its component words. ?Hozho means a state of well being and the path before and after us,? he explained. ?Naa indicates a complete circle, Has is a term meaning working toward a new beginning and Dlii means trust or long life. In its simplest terms, it means path plus direction plus circle plus trust. ?Language is so important in distilling philosophical and cultural concepts in a Native American context,? Anthony related. ?Also very important in the Navajo culture is the idea of clanship and kinship. These relationships give a person a sense of who he is and what his boundaries are. A Navajo can ask, what is my clan and what does that mean? It gives an individual a sense of personal and family awareness.? The educator went on to explain the origins of the clans from various parts of Changing Woman?s body. ?These were the First Clans and gave rise to the importance of the maternal clan in our society. The mother is the matriarch because she gives life and nourishment and so her clan is considered the most important in the family. Maternal clans carry on for generations,? Anthony said. ?The father supports the maternal clan and is responsible for practical language development. I?ve learned how important home participation is in the process of language skills acquisition,? he added. Anthony described his journey into the appreciation of his cultural heritage and language. ?As a youth, I had no discipline or trust and I wore my hair long and shaggy,? he recalled. ?I felt lost until I had a four-day ceremony in a hogan with a medicine man. He gave me lots of instructions and I found that I wanted to change. That?s when I started wearing my hair in a bun and it was seen as a traditional rite of passage and an acceptance of adulthood.? Anthony was so changed that he eventually took two years off work to study his clan history. ?When you?re familiar with your clan, people will know who you are and what your values are,? he asserted. He is very proud of the fact that the Navajo language has specific words for thankfulness, positive feelings for others, belief in self, being at peace, self-sufficiency, determination, a state of joyfulness, respect and friendliness. ?We also have phrases that express gratitude to our relatives and ancestors,? he explained. Anthony said he spoke on English as a child because of acculturation and assimilation. As a Navajo-speaking adult, he is concerned with children and the preservation of their language and culture. ?I have loved my journey,? Anthony said. ?I?ve been able to sing songs and learn language. I?ve visited over 50 schools in the past seven months, including colleges and treatment centers.? By Diane Fowler From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Tue May 30 17:03:39 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 10:03:39 -0700 Subject: Ariz. tribes unsure what Hayworth means (fwd) Message-ID: Ariz. tribes unsure what Hayworth means May. 29, 2006 12:00 AM http://www.azcentral.com/news/columns/articles/0529ruelas0529.html Rep. J.D. Hayworth is considered a friend to Arizona's tribes. But sometimes they don't speak the same language. Sometimes, for example, Hayworth speaks in overblown rhetoric and ends up insulting centuries of language and tradition. Such was the case when Hayworth signed a letter written by Rep. Steve King, complaining about multilingual ballots. The unspoken target was Spanish speakers, a political can't-miss these days. But the words ricocheted toward the reservations in Hayworth's district. The letter bemoaned a "linguistic divide" in the country. It also said government actions like printing ballots in different languages "contradict the 'Melting Pot' ideal" and are a "serious affront" to previous generations of immigrants who learned English. Applied to recent immigrants from Mexico, those statements reflect a mind-set on the border debate. Applied to the Indian reservations in Arizona, those statements sound as if Hayworth is against tribal members speaking Navajo or Hopi or Apache. Talk of different languages hurting the ideals of the United States just doesn't translate. "I'm not sure what that means," said John Lewis, executive director of the Intertribal Council of Arizona, after I asked him about the term "linguistic divide." The fear of languages other than English does not apply on reservations, Lewis said. Tribes fight to keep their languages alive as part of their way of life. That's why the language Hayworth signed off on is puzzling to many tribal members who saw Hayworth as a friend. "I'm not sure what his intent was, and there's different ways to interpret what he said," Lewis said. "I'm not sure how far he was going." Hayworth declined weeks of requests for a phone interview on the subject. In a written statement, released from his congressional office, he talks about making "an exception" for Native Americans. But it's not clear whether that exception is meant to apply to the "linguistic divide" rhetoric or to the portions of the Voting Rights Act he wants to ditch. The act, which is set to expire next year, mandates that ballots and other election materials be translated in certain areas of low English literacy. In his statement, Hayworth called those translations an "unfunded mandate." But a study released by two Arizona State University professors found that the need for those translated materials in Arizona is highest among Native American voters. The report, available at www.renewthevra.org, surveyed Native American voters in Coconino County during the 2004 election. It found that about half of those needing help to vote relied on the government. And since Navajo is a traditionally oral language, the multilingual ballot would take the form of a translator talking the voter through the ballot. But, apparently, the vision of an elderly Navajo woman having a ballot explained to her in a language she can understand goes against the "Melting Pot" ideal and adds to the "linguistic divide." Wonder what word will be used in the November elections to translate "Hayworth." Reach Ruelas at (602) 444-8473 or richard.ruelas at arizonarepublic.com. From delancey at UOREGON.EDU Tue May 30 19:37:06 2006 From: delancey at UOREGON.EDU (Scott DeLancey) Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 12:37:06 -0700 Subject: FYI: NEH Division of Preservation and Access: Grants Deadlines (fwd) Message-ID: This might be of interest to some on the list: grants for preparing collections of language materials. Scott DeLancey ---------- Forwarded message ---------- LINGUIST List: Vol-17-1629. Tue May 30 2006. ISSN: 1068 - 4875. Date: Tue, 30 May 2006 10:54:56 From: Helen Aguera < haguera at neh.gov > Subject: NEH Division of Preservation and Access: Grants Deadlines The Division of Preservation and Access of the National Endowment for the Humanities (an independent federal agency of the United States government) will be accepting applications for Reference Materials Grants and Grants to Preserve and Create Access to Humanities Collections on July 25, 2006. Any U.S. nonprofit organization with 501(c)3 tax exempt status is eligible, as are state and local governmental agencies and tribal governments. Grants are not awarded to individuals. Prospective applicants seeking further information are encouraged to contact the division's staff (at 202-606-8570 or at preservation at neh.gov). Reference Materials Grants support projects that create reference works and research tools, including: databases and electronic archives that codify and integrate humanities materials, or provide bibliographical control of a subject or field; print and online encyclopedias about various fields in the humanities or about a particular area or subject; historical, etymological, and bilingual dictionaries for undocumented languages, as well as reference grammars and other linguistic tools (separate funding is available for endangered language projects in partnership with the National Science Foundation); descriptive catalogs that provide detailed information about humanities materials; tools for spatial analysis and representation of humanities data, such as atlases and geographical information systems (GIS); and digital tools specifically designed to develop or use humanities online resources. The program guidelines can be consulted at http://www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/referencematerials.html . Grants to Preserve and Create Access to Humanities Collections fund the following activities: cataloging; arrangement and description; documentation; preservation microfilming of brittle books and serials; mass deacidification of items not yet embrittled; conservation treatment; transfer of materials to more stable media; creating digital surrogates to enhance intellectual accessibility; creating oral histories; and conducting archival surveys. The program guidelines are available at http://www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/pcahc.html . All institutions applying for an NEH grant must submit their applications via Grants.gov. Be sure to register with Grants.gov as soon as possible since the registration process takes a minimum of two weeks to complete. To help you through the Grants.gov registration process, please use the checklist located at: http://www.neh.gov/grants/grantsgov/grantsgovchecklist.html. Linguistic Field(s): General Linguistics ----------------------------------------------------------- LINGUIST List: Vol-17-1629 From cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU Wed May 31 17:15:07 2006 From: cashcash at EMAIL.ARIZONA.EDU (phil cash cash) Date: Wed, 31 May 2006 10:15:07 -0700 Subject: New ways of telling (fwd) Message-ID: Published: 05.31.2006 New ways of telling O'odham students recount tales, culture via modern media By Lourdes Medrano ARIZONA DAILY STAR http://www.azstarnet.com/dailystar/dailystar/131474 "Looking Forward, Looking Back" Digital stories explore Tohono O'odham youths' culture. To get to the stories, visit www.bridgesweb.org, click on "communities" and then "San Xavier, USA." The memories of Stephanie Danforth's early life on the Tohono O'odham reservation are as sharp as the stars she admired from her village on clear desert nights. "There are no lights to mess up the sky's beauty," Danforth, 15, recalls of those days in a digital story that explores her childhood in Indian country. "I could hear the swaying of the trees in the night, but during the day I could smell the food cooking, like chili, beans and Indian tacos." Danforth's story, which also looks at her later years in the city, is one of 11 that Tohono O'odham high school students created recently through the "Looking Forward, Looking Back" project in San Xavier. The students' work is the first from the Tucson area to be showcased on the Bridges to Understanding Web site, which connects indigenous youth from around the world through digital storytelling. The San Xavier Education Department spearheaded the project involving students from Sunnyside High School and Desert View High School. Most of them live in San Xavier, just southwest of Tucson. The students' short stories delve into family and culture, both on and off the reservation. After learning how to write a script and tell a story through images, the youngsters came up with creative ways to describe how they maintain ties to centuries-old cultural traditions in modern times. The story of Davied Johnson, 15, focuses on traditional foods. He talks about how, when he was younger, his grandmother's cooking sparked his interest in such foods as tepary beans and cactus fruits. He has wanted to be a chef since then, the teen says. "Someday I'm going to make these foods for my restaurant so everybody can taste the glories of O'odham food," he narrates in his story. Ashley Escalante, 14, probed the O'odham language and discovered that many youths do not speak it. "If we lose our language, we stop being who we are," she says in her story, adding that it is up to young people to help preserve the O'odham tongue by learning it. "I'm going against the current by trying to make our language stronger," she narrates. "I wonder if someday my parents will ask me to teach them." Danforth, Escalante and Johnson said putting together their stories after school was hard work, but that in the end they were happy with what they accomplished. The trio and their fellow storytellers had their first public showing at Sunnyside High School a few days ago. Now they are taking their stories to elders and others throughout the reservation. "It makes me feel proud," Johnson said. The idea was for students to look at their community and their connection to their heritage, said Ronald Felix, administrative assistant for the San Xavier Education Department. "They showed a lot of commitment to the program," he added. The seven-month project was years in the making with support from various organizations, Felix said. It finally came to fruition when the San Xavier District Council set aside funding for it, which was complemented with grants and private money. In all, Felix said the department received about $80,000 for cameras, recording equipment, computer software, student stipends and salaries for two instructors. The cost also includes a planned art sculpture that will represent the students' stories, Felix said. The art piece, which will be done between June and September, will become a fixture in the San Xavier Plaza, said Felix, who assisted instructors Josh Schachter and Kimi Eisele whenever they needed a hand. Schachter ran the photography component, while Eisele helped students with writing and interviewing techniques. "A lot of it was learning about their own identity, learning about their heritage, and learning to live in two worlds," Schachter said of the students' work. As for him, the freelance photographer said: "Just learning to build trust in a community as an outsider was an important lesson for me." "Looking Forward, Looking Back" Digital stories explore Tohono O'odham youths' culture. To get to the stories, visit www.bridgesweb.org, click on "communities" and then "San Xavier, USA." Contact reporter Lourdes Medrano at 573-4347 or lmedrano at azstarnet.com. All content copyright ? 1999-2006 AzStarNet, Arizona Daily Star and its wire services and suppliers and may not be republished without permission. All rights reserved. Any copying, redistribution, or retransmission of any of the contents of this service without the expressed written consent of Arizona Daily Star or AzStarNet is prohibited.