Court rules against Yup'ik as an historically written language ...

[Susan Penfield]

So, the confusion persists at the expense of Yup'ik elders, on some level?
A "no-win" situation?
Does the notion of 'historially (un)written" in any way devalue (in a legal
sense)  the emerging literacy for Indigenous languages of the area?

Thanks for your insights,
S.

On Thu, Jul 24, 2008 at 6:07 AM, Donald Z. Osborn <dzo at bisharat.net> wrote:

> I'm also troubled by the potential misuse of "historically (un)written."
>
> But WRT the specific case in question, if oral assistance in a
> "historically unwritten" language is offered to voters who need it, how is
> it given?  Do the poll workers translate ad hoc or read off of a script /
> talking-points in the relevant language? The former would seem to be
> problematic and the latter conceding something about the language's written
> status.
>
> Don
>
>
>
>
> From: Indigenous Languages and Technology [mailto:
> ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU] On Behalf Of Susan Penfield
> Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2008 8:10 AM
> To: ILAT at LISTSERV.ARIZONA.EDU
> Subject: Re: [ILAT] Court rules against Yup?'ik as an historically written
> language ...
>
> Thanks for this -- the context does help. However, the notion of
> 'historically unwritten" is still troubling to me.
> Hasn't Yup'ik been written use since the late 1800's? ( I'm told that is
> when the church-based orthography
> came into use).
>
> S.
>
> On Thu, Jul 24, 2008 at 1:32 AM, William J Poser <wjposer at ldc.upenn.edu>
> wrote:
> I have posted my thoughts on the ruling, with links to the ruling
> and other documents, on Language Log:
> http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=396
>
> In context I don't think that the ruling is as outrageous as it
> sounds.
>
> Bill
>
>
>
> --
> ____________________________________________________________
> Susan D. Penfield, Ph.D.
>
> Department of English (Primary)
> American Indian Language Development Institute (AILDI)
> Second Language Acquisition & Teaching Ph.D. Program (SLAT)
> Department of Language,Reading and Culture(LRC)
> Department of Linguistics
> The Southwest Center (Research)
> Phone for messages: (520) 621-1836
>
>
> "Every language is an old-growth forest of the mind, a watershed of
> thought, an ecosystem of spiritual possibilities."
>
> Wade Davis...(on a Starbucks cup...)
>



-- 
____________________________________________________________
Susan D. Penfield, Ph.D.

Department of English (Primary)
American Indian Language Development Institute (AILDI)
Second Language Acquisition & Teaching Ph.D. Program (SLAT)
Department of Language,Reading and Culture(LRC)
Department of Linguistics
The Southwest Center (Research)
Phone for messages: (520) 621-1836


"Every language is an old-growth forest of the mind, a watershed of thought,
an ecosystem of spiritual possibilities."

Wade Davis...(on a Starbucks cup...)
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