Language Revitalization Practices in Indigenous Communities of the U.S.
Date
2016
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Swarthmore College. Dept. of Linguistics
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Thesis (B.A.)
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en_US
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Abstract
Indigenous languages rely on revitalization programs to prevent extinction. In the US the
diversity of indigenous languages prevents advocates from creating a comprehensive program
for the whole country like in New Zealand or Ireland. This leaves room for choice about which
revitalization practice will work best in each community. Different areas of the country have
experienced heavier language atrophy than others based on their historical pasts. To reverse
language loss, language revitalization programs endeavor to rebuild what has been lost.
Language revitalization relies on intergenerational transmission to be successful. This thesis
focuses on three communities: Navajo, Hawaii, and Wukchumne, the methods they used, and
four factors that help lead to language transmission. Starting a language revitalization program
requires the consideration of many complex factors that surround individual attitudes, identities,
and beliefs (Grenoble & Whaley 2006). The scope of this thesis is to examine four situational
factors and how they correlate a positive outcome. The factors addressed are the size of the
indigenous speech community, language mobility, program funding, and the target audience of
the program. A discussion of the case studies on the three communities suggests that high
language mobility, or the ability to be in contact with the language in a colloquial setting for
large periods of time results in language learners retaining the language.