#language revival

[dougielombax]

Queen's University Belfast: Irish language signs overwhelmingly backed by students

Out of the more than 5,000 students who voted, 91% were in favour of the changes to the signs.

Haha!

Yes!!!!!

Hopefully something good comes from this.

Yes I know it’s largely a symbolic thing but still.

[no-passaran]

The non-profit Endangered Languages Project is raising funds by selling merch designed by the Indigenous artist Chantelle Trainor-Matties.

If you have some money to spare and would like a cool shirt or sweater, consider checking it out! All proceeds go directly to helping ELP's work in language revitalization.

Endangered Languages Project Shop

Wear your support for Indigenous and endangered languages! All sales of these limited-edition shirts will go to the Endangered Languages Pro

[mudaship3]

Missionary work is tied to cultural genocide forced conversion and the death of indigenous language tattooos and spirituality It’s why I side eye biooc missionaries esp Why are fuck are you a foot soldier for setttler colonialism Decolonize yourself

[uritur-infelix]

Look what finally arrived...

(The Revival of the Hebrew Language: a Lesson for Irish? by Muiris Ó Laoire)

[matan4il]

Hello. This is a rather mundane question considering all the things, but I got curious. Does Hebrew have accents? How do they vary in and out of Israel?

I understand if you choose not to reply as this is a difficult time for you. In any case, take care🩷🩷🩷

Hi Nonnie! No, don't worry, all questions that are truly interested in Jewish culture are welcome! ^u^

TBH, something to remember about Hebrew is that it has quite a unique history. To the best of my knowledge, it is the only language that was used on a daily basis as the lived in language of a native population, then "died" as a result of Jews being exiled. As they found themselves in other countries, they had to speak the local language. They didn't abandon Hebrew, but it stopped being the langauge in which they lived their daily lives. Hebrew became the language of prayer, of scripture study, and terms from it bled into the local languages Jews spoke, creating Jewish versions of these languages (Yiddish being the Jewish version of German, Ladino being the Jewish version of Spanish, Yevanik being the Jewish version of Greek, and there are also Jewish versions of Arabic and other languages, too), so Hebrew still had an impact on Jews, and they were still connected to it... but it was no longer a "living" language. It was closer to what Latin is today. A language in which religious ceremonies are conducted, that theologians study, but not a language that anyone conducts their daily life in.

Then, as a part of the project of reclaiming and reviving the Jewish native life in Israel that came to be known as Zionism, people set out to revive our native language, too. There was a realization that it had to be adapted to modern life, give it terms for things that didn't exist 2,000 years ago, so it would be useful for people who wanted to conduct their daily lives in Hebrew again. And that's how the last of the Canaanite languages became the only "dead" language to be revived, and return to be the lived in language of its native people.

I mention this unique history, because modern Hebrew isn't the same as biblical Hebrew (though about 60% of modern Hebrew IS biblical). It means if there were different Hebrew accents during biblical times, we don't know it for sure.

At the same time, the fact that Jews were spread out in the diaspora, and their pronunciation of Hebrew (as a dead language) came to be influenced by the local languages they spoke while in exile. So a Jew who returned to Israel from the diaspora in Germany, a Jew who returned to Israel from the diaspora in Argentina, and a Jew who returned to Israel from the diaspora in Yemen do not have the same accent when speaking Hebrew.

But these are not considered regional accents of Hebrew in the same way that you can find different regional accents of English when traveling across England... If we put aside the accents of Jews returning to Israel, and instead we look at the accents of Jews born in Israel, the ones born into speaking modern Hebrew, there's a myth of a Jerusalem accent. I say myth, because you'll hear all over Israel people swearing, that Jerusalemites pronounce a few words differently. The most common example is the word 'mataim' (which means two hundred), and many Israelis insist Jerusalemites pronounce it ma'ataim, with the first vowel prolonged and emphasized. I have lived in Jerusalem since 2002 and I have never heard it. I think in this sense, regional accents are usually, at least in part, a product of geography. It determines how far apart people live, how much they interact, how much they hear others speaking the same language as they do. The smaller a country, and the easier travel in it is, the fewer accents it's likely to produce. And I think that's the main reason why there aren't really accents in Israel (other than those of people who came to speak Hebrew as a second language), because it's a very small country, and because today, it's pretty easy to travel in it (you can cross it from the most northern point to the most southern one in slightly over 5 hours).

I hope that kind of answers it? Thank you for the kind words, I hope you're well, too! xoxox

[karekuat]

Yek tanestuk amehemet, I have good news!

I will be teaching an Indigenous language starting in the summer this year!!

More details:

What is Nawat?

Nawat (sometimes spelled Náhuat) is an Indigenous language native to the western half of Guxgatan, what is now called El Salvador.

Why teach it?

Unfortunately, due to colonization the language only now has around 50 native speakers in El Salvador. We would like to help share it with the Salvadorean diaspora and publish things like books, plays, music, and more in order to revitalize our language.

Where is it being taught?

There are many places in El Salvador that teach Nawat, however most of these places are run by the government and use colonial sources that don't accurately reflect the way Nawat is spoken in Indigenous communities.

ANIS, the national association of Indigenous Salvadoreans, has initiated a school called Xućigisa An Ne Náwat and employs actual native speakers who live in Indigenous communities to teach the language and culture, as well as Indigenous values and worldview. On occasion, we also offer elective classes with the subject of Indigenous queerness, traditional medicine, embroidery/weaving, and singing.

The language classes are easy for both English and Spanish speakers, but the elective classes tend to be Spanish based only.

Unlike most government run Nawat classes, Xućigisa An Ne Náwat is also a queer and trans focused community, with our queerness being an inherent part of our Indigenous culture and identity.

If you are of the Salvadorean diaspora and are interested in reconnecting with our Indigenous roots, please consider reaching out to sign up for classes with ANIS, I will also be making updates when enrollment is actively available year round. Tuition is based on what you can give and can be as low as $10 per month, all tuition is so that we can support the Indigenous teachers who currently live in poverty.

If you are not Salvadorean or just don't have an interest in taking classes, please still consider donating to help us create more resources in order to keep our language alive.

Anyone is free to send me an ask or DM about further information.

Sujsul padiux !!

EDIT:

If you are reading this, Please check the reblog on this post by me for updated info on this. I will no longer be a TA for this school!!

[sefaradweb]

Learning Ladino

Ladino, also referred to as Judeo-Spanish or Judezmo, serves as the linguistic heritage of Sephardic Jews, or Sepharadim, descending from the Iberian Peninsula, which encompasses present-day Spain and Portugal. Following their expulsion from Spain in 1492, Sepharadim dispersed throughout the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and beyond, predominantly finding refuge in the Ottoman Empire. It was within this diverse cultural milieu that Ladino emerged, blending Spanish and other Iberian languages with a robust infusion of Hebrew-Aramaic elements, while also incorporating linguistic influences from the surrounding Mediterranean regions such as Turkish, Greek, Italian, French, and Arabic. Embracing versatility, Ladino became the language of everyday life, spanning from domestic settings to public spaces like markets and synagogues, and encompassing various aspects of culture including humor, politics, and literature.

Learning Ladino - UW Stroum Center for Jewish Studies

[linguisticalities]

Excavating a Language at the End of the World

How an old dictionary is revealing new perspectives on an Indigenous culture.