Software for Scholarship

Work is underway to better cross-analyze ancient texts using advanced software tools. This work is a collaboration called the Archimedes Project between the Dept. of the Classics at Harvard Univ. and the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science – see Scholars resuscitate dead languages.
The Archimedes Project specifically aims at learning about how the [...]

Three news items

Doris Jean Lamar is the last speaker of Wichita: Tribal language fading away (includes a slide show in Wichita and English)
Director Conner of Tamastslikt Cultural Institute awarded money for hunting and language: Buffett Award money to be used for cultural projects
Washington Post article includes mention of Yawuru and Magati Ke (perhaps Marti Ke): At a [...]

Anishinaabemowin in Press & Music

A native speaker of Anishnaabemowin who survived the residential (boarding) school with her language in tact, Helen Roy is busy promoting Anishnaabemowin at Michigan State University (MSU), a campus located centrally between three Great Lakes and both west and south of the US-Canada border.
Various names are used for the language and dialects: The course listing [...]

United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

On 13 September, the UN passed its Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
While the term “indigenous” is not defined, its 46 articles affirm the right to self-determination including the pursuits of economic, social and cultural development (Article 3). Other rights include:

Maintaining distinct political, legal, economic, social and cultural institutions while participating in those of [...]

Pinker Lecture to Benefit ELF – Thursday

Steven Pinker will be lecturing at Harvard on Thursday, November 15, at 8:00 PM with the proceeds to benefit ELF, the Endangered Language Fund. The lecture will be on his book The Stuff of Thought: Language as a Window into Human Nature and will be in William James Hall. Admission is $20 ($10 for students).
This [...]

Kiranti-Koits/Sunwar: Language Work in Nepal

In Eastern Nepal, Sunwar (suz) is spoken by about 26,000 (2001 census) in about 30 villages. According to Dr. Lal Rapacha, founder and director of the Research Institute for Kiratology, the preferred name for the people is Kiranti-Koits (pronounced with a nasalized “o” sound). The rest of this post has been deleted due to misunderstandings [...]