Woosh Jín Tulshát Yeisú: Weʼre Still Holding Each Others’ Hands - Lingít Language Revitalization

Abstract

Over the past year, the presenters have been working with a team of Lingít speakers, language teachers, and music teachers to develop methods for teaching violin through Lingít. Even though this is a new area for the language, the team has focused on bringing Lingít tundatáani—the Lingít thought world—into the pedagogy, which is transforming the way music is being taught at Sítʼ Eetí Shaanáx̱ (Glacier Valley Elementary). By taking the language to new places, they have collaborated to increase access to language learning and to incorporate the use of Lingít in a new subject area. In this reflection on the work, the presenters will cover current initiatives in Lingít language revitalization, an overview of teaching violin using Lingít, and the process of language modernization.