Native Languages Center
Language Documentation Workshop
Module 1:
Overview: Language Documentation
- Module 1 Progress34%
What Does Language Documentation Look Like for You?
In this section the focus will be on understanding the context of language use in your community and identifying the goals for your language program or language documentation projects.
The first consideration is determining or understanding the context in which language documentation would be occurring in your community. This means, if you look at the spectrum in the graphic below, where might your community fall on this continuum? Does your community fall into or lean to the right where there are speakers of all ages or does it lean more to the left where there are very few or even no fluent speakers of the language. No matter what a community’s current situation might be, language documentation work is possible and can be beneficial. The types of activities undertaken in language documentation will differ depending on your contexts.
Examples of language projects on opposite ends of the continuum.
Wôpanâak Language Reclamation Project
The Wôpanâak (Wampanoag) Language reclamation project is a great example to look to for a language that was disconnected from its speaker community several generations ago. There are now children acquiring Wôpanâak as a first language.
Te Kōhanga Reo
The Te Kōhanga Reo (language nest) movement supports the continued documentation and revitalization of the Maori language. It began at a time when the community had suffered a great deal of language shift, but there were still speakers of all ages and generations. The number of Maori speakers has been increasing over time, and Maori has become a co-official and highly visible language in New Zealand.
Most communities fall somewhere in the middle on the continuum, and often the situation is quite complicated. This is one of the main reasons that there's no one-size-fits all model of language documentation and why it is important to understand the context and goals of your community as you plan a documentation project.