Living Tongues Institute

Here's a story from Radio Free Europe describing the US nonprofit Living Tongues Institute, one of a handful of initiatives working to save the world's endangered languages. Experts predict that by the end of the century, half of the world's 6,700 languages will be extinct.

Ichishkiin Sinwit Yakama/Yakima Sahaptin Dictionary

The Yakima Herald Republic has a story on a new Ichishkiin Sinwit Yakama/Yakima Sahaptin Dictionary, which will be released next month by the University of Washington Press. The 88-year-old co-author Virginia Beavert is one of only 200 or so remaining speakers of Sahaptin.

The Barona Inter-Tribal Dictionary

The Barona Cultural Center and Museum in Lakeside, California is currently presenting an exhibit entitled "More Than Words: 'Iipay Aa Tiipay Aa Uumall, The Barona Inter-Tribal Dictionary." The exhibit highlights the first publication of Barona Museum Press, the 696-page Barona Inter-Tribal Dictionary. According to the museum's website, "The Barona people suffered severe language loss through the mission system, boarding schools, urbanization, and assimilation projects. This exhibition features the Museum programs dedicated to cultural preservation and revitalization including the new Language Preservation Program. The exhibition traces the history of the Pai branch of the Yman languages, and gives comparisons on Hokan language in a worldwide context." For more information on the exhibit, visit the San Diego Visitors Bureau at http://www.sandiego.org/event/Visitors/6369; the museum's website (under construction) is http://www.baronamuseum.org/. (The picture shows Barona Tribal Chairman Edwin “Thorpe” Romero, Barona Tribal Councilwoman Beth Glasco, Larry Echo Hawk of the BIA and Barona Tribal Councilmember Charles “Beaver” Curo.)

Languages on Life Support

"Last year, when 89-year-old Marie Smith Jones died, a language died with her. Jones was the last speaker of a south-central Alaskan language called Eyak..." For the rest of the story, visit the Chronicle of Higher Education's website at:
http://chronicle.com/free/v55/i38/38linguistics.htm