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Kayla Cook

Mr. Gunsher

AP Seminar

9 April 2016

Native American Language Preservation

There are roughly 7,000 languages in the world today. By the next century, nearly half of

those will become extinct, according to National Geographics Russ Rymer. In the United

States, there are 175 Native American languages spoken, which appears to be a rather large

number. However, only 20 of these languages are spoken by mothers to their babies (Brooke, pg

1), and only about 20 of these languages are actively being learned by children from their elders

(Cantoni, pg 16). Also, out of the 175 Native American Languages in the United States, 55 of

them are spoken by just 10 tribal members or less (Brooke, pg 1). Given this data, it is fair to say

that most Native American languages in the United States are facing language endangerment and

even extinction. While it can be seen that there are more important issues in America than

language extinction, it is also true that languages are extremely vital; they sustain the cultural

identity of a group of people and contain a lot of knowledge that would be lost in translation.

After conducting extensive research, it appears that the United States should work to preserve its

Native American languages. This is the case for a number of reasons.

When a Native American language goes extinct, aspects of that culture are lost with it.

Culture is the sum total of knowledge, attitudes, and habitual behavior patterns shared and

transmitted by the members of a society (De Blij, pg 28-29). Culture is expressed and

reinforced through material culture, which includes art, music, songs, or foods, and through
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nonmaterial culture, which includes beliefs, religion, rituals and language (PBS, pg 1). It is

difficult to sustain these aspects of culture when it cannot be done in its original language.

Without the language, Native American ceremonies can no longer be done the way they were

meant to be. Traditional Native American stories cannot be told, even in English; concepts in

Native American languages cannot be translated into English (PBS, pg. 2). It is difficult to

convey the correct way to play out a Native American ritual, how to properly say a Native

American prayer, or how to accurately cook a meal, when the meaning of the words are different

in one language. The inability to carry out these aspects of culture shows how removing a

language can remove cultural traits as well.

Russ Rymer, a scientific writer and journalist for National Geographic, explained that

when a language is translated into another, connotation is erased from those words. With the

increase in technology, major languages have a larger grip on all cultures--even Native

Americans. According to Seth Mydans, a journalist who covers Southeast Asia for the New York

Times, English has become extremely dominant in the world conjointly with globalization. As

the world becomes more globalized through technological advances, smaller local languages,

like that of the Native Americans, experience decline. These smaller languages diminish as

major languages like English, Spanish, and Mandarin grow across the globe (Wallraff-The

Atlantic, pg 1). A sociolinguistics researcher of endangered languages, Erin Haynes, explained

English is constantly reinforced, especially through modes of popular culture: television, radio,

education, and social media. A study conducted by scientific researchers for Plos One found that

being totally immersed in a language creates full brain patterns of a native speaker in a nonnative

speaker, meaning total immersion would make a nonnative speaker understand the language on a
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level that native speakers do as well. When modern day Native Americans are fully immersed in

the popular American culture and language, their original culture and language are slowly

erased. Thus, Native Americans are susceptible to losing their culture and language in the United

States due to their total immersion in the English language.

In addition to removing aspects of culture, language extinction deprives a culture from

their identity. Language researcher James Crawford wrote in Endangered Native American

Languages the destruction of a language is the destruction of a rooted identity. Identity is how

people see themselves at different scales (De Blij, pg 153). Linguistic researcher Pamela Serota

Cote said on identity and language, We understand things, events, ourselves and others through

a process of interpretation which occurs in language. When a language is taken away, it

emotionally affects how the individual understands himself, and thus deprives individuals in

their culture from their comprehension of the cultural identity.

Anne-Marie Kramer conducted an analyzation of a recent interest in ancestral history in

societies. Her findings showed that forms of identity crisis were often provoked by the absence

of kinship. In her case study, she found people moved towards self-definition and completion

through an understanding of their ancestry, and that most of the participants said experiencing

emotional connectedness with ancestors was key to self-identity. Tufts University and NBER

wrote on how languages and ancestries are often closely correlated. It is more difficult to explain

a family history in full meaning when it must be translated from Native American to English.

Speaking in another language that is not connected to their heritage deprives Native Americans

of their identity. Thus, removing a language removes a persons ability to connect with his

ancestry, which then takes away from his identity. The Washington Post asked a Native
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American man the question who are you? He wasnt sure, and finally responded, only a

young man. This example shows how Native Americans have lost the idea of themselves when

they have to conform to another culture. Another Native American man interviewed by A New

York Times reporter stated, [The Hupa language] contains how a Hupa person views the world.

To lose the language would be to lose our identity.. Thus it can be seen that when languages

disappear, the speakers sense of identity does as well.

In addition to taking away from the Native Americans identity and culture, Native

American language extinction also affects the United States and the world. Language extinction

deprives the world of significant knowledge. Russ Rymer from the National Geographic

explained the vast arrays of knowledge languages hold in themselves. The American Indians

made important achievements in the use of remedies and in therapeutic procedures. When the

colonists arrived from England, they noted how the Indians were extremely healthy, without

deformity, and lived long lives (Vogel, pg. 162). The Native Americans are also responsible for

several of the United States agricultural techniques today (Agriculture, American Indian, pg. 1).

In addition, the United States Department of Agriculture stated that many of the foods

Americans eat today were first grown by Native Americans, such as corn, potatoes, beans, and

pumpkins. The USDA also reported that many of the games Americans play today, such as

lacrosse or canoeing, came from the Native Americans. Languages can contain medicinal, plant,

food cultivation, irrigation techniques, navigation systems, and more knowledge that can be

beneficial to the United States of America. Rachel Nuwer wrote each language will be lost in

translation, which shows that the words lost in translations could have benefitted us had they

not gone extinct. Removing Native American languages could prevent further contributions from
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being correctly transferred to future generations, because concepts in Native American translate

differently into English.

A major contribution Native Americans have made to the United States occurred during

World War I and World War II. 12,000 American Indians served in World War I, and in World

War II 44,000 American Indians served. They were known as the Navajo Code Talkers, because

they created an unbreakable code in their language to do top secret work for the United States

(National Museum of the American Indian, pg. 1). The Native American language has

contributed to major parts of the United States history, and their languages have specifically

helped the U.S. in combat. Losing their language would be losing a military advantage.

According to David Maxwell Braun, the National Geographic Digital/Social Outreach Director,

Native American languages help scientists refine their understanding of cognition,

communication systems, and the nature of the mind. Thus the loss of Native American

languages would deprive the United States of important knowledge and contributions to the

society.

Native American language extinction takes away from the vast diversity of peoples in

America. When smaller languages are replaced by major ones, diversity in America is

discouraged. Erin Haynes, sociolinguistics researcher of endangered languages, stated while the

United States doesnt have an official language, English is the standard language of the U.S. It is

reinforced through education, government institutions, television and media. Knowing English is

considered an economic commodity, so many older Native Americans prefer to teach their

children English to ensure that they will have an economically steady future. According to H. De

Blij from the textbook Human Geography: People, Place, and Culture, the United States had an
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official policy of assimilation in the 1800s and early 1900s. It was meant to conform American

Indians into Americans, not Indians. School teachers would severely punish tribal members

for speaking their native language. This treatment caused speakers to perceive their language as

dirty (Haynes, pg. 1). Native American parents would not teach their children the native

language in order to keep them safe from the same persecution. The effects of this assimilation

are still seen today as only 20 of the 175 Native American languages are still taught to their

children (Cantoni, pg 16). This assimilation and economic pressure displays how America has

grown to become less diverse, and more monocultural.

Preserving languages can be inexpensive while effective. The worldwide spread of

technology has connected the world through a process called globalization. Technology,

especially the internet has become a vector in spreading the popular culture rapidly and globally,

as explained by Columbia University journalist, Helen Milner. 80% of the worlds electronically

stored information is in English, which has caused the language to diffuse globally (Mydans, pg.

1). Englishs incorporation in the internet and popular culture has globally spread it. Languages

grow and diffuse when used in forms of the popular culture, such as movies, radio, books, and

social media. This sustains the language.

A simple, effective way to preserve Native American languages is to implement it into

popular culture nodes, such as movies and music, just as English did to diffuse itself. The

popular movie Star Wars did just this. It was translated into the Navajo language within 36 hours

in an attempt to preserve the Navajo language (Schwartz, pg. 1). The Navajo Nations Parks and

Recreation Department spent only $75,000 on dubbing the movie (Reid, pg 1), while it typically

takes at least $100,000 to dub a movie (Joseph, pg 1). The younger generation of Navajo was
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able to experience the popular movie in their own language, which encouraged the use of Navajo

among the group of people who will determine the languages fate in the future. This inclusion

of the Native American language encourages young Native Americans to speak and use their

own language. Efforts like this made by the United States government could effectively and

inexpensively preserve many Native American languages.

While it can be argued that the U.S. government has given grants to fund Native

American language preservation, it has ultimately ignored the issue. According to language

researcher, James Crawford, many Native American tribes had relied on funding for language

revitalization in the past. However, in 1930 the United States government began significantly

reducing federal funding. In 1990, the United States stepped in again to give the Native

Americans some help through the Native American Acts; ultimately these Acts have been

disregarded and even contradicted by other federal Acts. Also, the No Child Left Behind Act of

2001 created restrictions that contradict mandates from the Native American Languages Act and

prevent immersion schools to succeed by requiring high levels of education for teachers that

many Native Americans do not have (Native American Language Act, pg 1). The Federal

Government spends only $2 million a year to save endangered Indian languages. To put this in

perspective, the U.S. spent $38 million on saving one species of bird in 2012, as stated by The

Scientific Americans John Platt. So while the government has promised funds to Native

American language preservation, it has given only minimal amounts of money and effort.

The language extinction of Native American languages has significant and harmful

effects. It results not only in the loss of words, but the loss of a culture, an identity, educational

and scientific information, as well as linguistic research. The United States has been known to
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forcibly discourage language diversity in the the past, and today through globalization,

television, and technology, smaller languages are being consumed by the large languages of the

world. While the United States government has dedicated $2 million to preserving Native

American languages, it is really only a mere amount. In addition, the United States government

has made it more difficult for Native Americans to become teachers of their language as a result

of the No Child Left Behind Act. It is important that the United States works to implement

linguistic diversity in its popular culture, media, and schools, and to help a culture that has

helped the United States own culture flourish.

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