Indigenous language(s) where you live(d)

[WallOfStuff]

If the indigenous language where you live is different from the official language, what is it?

Where I live, the local Native American language was this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohegan-Pequot_language

Unfortunately, it's no longer spoken, but apparently there's a revival effort (though for what language don't they say that? )

Here's a website with Mohegan words and phrases. You should check it out:

http://www.moheganlanguage.com/

[melski]

In my hometown Nantes and its region, Gallo used to be spoken (and is still spoken by very few people, a bit more in the rest of Brittany, especially in rural areas). Due to Breton activists, there are also some Breton schools and bilingual signs in French and Breton, although it was not traditionnally spoken in the region.

This map illustrates the decline of the Breton language over time in Brittany. The grey zones are areas where Breton used to be spoken but was replaced by Gallo (and French later on)


By the way, minority languages in France are called Regional languages rather than indigenous.

[linguoboy]

Naturally, the indigenous languages of the Midwest changed over time. At the time of initial European contact, the Chicago area was Potawatomi-speaking, although the chief area of Potawatomi settlement was further east.

I'm more interested in the languages of my home state, however. It was named for the Missouria, who spoke a Mississippi Valley Siouan language called Chiwere. The most important people in the state, however, were the Osage, who spoke a related Dhegiha Siouan language. I decided some time ago that I wanted to learn one of these indigenous languages, and since materials for Osage were superior to those available for Chiwere, that's what I went with.

[Ludwig Whitby]

If you mean the oldest known culture it'd be the neolithic Starčevo and Vinča cultures, whose languages remain unknown.

If you mean in the context of the Celtic invasion of the Balkans, it's the Illyrians and Dacians who spoke Illyrian and Dacian. (3rd century BC)

If you mean in the context of the Roman invasion, it's the Celts who spoke Gaulish. (1st century BC)

In the context of the Slavic invasion, it's the Romans and Byzantines who spoke Latin and Greek. (6th, 7th century AD)

In the context of the Turkish invasion of Europe, it's the Serbs who spoke Serbian. (14th, 15th century AD)

Are we all, except for the Turks, indigenous? Am I understanding the term correctly?

[Saim]

I'm from Kabi Kabi country - that language is now extinct but many placenames came from it (my home suburb is called Mooloolaba which IIRC had something to do with black snakes). In general the eastern coast is one of the most populated and Anglicized parts of the continent, the main Aboriginal settlements are in the north and in remote inland areas.

That's where I was raised, but I was born in the capital city of the state, Brisbane, which apparently lies in Yuggera country, the language of which is also extinct.

The Kabi Kabi and Yuggera nations are marked in purple and cream respectively. These lands are found in the centre of the east coast of Australia.

http://www.abc.net.au/indigenous/map/im ... gi_map.png

I'm not sure that either of these languages are particularly well-documented, but as far as I can see they're grouped in different branches of the Pama-Nyungan family - I would'nt have been surprised had they belonged to the same branch, but it seems that the Kabi Kabi are/were more closely related to the peoples of inland southeast Queensland than to the Yuggera.

[Levike]

Transylvania has 3 indigenous languages: Romanian, Hungarian and German

Romanians appeared here somewhere between the 5th and 10th century, Hungarians in the 9th and the Saxons were brought in by the Hungarian king in the 12th century.

Before all of us the place was inhabited by Dacians. All the others just passed by.

[linguoboy]

Before all of us the place was inhabited by Dacians. All the others just passed by.

Or just didn't settle in sufficient numbers to make it into the historical record.

[księżycowy]

In New York state we have most of the Northern Iroquioan languages, and some Algonquian languages. Specifically:
Northern Iroquoian - Seneca, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, and Mohawk (Erie and Laurentian are extinct).
Algonquian - Lenape, Mohegan, Abenaki (not sure how spoken Abenaki is in general, let alone in New York state though)

The more immediate area where I live is mostly Cayuga and Seneca territory. I know the Seneca nation offers language lessons out in Buffalo (about a 2 hour drive west for me). If only they were closer!

[vijayjohn]

There were more than a dozen languages spoken in Texas at the point of first European contact; unfortunately, not a single one of them has more than 100 speakers left anywhere in the world (and where there are any speakers left at all, they are invariably outside Texas), and only a few are still alive at all. The language indigenous to Central Texas (where Austin is) was Tonkawa, an isolated language that died out about a century ago (I really wish I could find recordings in it, but I'm afraid they probably don't exist). Comanches and Lipan Apaches often passed through the area as well, and the Comanches in particular came into conflict with the Texas Rangers, resulting in them being pushed west and effectively ending most conflicts with indigenous people in Central Texas.

Currently, there are three Indian ("Indian" ) reservations in Texas. One not far from Houston belongs to the Alabama and Koasati people who migrated into the area in the late 18th century from the southeastern US due to pressure from Anglo-European settlement. Another on the border with Mexico belongs to the Kickapoo people who live as far north as Kansas and as far south as Coahuila on the other side of the border. They migrated to the area in the 19th century. The last is in El Paso and belongs to the Tigua/Southern Tiwa people displaced from New Mexico in 1680-1681 during the Pueblo Revolt against the Spaniards, but I get the impression that Southern Tiwa is no longer spoken there.

Of course, in addition, we have very recent (and often temporary) immigrants from other parts of the Americas who are also indigenous to the Americas and may speak an indigenous language (especially if they come from south of the border).

[Levike]

Currently, there are three Indian ("Indian" ) reservations in Texas.

Question: What do people do in these "reservations"?

How does it help the language?

[Car]

I think Low German might be the closest to that for East Westphalia, but I'm no expert on that.

[vijayjohn]

Currently, there are three Indian ("Indian" ) reservations in Texas.

Question: What do people do in these "reservations"?

They live there.

How does it help the language?

It doesn't help shit. The American government stole the land of the people it belonged to at the time and then forced them to move to these places called "reservations" so they would remain cut off from natural resources, oppressed, and unable to fight back. AFAIC there is zero reason why that should have happened.

[linguoboy]

How does it help the language?

It doesn't help shit. The American government stole the land of the people it belonged to at the time and then forced them to move to these places called "reservations" so they would remain cut off from natural resources, oppressed, and unable to fight back. AFAIC there is zero reason why that should have happened.

I disagree that this is no help to the language. Language requires a community to maintain, and this is far easier when the community is concentrated someplace where habitual speakers dominate than when it is scattered among alloglots.

(Of course, this is just an accident of the reservation policy, not its aim.)

[Levike]

It doesn't help shit.

That was pretty straightforward.

I was mostly concerned whether it's worth it. Being more or less isolated. How good of a life can someone have in such a reservation. I can't imagine them as being rich or economically prosper.

[linguoboy]

I was mostly concerned whether it's worth it. Being more or less isolated. How good of a life can someone have in such a reservation. I can't imagine them as being rich or economically prosperous.

Some are, though. Not all of them are on undesirable land or in the boondocks. Most were when they were created, but a lot has changed in the last couple centuries. The Osage Nation, for instance, found oil on their lands in 1894 and for a long time were one of the most wealthy tribes. There's been a huge shift of population toward the South and West since WWII, so now a number of reservations are near or even in major metropolitan areas and can exploit their extraterritoriality in various ways, such as by allowing gambling, sales cigarettes without state or municipal taxes, or predatory lending. Still, this is the exception rather than the rule.

[vijayjohn]

I disagree that this is no help to the language. Language requires a community to maintain, and this is far easier when the community is concentrated someplace where habitual speakers dominate than when it is scattered among alloglots.

(Of course, this is just an accident of the reservation policy, not its aim.)

Yeah, you're right. I was concerned that maybe Levike thought reservations were set up for preserving indigenous languages and cultures whereas my understanding is that in reality, they were set up for exactly the opposite purpose: basically, to drive them off their own land and confine them. But yeah, that definitely was an exaggerated response on my part, to say the least.

The Osage Nation, for instance, found oil on their lands in 1894 and for a long time were one of the most wealthy tribes.

Wow, great for them!

[Lauren]

We got some Salishan languages, Chinookan languages, Wakashan languages, Sahaptin, Chimakuan languages (both extinct, some revival efforts). That's quite a few languages.

[Gangulu]

I'm from Kabi Kabi country

I was quite surprised when I read that, I have a friend who is of is Kabi Kabi (or 'Gubbi Gubbi', damned voiced/voiceless confusion ) descent.

I live in Central Queensland, so there's a few around here. My username is actually one of the Indigenous languages of here. It has several spellings, although I think now it's considered a dialect of Biri. However in the map Saim linked it is listed there as Gangulu, and next to it is Wadjigu. I live somewhere between the two on a property. Personally I wouldn't have thought of Gangulu as part of Biri or any of those langauges, but Australian Indigenous languages have so much work to be done, in way of naming, language families, dialect continuums etc.

I don't really know of any nearby languages in the CQ region that are fairly well recorded, or could even be spoken? I had a look around, and apparently there is a wordlist for Biri and some phonology too, which I would like to see. I find Austlang's resources indispensable, but at times, a little all over the place as there are multiple sources and spellings.

I know Darumbal is familiar, mainly because it's in the area of Rockhampton etc, and we have a fairly large Aboriginal population, especially out my way as I'm near the widely-known Aboriginal community, Woorabinda, which is in the Wadjigu spoken area.

I really consider myself interested in any languages from Central Queensland or languages related to them. Gangulu and Garingbal have their own ISOs, along with Biri. Only recently have I heard of them as dialects of Biri. I have an elderly friend in Woorabinda, I need to find out some more about the langauges of this area, I love them, just such a shame so much has been lost.

[Lazar Taxon]

Massachusetts was home to a number of peoples, all Algonquian: in my area the Nipmucs, and in other areas the Wampanoags, Massachusetts, Pennacooks, Pocumtucs and Mahicans. All of their languages were extinguished, although Wiki tells me that the Wampanoag-Massachusett language has seen some revitalization efforts and has a handful of new native speakers.

[WallOfStuff]

http://www.abc.net.au/indigenous/map/images/indigi_map.png

Damn, that is one insanely colorful and detailed map.