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Arctic Yearbook 2014
Differences in time, space and language mean that communication is a major challenge. Although
English cuts across all these territories as a major global language, and is often the lingua franca for
international meetings, information needs to be delivered to participants in a great number of
different languages. The problem is compounded by the fact that many Arctic indigenous peoples
continue to live in relatively remote areas. A large percentage of the stakeholders do not have easy
internet access; in some regions there is no mobile phone service. Engaging speakers in remote
communities can be challenging. Digital language resources are thus only part of the solution.
In many parts of the Arctic, language shift is a legacy from colonial regimes that actively suppressed
the use of indigenous languages. Elders in Alaska, Canada and the Russian Federation alike report
the carryover of trauma from their experiences in the boarding or residential schools, a situation
which has affected their choices about which languages to use with their children, and their own
self-esteem. Healing is an integral part of the process of language reclamation in the Arctic. Many of
the project’s leaders believe that healing is underway, but there is still much work to be done.
The project is first and foremost conceived of as an indigenous-driven initiative, formulated on
indigenous terms. Yet collaboration with multiple partners, including academic (and often nonindigenous) linguists, policy makers and political leaders, seen as critical to success, is labor-intensive
and time-consuming. The commitment to collaboration comes from acknowledgement that there is
insufficient capacity and expertise within indigenous communities alone to do all the necessary work,
and a recognition that changing some aspects of the language ecologies requires outside support, in
particular from governmental agencies. How can we balance this different perspectives and
approaches? One major challenge is to bring the indigenous values and collaborations together with
external partners in a seamless fashion.
Last, there are the pressures of time and money. The kinds of assessment that people desire take
considerable resources and are very time-consuming; creating a full language profile of each Arctic
indigenous language would be expensive and would require many years to complete. Meanwhile,
many of the languages are in advanced stages of shift, and measures need to be taken immediately to
revitalize them. The aspirations for thorough evaluation to inform language practices and policies
are at times at direct odds with the needs to take immediate action.
Conclusion
The ultimate goal of this initiative is to promote and maintain the vitality of Arctic indigenous
languages. In some cases revitalization work is necessary, while in others measures need to be taken
to insure ongoing vitality. The current design of the project is aimed at identifying the needs of all