How to save the Itelmen language?

Oct 9, 2014 by

How to save the Itelmen language?

[This post was originally published in March 2012. Thanks to Jonathan Bobaljik and Tatiana Degai for their assistance in working on this post!] As mentioned in my earlier post, the Itelmen are at the bottom of the list of Siberian...

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Indigenous Languages of Siberia: An Overview

Oct 9, 2014 by

Indigenous Languages of Siberia: An Overview

[This post was originally published in March 2012] On the map of the 6,909 living languages listed in the Ethnologue database (see map on the left), Siberia is mostly empty, with fewer dots than European Russia or the United States....

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“The Tree of Life”, 25th Annual Festival of Veps Cutlure

Oct 9, 2014 by

“The Tree of Life”, 25th Annual Festival of Veps Cutlure

[This post was originally published in July 2012] The 25th annual festival of Veps culture “The Tree of Life” took place in the first weekend of July 2012, in the village of Shyoltozero in Karelia, on the shores of Lake Onega. The...

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Problems Brewing for Indigenous Peoples of the Russian Far North

Oct 9, 2014 by

Problems Brewing for Indigenous Peoples of the Russian Far North

[This post was originally published in November 2012] Native peoples of the Russian Far North struggle to fit into the modern global village while retaining their ethnic identity and cultural distinctiveness. In recent days, the...

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Obituary: Last Speaker of Livonian Language Died Age 103

Jun 19, 2014 by

Obituary: Last Speaker of Livonian Language Died Age 103

On June 5, 2013, The Times published a brief article on the death of the last speaker of Livonian, Grizelda Kristina, at the age of 103. While it is heartening to see a major popular media outlet taking notice of the issue of...

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Aramaic Revival in the Holy Land

Jun 3, 2014 by

Aramaic Revival in the Holy Land

Efforts are being made worldwide to stop the tide of language endangerment and extinction. One group that has recently made efforts to return to its linguistic roots is Christian Arabs of the Middle East. A campaign is now underway...

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