The inevitable has happened! News is circulating hereabouts about the availability of handbooks that will teach a person the local Yurok language. This is no small feat as the Yurok language possesses, when spoken, many, many subtle and unique linguistic internal changes. Still, the book promises to teach you the Read more…
Ayukîi Koovúra! Hello All! Francisca (Frankie) Tripp was hired this past Winter (February) by the Karuk Tribe to coordinate tribal language activities. She is charged with the objectives to establish a pool of teachers who will teach the Karuk language in the local school districts, and to organize a strategic Read more…
Tan Oak Girl Story provides a glimpse of Pikvahahirak, the Time Before Humans. A short creation story it provides us with a good lesson on creation stories, and to what they are capable. The story says there is a before-time prior to Human Beings coming into existence. It suggests that Read more…
The sound track for many American Indian tribal people dedicating their lives to restoring their traditional language is often in the Minor keys. In the melancholic tones. Nowadays when native people convene to discuss and chart out their plans to restore their indigenous languages, inevitably tears will flow. Not because Read more…
Northern California’s Tori McConnell Crowned Miss Indian World 2023 Tori McConnell, Yurok tribal member and Karuk tribal descendant, won the title of Miss Indian World 2023 at the Gathering of Nations Pow-wow in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She is a Karuk language apprentice working with Julian Lang, master speaker and teacher. Read more…
Maymi Preston Donahue completed 400 hours of Karuk language immersion. She completed the 300 hours of immersion recommended by the Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival. She completed an additional 100 hours because “she was on the verge of breaking through the proficiency level to expert level.” She completed the Read more…
Helping Native Communities Create New Speakers The Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival (aka AICLS) was established as a statewide organization with the mission of convening individual fluent speakers with an apprentice. This process called the Master-Apprentice Program (https://aicls.org/programs/https-aicls-org-wp-content-uploads-2020-01-aicls-master-apprentice-program-invoice-2020-pdf/) has since enabled many young apprentices to acquire their ancestral languages. Read more…