Language Learning
Language connects us to who we are as Indigenous peoples. While colonial violence disrupted many Indigenous languages, powerful efforts to reclaim and revitalize Tribal and Indigenous languages are emerging.
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Cultural Narrative
Colonial violence and policies sought to eradicate Indigenous languages to assimilate Native peoples. Despite these efforts, many Tribal communities have preserved their original languages and are engaging in language revitalization. Language connects us to ourselves, each other, our ancestors, and the land. Language is how humans build community and work together through shared words around their beliefs and values, ensuring that communities live on.
Many participants illustrated this importance by introducing themselves in their Native languages. Some shared specific blessings or prayers. Many described their own efforts to learn their Native language as a form of healing from colonial trauma.
One community member shared how her mother discouraged language learning due to her traumatic experiences with boarding school. The community member mentioned learning “bits and pieces” as she listened to her Lakota grandmother speak to others in the community and remembers those sentences. She expressed her feelings of longing, looking back on her grandmother’s knowledge and wishes that she would have asked her to teach her the language, knowing she most likely would have. She also expressed pride in her efforts to learn her language now and to teach her children and grandchildren.
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