{"id":903,"date":"2013-07-10T13:26:34","date_gmt":"2013-07-10T21:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ayatlin.wordpress.com\/?p=903"},"modified":"2015-08-20T20:43:05","modified_gmt":"2015-08-21T04:43:05","slug":"learning-the-athabascan-language","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/athabascanwoman.com\/?p=903","title":{"rendered":"Learning the Athabascan Language"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’ve been working with my daughters to learn the Koyukon Athabascan. I started out by creating Vine videos to record words and sharing them on Twitter (<\/span>@ayatlin<\/a>). I recently migrated to Instagram because of flexibility and editing function. I\u2019ve also uploaded the videos to Facebook. My friend, Mary Deming Barber, recently wrote about how I\u2019ve been using Vine to teach Athabascan on her<\/span> blog<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Koyukon<\/a>
Koyukon Junior Dictionary. Written by Eliza Jones in 1978<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I know a lot of words in Koyukon Athabascan, but I do not speak it or know how to spell it. I have been learning as I go. My aunt Irene Henry of Allakaket recently sent me some worksheets with Koyukon words for us to use. I have also downloaded the<\/span> Koyukon Junior Dictionary<\/a> written by Athabascan linguist, Eliza Jones of Koyukuk, Alaska.<\/span><\/p>\n

I recently learned the<\/span> Alaska Native Heritage Center <\/a>(ANHC) is will hold two Athabascan language learning opportunities this summer:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Nee\u2019eeneegn\u2019 Upper Tanana Athabascan July 15-20 at Northway\u2019s culture camp which is upriver from the village during an overnight camp setting.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Denaakk\u2019e Koyukon Athabascan August 4-9 in Anchorage at the Alaska Native Heritage Center.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The ANHC would like to bring together as many interested Upper Tanana and Koyukon Athabascan language learners of all ages with hands-on learning activities, singing, eating and sharing stories. ANHC Development Manager Dewey Hoffman says, \u201cAnyone can learn our language and it’s important to put it back into the air where it belongs!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"Dene<\/a>
    Dene Languages. Map courtesy of the ANHC.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    I am planning to attend the one in Anchorage. The registration costs, meals and learning materials are free due to sponsorship from Doyon, Limited<\/a>, which launched an Athabascan Language Revitalization initiative in 2012 to promote the Native languages within the Doyon region. Travel and lodging are not provided. Ruth Johnny of Northway and Beaver Creek and Cheryl Silas of Northway and Fairbanks will be the instructors for Upper Tanana week in Northway. K\u2019etsoo Susan Paskvan of Koyukuk and Fairbanks and NedosdeghaaLno Esther McCarty of Hughes and Ruby will instruct the Koyukon Athabascan language week in Anchorage.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Esther McCarty teaches the Koyukon Athabascan language and songs. For years, people in the Yukon\/Koyukuk area ask her to make Koyukon Athabascan songs for memorial potlatches. <\/span><\/p>\n

    “Most of them don’t speak our language but it is very important for these individuals that they sing for their loved ones. I teach them by a number of different methods. The end result is that they really make an effort to pronounce their words and make a song and end up really strong and proud that they’ve done it.\u00a0 It’s a part of us as Koyukon Athabascans that we sing if that is what is in our hearts. <\/span>That is part of the healing process of losing a loved one.\u00a0This is only one reason that we need to learn how to speak our language. It is part of what makes us whole spiritually. Even if a person learns to speak only a few words and understand what he or she is saying that is a great accomplishment for a Koyukon Athabascan who doesn’t know how to speak and would like to learn.” – Esther McCarty<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    I recorded Esther in 2008 when she did a blessing for a special event in Ruby, Alaska.<\/span><\/p>\n