Cultural activist from Guyana’s Wapishana tribe tries to revive a near-extinct language · Global Voices
The first graduating class (2011) of Wapishana teachers after receiving their certificates to return to their villages to teach Wapishana literacy to others. Photo courtesy <PERSON>, used with permission.
In the midst of Guyana's lush rainforests, nestled between the Rupununi River and Brazilian border, dwells the Indigenous Wapishana tribe. Linguist and cultural activist <PERSON> hails from an isolated Wapishana village, yet, he speaks less Wapishana — an Indigenous Arawakan language spoken in Guyana and Brazil —than English.
Now, he's trying to revive the dying language.
According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, more than 40 percent of the world’s languages are endangered. In 1997, concerned about the dwindling number of Wapishana-literate adults, <PERSON> formed the Wapichan Wadauniinao Ati’o (WWA, meaning “Wapishana for our Descendants”), to help revive the Wapishana language.
In 2011, the WWA embarked on a four-year Wapishana Adult Literacy Programme to preserve the community's language, culture and land resources, in keeping with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples recommendations. <PERSON> says that by preserving endangered languages, people access their stories in their own tongue, thereby retaining strong roots.
Language is about communication — but it's also an instrument of knowledge and power.
<PERSON> maintains:
In our part of the world of formerly colonised countries, ‘true decolonisation’ is still lacking, for there is still the continuation of colonial structures and mentalities in the context of the independent nations.
Global Voices corresponded with <PERSON> via email about his vision for the Wapishana language.
Linguist and cultural activist <PERSON> in Leiden, The Netherlands, where he teaches at the university. Photo courtesy <PERSON>, used with permission.
Global Voices (GV): What inspired you to want to preserve this language and how do you see it making a difference?
<PERSON> (AD): I realised that I did not know my own cultural heritage or background very well, despite being able to speak the language. It’s not that the knowledge was hidden, but due to my exposure to mainstream culture, I had not been actively involved in the activities of my culture. I missed out on a lot on trips to the deep forest and the wide-ranging savannah … and the practical lessons passed on by our elders through on-the-spot occurrences … I felt incomplete when it came to knowing my roots — I missed a sense of belonging — of being Wapishana. I wanted to do something about it.
Guyana's 9,000-strong Wapishana population was no longer equivalent to the number of speakers (around 5,000 or less). 811
As people favoured the national language, English, as well as Creole and even Portuguese, our Indigenous language was no longer being passed on to the next generation. There is a growing number of young adults who speak only English.
The WWA's literacy programme has revitalised the language in 17 villages in south Rupununi by increasing literacy at the grassroots level. This … gave people a sense of pride and expanded their self-esteem. There are now approximately 1,000 Wapishana-literate people.
<PERSON>: What other activities does the WWA undertake?
AG: At the WWA centre, we archive language data, strengthen the capacity of local WWA tutors to train others, promote the language through reading and spelling competitions, and collaborate with like-minded partners. People have even been inspired to produce their own reading materials. The WWA is recognised as the local authority for the translation of certain documents, and we have got approval from the Ministry of Education for a Wapishana/English pilot project in three villages …
<PERSON>: What have been some of the challenges?
<PERSON>: Through the literacy courses, we have managed to preserve the language to a large extent; However, participation dwindled toward the end of the four-year programme. Part of the struggle was that we also needed a more advanced level programme. A considerable number of youth were not motivated enough to participate … English tends to be promoted, celebrated and exalted at the expense of native languages, which are seen as old fashioned.
The WWA has to create programmes that span generations … [to] ‘create space’ for the Wapishana language in modern technology …
Students learning to read and write in the Wapishana language. Photo courtesy <PERSON>, used with permission. 811