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Tech anthropologist works to save dying Comanche language
Lubbock Online ^ | Friday, December 18, 2009 | Matthew Mcgowan

Posted on 12/19/2009 6:35:04 PM PST by SunkenCiv

The language of the Comanche people, a lifeline of its culture, is fading fast. Its muted vowels and sapient cadence once echoed throughout the fenceless grasslands of the South Plains, but today it can muster barely a whisper... With a recent $215,000 two-year grant from the Administration for Native Americans, they'll shoulder the task on modern technology and a new generation of Comanche students eager to learn their ancestral tongue. "Its important for any language to have its say, to be documented," Williams said. "It's interesting for Comanche because it rose to dominance on the South Plains so quickly, then to have it so quickly go into a state of complete demise." ...Their dominance over the area's trade led their language to thread together teachers, traders and travelers from neighboring tribes and, eventually, from Europe... Today, about a dozen generations after its prime, the language endures only through a handful of native speakers -- as few as 25 out of the Comanche Nation's approximately 15,000 registered members -- but they are dying off and taking the legacy with them... If the program finds success at Comanche Nation College, it could find a new home at Tech, Williams said, but the program has other, more immediate, aims. The language likely will go extinct as a spoken language if more isn't done to save it, he said. Even this new effort doesn't come with any guarantees. Most of the approximately 1,000 original Native American languages are disappearing along with Comanche, Williams said.

(Excerpt) Read more at lubbockonline.com ...


TOPICS: History; Science; Travel
KEYWORDS: americanindians; comanche; godsgravesglyphs; language
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Tech anthropologist Jeff Williams is working to salvage the few remaining remnants of the Comanche language so he can try to teach it in a college classroom. (Provided by Artie Limmer)

Tech anthropologist works to save dying Comanche language

1 posted on 12/19/2009 6:35:06 PM PST by SunkenCiv
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To: StayAt HomeMother; Ernest_at_the_Beach; 1ofmanyfree; 21twelve; 24Karet; 2ndDivisionVet; 31R1O; ...

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GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach
 

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2 posted on 12/19/2009 6:36:30 PM PST by SunkenCiv (My Sunday Feeling is that Nothing is easy. Goes for the rest of the week too.)
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The Texas AM Anthro News page started to be updated again after a period of years of nothing, and I'm not sure when, because I hadn't checked it in months, or a year, or something. This story posted here though came from Yahoo Anthro & Archaeo.
3 posted on 12/19/2009 6:38:51 PM PST by SunkenCiv (My Sunday Feeling is that Nothing is easy. Goes for the rest of the week too.)
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To: SunkenCiv

Fort Benning, Georgia, 1941

Front Row, left to right: Roderick “Dick” Red Elk, Simmons Parker, Larry Saupitty, Melvin Permansu, Willie Yackeschi, Charles Chibitty and Willington Mihecoby. Back Row, left to right: Morris Sunrise, Perry Noyebad, Ralph Wahnee, Haddon Codynah, Robert Holder, Albert Nahquaddy, Clifford Ototivo and Forrest Kassanavoid. (not pictured: Elgin Red Elk and Anthony Tabbitite)

The Comanche Code Talkers were an elite group of young men who were fluent in the Comanche language and used that knowledge, along with the training they were given by the Army, to send critical messages that confused the enemy during World War II. Seventeen young men were trained in communications, but only fourteen were deployed to the European theater.


4 posted on 12/19/2009 6:45:24 PM PST by JoeProBono (A closed mouth gathers no feet)
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To: SunkenCiv

What’s wrong with English? Some of my ancestors spoke Yiddish. think I give a damn about learning it?


5 posted on 12/19/2009 6:47:43 PM PST by montag813
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To: SunkenCiv

Where’s a modern Sequoyah when you need one? He created his “syllabary” of the Cherokee language back in the 1820’s.


6 posted on 12/19/2009 6:48:04 PM PST by dorothy (“The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once.” - Albert Einstein)
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To: montag813

With that kind of attitude, you could also ask the question — why should anyone learn a foreign language? Language has value, in and of itself. Languages die, yes, but we should retain as much understanding of them as we can, so we can understand history.


7 posted on 12/19/2009 6:57:29 PM PST by malkee (Actually I'm an ex-smoker--more than three years now -- But I think about it every day.)
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To: montag813

I would love to learn to speak Comanche. And I would do it just for the heck of it.


8 posted on 12/19/2009 6:58:13 PM PST by 1rudeboy
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To: montag813
Look some of our ancestors spoke Ladino. Once Jews moved to Northern and Eastern Europe Ladino was displaced by Yiddish, however many Ladino trade names live on.

You have a variety of sites on the net that will teach you Ladino. There are fewer teaching Yiddish.

You can also learn Aramaic, and best of all, MINGO!

Mingo has the conjugations for "OK" including "okily dokily" which is feaured prominently in the cartoon patois of the Simpsons.

Comanche would be well served with a website devoted to its instruction.

9 posted on 12/19/2009 6:59:20 PM PST by muawiyah
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To: 1rudeboy

probably more people speak klingon than commanche. hell, i have HAMLET in english on one page and klingon on the facing page.


10 posted on 12/19/2009 7:01:19 PM PST by bravo whiskey (If the little things really bother you, maybe it's because the big things are going well.)
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To: JoeProBono

“Ahalani cha.”


11 posted on 12/19/2009 7:20:21 PM PST by SunkenCiv (My Sunday Feeling is that Nothing is easy. Goes for the rest of the week too.)
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To: montag813

Nobody’s got a gun to ya head.


12 posted on 12/19/2009 7:21:49 PM PST by SunkenCiv (My Sunday Feeling is that Nothing is easy. Goes for the rest of the week too.)
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To: SunkenCiv

13 posted on 12/19/2009 7:36:27 PM PST by JoeProBono (A closed mouth gathers no feet)
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To: malkee
With that kind of attitude, you could also ask the question — why should anyone learn a foreign language?

What "attitide"? I don't expect taxpayer funds to fund my study. These folks got half a million bucks from you and me.

14 posted on 12/19/2009 7:43:16 PM PST by montag813
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To: bravo whiskey

The Mingo Indians were once native to western PA until they were driven west in the mid eighteenth century.


15 posted on 12/19/2009 7:50:06 PM PST by Ciexyz
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To: montag813
With a recent $215,000 two-year grant from the Administration for Native Americans, they'll shoulder the task on modern technology and a new generation of Comanche students eager to learn their ancestral tongue.

I can think of worse uses for this money.
16 posted on 12/19/2009 7:54:29 PM PST by malkee (Actually I'm an ex-smoker--more than three years now -- But I think about it every day.)
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To: bravo whiskey
We have an Indian Village 3 miles from house. 28 Indians, 400 when gold miners arrived here 110 years back. Only a couple still speak traditional language; yet other villages that have kept Whites out still have their culture, language, and traditions.

Most Indians want to benefit from the good things in our culture and yet hang onto the best of their culture. Since the Fed Govt made the deal to take care of them forever; they don't have to live by our rules; no matter what people who have lived the American Culture think.

They don't think like we do, different world view, different concepts toward right and wrong. Most are pretty decent, sharing, nonjudgemental people; but it took me being the only White Boy in a village as a teacher for a year to begin to understand and respect their culture. Bottomline, I don't judge them like I'd judge another White guy nowadays. I get along with them fine, hunt, fish, go to all their potlatches/dinners, and even doing the Santa Claus thing on Christmas eve out the village hall.

They all use Indian English but also nice to see them retain their original language. I even know Republican Indians who want to retain their Native Culture.

Once white teaching at another Indian Village, I had a 16 year old kid tell me why they wanted to keep Whites outta their villages. He said, you guys come in take over, build lodges & package stores and Us Indians (with our alcohol problems) spend all our money there. Pretty soon you surround us and negatively impact our villages and we disaappear as a people he said. It's about right too, but you wouldn't understand it to be the truth unless you lived in Nativeland. No different than German being spoken in homes in North Dakota.

17 posted on 12/19/2009 7:58:13 PM PST by Eska
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To: Bad Eagle
PING)))))))))))) May be of interest to you. Aloha and Merry Christmas. Fish Hawk of the Yurok Tribe N. Calif.
18 posted on 12/19/2009 8:22:21 PM PST by fish hawk (It's sad that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom. Isaac Asimov)
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To: montag813

Probably lots of things you don’t give a damn about. A lot of others do.


19 posted on 12/19/2009 8:24:03 PM PST by fish hawk (It's sad that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom. Isaac Asimov)
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To: SunkenCiv

Interesting. The hospital I work at has had some Commanche Indian patients on occasion and they were speaking Commanche to each other. Should of paid more attention.


20 posted on 12/19/2009 8:25:30 PM PST by Beowulf9
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