Linguapax
Indigenous Focus: Indigenous Languages Being Strengthened Throughout Chile
October 19, 2011 | Posted by: Laura Seelau & Ryan Seelau
At the beginning of October, CONADI (the Chilean government's department for Indigenous development) put out a press release stating that they were working with Diaguita communities to develop a plan to rescue the Kakan language - a language spoken for centuries by the Diaguita people and, until recently, believed to be largely lost. One week later, another release talked about how a class of more than 20 Indigenous individuals in northern Chile completed an introductory class on the Quechua language. Shortly after that, there were reports about a hospital in Santiago that put up signs in Mapudungun-the language of the Mapuche people-as part of an intercultural health initiative. And just a few days ago, a two-day seminar with Indigenous leaders and government officials took place in order to discuss the state of Mapudungun in Chile and how its use can be promoted. And of
course, there are countless language initiatives that come from Indigenous peoples themselves. For example, in November, the Red por los Derechos Educativos y Lingüísticos de los Pueblos Indígenas de Chile (Network for Education and Linguistic Rights of Indigenous
Peoples in Chile) will host the Second Congress on Indigenous Languages in Chile.
Access full article below:
http://ilovechile.cl/2011/10/19/indigenous-focus-indigenous-languages-strengthened-chile/35951