PALMAS, Brazil (Achieve3000, January 21, 2016). Guaricema Pataxo's roots are the cornerstone of her identity. The 53-year-old woman makes a living by selling handicrafts made by the Pataxo people. These people are native to Bahia, Brazil. But ask her to speak the Pataxo language, and she can only stumble through a few basic words and phrases. None of her children, grandchildren, or great-grandchildren speak the language, either.
This woman's situation is not unusual. There are about 13,000 Pataxos living in their native land, but only around 1,600 are thought to speak the group's original tongue. And of the estimated 2,000 indigenous languages thought to have once been spoken in what is now Brazil, only around 160 have survived the centuries. …show more content…
Farmers bring roads, electricity, and outsiders into areas with many indigenous peoples.
Yamalui Kuikuro is of the Kuikuro people. He believes the disappearance of an indigenous language marks the beginning of the tribe's end.
"When we lose our language, we…no longer have any identity," said Kuikuro. "Language is the identity of indigenous peoples."
As part of the program to save indigenous tongues, specialists were sent countrywide. They trained a group of tribe members to take videos of traditional ceremonies that use indigenous languages. They also helped transcribe languages that had been solely oral.
Transcription "is a long, tense, difficult process," said José Carlos Levinho. He is the director of Rio de Janeiro's Indian Museum. The museum ran the project with Brazil's indigenous affairs agency. Levinho says it involves the difficult process of reaching an agreement among tribes. "There are lots of [arguments], lots of discussions."
The team also faced practical hurdles. At the beginning of the project, there was a flu outbreak that closed indigenous lands to outsiders. There were threats from farmers who were trying to drive indigenous peoples from their lands. In addition, there is a lack of interest among young
This woman's situation is not unusual. There are about 13,000 Pataxos living in their native land, but only around 1,600 are thought to speak the group's original tongue. And of the estimated 2,000 indigenous languages thought to have once been spoken in what is now Brazil, only around 160 have survived the centuries. …show more content…
Farmers bring roads, electricity, and outsiders into areas with many indigenous peoples.
Yamalui Kuikuro is of the Kuikuro people. He believes the disappearance of an indigenous language marks the beginning of the tribe's end.
"When we lose our language, we…no longer have any identity," said Kuikuro. "Language is the identity of indigenous peoples."
As part of the program to save indigenous tongues, specialists were sent countrywide. They trained a group of tribe members to take videos of traditional ceremonies that use indigenous languages. They also helped transcribe languages that had been solely oral.
Transcription "is a long, tense, difficult process," said José Carlos Levinho. He is the director of Rio de Janeiro's Indian Museum. The museum ran the project with Brazil's indigenous affairs agency. Levinho says it involves the difficult process of reaching an agreement among tribes. "There are lots of [arguments], lots of discussions."
The team also faced practical hurdles. At the beginning of the project, there was a flu outbreak that closed indigenous lands to outsiders. There were threats from farmers who were trying to drive indigenous peoples from their lands. In addition, there is a lack of interest among young