Capturing a Language on Film

Chloë Ellingson is a documentarian and photographer. Her work has appeared in Newspapers, for events, and she recently discussed a project on Radio Q.

Her most recent work has involved the study of a revitalization effort being conducted on the Mohawk language by the people of Tyendinaga. She created a thoughtful documentary which reflects upon the importance of a language for a people, how a language can be saved, and what kind of people it takes to make it work.

I was able to ask Chloë about her new film. The documentary is called Raising the Words (This comes from the name for the two-year adult-immersion program, Shatiwennakarà:tats, which translates in English as “they are raising the words again”).

[Photo from Chloë’s Documentary Raising the Words]

Michael Iannozzi : What led you to study the Mohawk language revitalization project?

Chloë Ellingson : I first became aware of the Mohawk language [known as Kanien’keha in Mohawk] revitalization in Tyendinaga through my relationship with two people who ended up studying Mohawk – Margaret and Ellie. I met them in 2011 for a photographic project I was working on about grandparents who are raising their grandchildren. I was studying photojournalism at Loyalist College at the time, which is in nearby Belleville, Ontario. Margaret and Ellie were really excited about the language programs, and talked often about what they were learning.

It took about a year for me to commit to the idea of working on this project, as I had sincere reservations about taking on a subject that was so removed from my own life experiences. Ultimately, I realized that hearing about what was happening in Tyendinaga was having a powerful impact on my perception of Canada, the depth of the imprint of colonialism, and also what it means to speak a language more broadly. At a certain point I felt that these realizations were too important not to share, and I had met people who were willing to share their stories with me. I started shooting this film in August, 2013.

MI : Where does the film take place?

CE : The documentary is called Raising the Words. It takes place in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, which is about 200km east of Toronto along Highway 401. Tyendinaga is home to roughly 2200 people, however there are many more people who are also Bay of Quinte Mohawks, but live elsewhere. It is one of the six Mohawk territories within Canadian borders.

MI : Had you spent much time in small towns before filming this documentary?

CE : Other than the short time I had been living in Belleville? Absolutely not! I had spent my life living in only big cities up to that point. All the open space and a dependence on a car was quite an adjustment for me.

MI : Going into the project, how much did you already know about the Indigenous languages of Canada? And specifically of Mohawk?

CE : I knew nothing about Indigenous languages in Canada, and certainly nothing about what was being done to revive them. I had no sense of how Mohawk related to other Indigenous languages, where people spoke it, or what it meant to communities of Mohawk people – and this is what got me into the project. It wasn’t an interest in the language itself, but an interest in what the language means to people. The more I learned about the value it held, the more my curiosity grew.

The life experiences of the people I’ve spoken to in the film have illustrated that language is about much more than communication. It’s a connection to culture, to ancestry, to self. Some of the people in the film see learning the language as a political act, and as an essential part of connecting with their Mohawk identity.

MI : Did you experience any challenges in filming this project?

CE : I experience challenges constantly. Some of the challenges are about figuring out how to piece this film together as a first-time filmmaker. I’m used to working with the medium of photography, and there are some huge differences to grapple with, such as the need to plan and do things in a pre-meditated fashion, rather than being able to have a more intuitive approach. There are more profound challenges as well, like the need to try to work away from the exoticized, distancing representations of Indigenous peoples that have plagued visual representations of the past, and continue to do so. This is a haunting challenge because I fear that the prejudices I’ve been surrounded by throughout my life could be coming out in in ways I’m not aware of.

MI : The people who form the basis of the film, what has been their reaction to beginning to learn the Mohawk language? Why is it important to them?

CE : From what I gather there are several motivations, but the overarching one is something I can’t describe, that I’ve only been able to vaguely bear witness to, and it has to do with addressing a profound need to feel like oneself after a tremendous, violent loss. I know that there are sub-motivations at play such as wanting their children to have access to opportunities they never did, to connect with culture, to live out the change they want experienced in the community on a broad scale.Important to note is also “the cool factor” that the language has now, as teacher Nathan Thanyehténhas Brinklow puts it. As he says in the film, the kids of ‘80s and ‘90s “grew up post-dramatic racism, post native-awakening, at a time where it started again to be cool to be native.” It’s this generation, he says, that has been raised in a context that allows for language revitalization.

MI : What has been the hardest part of putting this together?

CE : The hardest part is grappling with the fact that I talk, write, and think about this project in English. I think the work has value even coming from this standpoint, but it’s strange not to be contributing to the revitalization through what the film is, rather than just what it says.

MI : What has been the biggest surprise, or new thing that’s come from your work on this?

CE : It’s been surprising to me to hear some of the thoughts about my project from people I know who I otherwise consider to be very open-minded, curious and worldly people. One friend asked, after hearing about the work, something like, “But isn’t it normal for languages to die out through the course of history?” I’ve come to believe that this is totally missing the point. There are real people who care about their language and are fighting to keep it strong. Why entertain notions of whether or not it matters on the scale of total human history if it clearly matters to a people today?

MI : Who is this project aimed at? Who do you hope will be the audience for this film?

CE : I find this question very difficult to answer, because I’ll be happy for anyone to watch the film, and I can’t predict who will get something out of it and who won’t. That said, if the standpoint from which it was made can be an indication of the answer to your question, then I’ll say that this film came about through a realization that language revitalization is happening. It has tremendous value to those involved. Learning about these efforts at revitalization is a window into exploring the current impact of colonialism, and a desire to explore and share the life-affirming and moving stories of a few people who are involved in language revitalization in Tyendinaga.

[Photo from Chloë’s film Raising the Words]

A sincere thank you to Chloë for taking part in this interview. This blog has usually focussed on the work of academics and researchers, but it is important to speak also with people involved in language in other ways.

The Mohawk language is absolutely important to the people in Tyendinaga who are the subjects of Chloë’s film. They are spending their time and resources to try to revive their language, and to help people appreciate the importance that language has to Mohawk identity–both inside and beyond their community.

These languages aren’t endangered like a species that isn’t surviving due to natural selection. There has been nothing natural about the suppression that Indigenous languages have underwent that created a situation in which so many are now on the edge of extinction.

Efforts like those taking place in Tyendinaga hope to restore a language’s place in its community, and efforts like Chloë’s hope to inform those involved, and the public at large, that these languages can be saved, but they need our help.

 

Information on how and where to see Chloë’s documentary can be found Here.

 

Take care eh,

 

Michael Iannozzi

 

From Two Languages Comes One

Michif is a language traditionally spoken by the Métis of Saskatchewan, Manitoba, across Canada, and even in North Dakota. The language has been the subject of intense discussions in linguistics because of its unique creation.

Professor Nicole Rosen of the University of Manitoba has studied Michif since she was a grad student, and has worked on an online dictionary to try to document and preserve the language. For all that makes Michif interesting and special, it has not received the attention from documentarians and revitalization efforts that it needs. It, unfortunately like so many of North America’s Indigenous languages, is on the brink of extinction. At stake is a language represents the two sides of Canadian history: the ancient history of Canada pre-contact, and the history of the settlers who arrived from Europe and moved west.

I had the great privilege to speak with Professor Rosen about this fascinating language.

[An Android App for learning the Michif language]

Michael Iannozzi : So what is Michif?

Nicole Rosen : Well, Michif is a language that is spoken by a subgroup of the Métis people, and it is a mixture of French and Plains Cree, but also a little English and Ojibwe too.

MI : Where did Michif come from?

NR : Near as we can tell, it was formed at the beginning of the 19th century. It was spoken by the 1820s or 1830s, and it was formed in the Red River Valley (Which is around Winnipeg). It was formed largely by French settlers marrying Indigenous women; who created a new culture—the Métis culture—and who also created a new language.

MI : That’s much earlier than I had thought it would be, had the French settlers been in that area before the 1820s, and just not started to create this culture until then?

NR : There may have been a group before then, but the earliest records we have of the language is from that time. There were certainly traces of this language and culture before then, but it wasn’t until about the 1820s that this group was referred to collectively as a community called the Metis, or the Red River Metis. It wasn’t until then that we have a clear record of the Métis creating their own culture, and their own identity; that may not started start until the 1820s when settlers started coming this far west.

MI : And so today where would we find speakers of Michif?

NR : There are speakers in Manitoba in a few communities like Camperville, San Clara, and around Binscarth. There are other Métis communities with speakers in Saskatchewan, Alberta, and North Dakota. In the 1870s and 1880s the Métis were dispersed—or it may be more appropriate to say they fled the Red River Valley due to rebellions and battles. So they dispersed across the Prairies. The battle of 1885 is really the one that marked the end of the Métis settlements in the Red River Valley, Louis Riel was hanged, and the Michif language and Métis culture went into hiding after that.

Before that the Métis actually had a pretty good place in society because they were bi-cultural, multilingual, they knew their way around the land, and they often attended school, so they could trade between the groups of settlers and Indigenous peoples. Because of their dual heritage, they could often get along with either community : the First Nations or the settlers.

MI : So before 1885 they could be a part of both communities, and then after 1885 they weren’t really a part of either one?

NR : Yes, unfortunately then they really went into hiding, and it is really from that point that the Métis really begin to be marginalized. Also at that time, more and more French Quebecois were being recruited to settle the west: Quebecois who weren’t of “mixed blood”, and these new settlers really contributed to the marginalization of these “mixed” people.

MI : If the language went “underground” in a sense, that makes it all the more interesting that it was able to survive. The speakers were dispersed across the Prairies, and yet the language was able to survive.

NR : The Michif language really went into hiding. It was only spoken at home, it was not the language the Métis tended to use elsewhere. And there were some Métis communities that, after they spread out, they really just tried not to mix with the other communities to keep their culture alive. Part of the other side of their persecution and isolation is that their underground culture, and marginalized status, meant that they sometimes avoided being sent to residential schools. The residential schools tended to target the reservations, and a lot of Métis just lived out in the bush, off the land, and so some were able to keep their language, and avoid bringing attention to themselves. Certainly not all, or even most, but some were able to do this because they were so dispersed and remote.

MI : So would you say that that is part of the reason they were able to keep their language alive? Because they did keep themselves to themselves, and did try to avoid being a part of too many other communities?

NR : I think so. I mean, this is kind of a huge generalization. Because of the dispersed and multicultural nature of the Métis people, they are very diverse in their histories and experiences. This makes it very hard to generalize, or even say that something usually happened a certain way. Especially because Michif is just one of the languages of the Métis. They also speak a Métis variety of French, and a Métis variety of Cree, among other languages, and so when you try to describe this thing called Michif, it is somewhat ambiguous. Linguists know Michif as this “mixed” language [A creole is a language developed between two groups who develop a pidgin or simplified way of communicating, and eventually develops into a language. A mixed language develops thorough two languages intertwining because the groups are almost completely bilingual]. However, the Métis people see Michif as any one of several languages.

MI : So if you were to estimate, how many speakers would you say there are today?

NR : Our best estimates are a few hundred; however, we don’t really know because a speaker can check Michif on the census, but, as I said, Michif means three different languages, and so we don’t know which language people who say they speak Michif necessarily mean. Even when Michif is included in the census (2011), the numbers it comes out with are kind of meaningless unless you also know which language the speakers are referring to—a speaker can check the Michif box, but what does that mean: Michif French, Michif Cree, or the mixed Michif [There were 640 respondents in 2011’s census who reported Michif as a Mother Language].

MI : So when a Romance language (French) and an Algonquian First Nations language (Plains Cree) mix, what does that end up looking like?

NR : Well, people have differing views on what it looks like, but overall, it does look like it has a heavy influence from French, but it is mostly Plains Cree. The nouns and adjectives tend to come from French, and most of the verbs tend to come from Plains Cree. That’s very broadly speaking: in reality it isn’t exactly that cleanly split.

MI : Would someone who speaks French understand Michif better or worse than someone who speaks Cree?

NR : Someone who speaks Cree will understand Michif a little better than someone who speaks French, but it would still be very difficult. However, I do think the language, as a whole, is more like an Algonquian (First Nations) language than a Romance language like French. However, there is a large number of French words incorporated into it, and even sounds that exist in French, but not in Plains Cree, have become a part of Michif.

MI : So how did you first begin studying Michif? How did you even first hear about it?

NR : I think in the past most people hadn’t even heard of Michif—even here in Winnipeg. I think that is less true now, but it is still not widely known about. It was actually during my Master’s in French linguistics at the University of Toronto that I first heard of Michif. I had always been interested in French in contact with other languages, such as when it creates Creoles [like in the Caribbean].

When one studies languages in contact, there is always a section that covers “mixed languages”, and it is always the same example for a mixed language: Michif. There are others, but that is the one that is most commonly used as the example of a mixed language. I thought to myself, “Really? This is spoken here, in Canada, by the Métis people? I’m from Winnipeg, they speak Michif around there? I’ve never heard of it—I have to go and find out what this thing is.” That was really what started it all. I found out about Michif, and then I called the Manitoba Métis Federation when I was doing my Master’s, and I just asked if anyone spoke Michif, or if they could tell me anything about the language. It turns out they had just begun developing a Michif Language Project, and I started collaborating with them, which I continue to do today. It just all worked out.

[Here is a video of a Michif speaker singing “oh where, oh where has my little dog gone”. Credit : Manitoba Métis Foundation]

Thank you sincerely to Professor Nicole Rosen for her time and fascinating insight into the Michif language. Professor Rosen has done significant work with Métis elders who speak Michif in creating an online dictionary, and making recordings available on a linguistic atlas of the Algonquian languages here [An amazing and fun website to see where the speakers are across Canada]. Importantly, her work has involved listening to the Métis communities’ needs and goals in helping to revitalize and document their own language…or, as we’ve learned, languages.

The Métis have had a very different path toward the formation of that culture and community than many other groups. Their language and culture is young, and it has already had more than its fair share of trials and strife, yet the Métis culture, and the Michif languages continue to be celebrated today. Hopefully this fascinating language, that played such an important role in Canada’s history, will survive long into the future.

Prof. Rosen has provided several resources so you can learn more about Métis culture and Michif languages:

The Gabriel Dumont Institute

Louis Riel Institute

The Michif Language Project

The Michif Language Dictionary

Learn Michif

Remember to be proud of the languages you speak. Your heritage has a language attached, and you should be proud of what makes you unique.

 

Take care eh,

 

Michael Iannozzi

 

Saving languages in a new home

This week we are looking at ELAT, which works to document the endangered and minority languages of Toronto. Specifically, the interview focusses on their first project: working on the Harari language.

This interview is a bit different because there were two people interviewed, but not simultaneously. Anastasia Riehl is a director of the organization; however, in order to get a first-hand view of the Harari language. I also asked some questions of Abdullah Sherif, a Harari speaker who has worked with ELAT on the transcription and translation of recordings in Harari.

 

Michael Iannozzi : You are a part of ELAT, what does that stand for, and what are its objectives?

Anastasia Riehl : ELAT stands for Endangered Language Alliance Toronto. Our objectives are to document endangered languages (as well as other small or understudied languages) spoken in the GTA, to support communities in their efforts to strengthen their languages and to celebrate our multilingual city.

MI : Why is it important to document these languages in Toronto? Why is Toronto such a great place to do this documentation work?

AR : It is important to document these languages wherever they are spoken. Approximately half of the world’s 6000+ languages are at risk of extinction, and many of these have never been studied or recorded. Toronto offers a unique opportunity to undertake documentation work due to the large number and diverse range of languages spoken here, including languages that are globally endangered.

MI : What projects are you currently working on?

AR : Some of our ongoing projects include Sri Lankan Malay, Harari (Ethiopia), Bukhori (language of the Bukharan Jews of Central Asia), Urhobo (Southern Nigeria) and Cellese (Francoprovencal variety in Italy). In all of these cases there are at least a few dozen speakers in the city, and we hope to record a range of individuals for each.

 

I then inquired about ELAT’s work on Harari to Abdullah Sherif, who is a community leader and speaker of the Harari language in Toronto. The following are his responses.

Abdullah with his father Abdusamed

MI : The Harari community appears to be one with a couple thousand speakers in Toronto. How vibrant is the community in Toronto?

Abdullah Sherif : I believe there are more than 2000 Harari people in Toronto but it is true, not all would be categorized as being able to speak the language. I would say the Harari community is very vibrant when taking into consideration their small number. They can be found in every part of the city of Toronto: bankers, nurses, cab drivers, bus drivers,  lawyers, business owners, students at all levels: elementary, secondary, college, university, Master students, PhD students… The community is socially active as well, holding numerous cultural and religious events in large circles and in small ones too.

MI : Harari comes from the Harar region, so where is the Harar region?

AS : Harar is now a walled city in eastern Ethiopia.

MI : Are there languages that are related to Harari?

AS : Harari is a relatively unique language. It is actually a Language Island. It is Semitic [The most well-known Semitic languages may be Arabic and Hebrew] surrounded by Cushitic languages [Such as Somali—many of the languages of the horn of Africa]. A language that is very similar to Harari is spoken by the Silte people from the Gurage community. They happen to be in a region that is relatively far from Harar. Many Hararis were scattered throughout Ethiopia during the 16^th century. It is suggested that the Silte’s ancestors are some of those scattered Hararis or at least have been heavily influenced by them.

MI : Why do you think it is important to document the Harari language in Toronto?

AS : I feel it is important to document it because the language has been considered endangered. Many of the youth do not speak it, or do not speak it well, giving credence to the claim that it is endangered. Also, much of the language’s history is almost lost. Documenting it now might encourage people to properly investigate its past and give its future a better chance at survival.

MI : Does the Harari language community have any community places like a restaurant or place of meeting in Toronto?

AS : In spite of the small size of the community, there is a Harari community/heritage centre. What is interesting is there are at least 90 languages in Ethiopia with almost each one associated to a different ethnic Ethiopian community. Hararis are among the smallest in population. Yet, here in Toronto you have the one Ethiopian community centre which serves all Ethiopians, and in addition Hararis have their own independent community centre. It is possible there may be other specific Ethiopian community centres like the Harari one, but I am not aware of any. As for the Hararis, other than that one Community Centre, they also have other medium to small community groups and religious groups. Some of the small groups are called “Affochas” and can be made up of as few members as three people. Affocha loosely translated means “community group”. In Harar there are many Affochas and many types: youth Affocha, women’s Affocha, men’s Affocha, etc. We also consider the larger community centre as an Affocha too.

MI : With almost all the speakers in Ethiopia and Canada being multilingual, what does that mean for the Harari language?

AS : As is already the case, Harari will be heavily influenced by the other languages. Interestingly, Harari speakers in Ethiopia use many Amharic words (Amharic is the official language in Ethiopia) and some were surprised by me when I would use the Harari words where they would have likely used Amharic words. But I am guilty of often using English words in many places while speaking Harari.

MI : How do you think the language can survive in Toronto?

AS : The language will survive only if the youth speak it. For that to happen they need to appreciate its importance.

[Abdullah’s father speaking Harari with captions]

 

I then asked more broad-based questions regarding ELAT and endangered languages in Toronto to Professor Riehl to end the interview.

MI : ELAT produces videos and audio of the language projects. Why is this important to you? What is the power of videos and modern technology for the survival of these languages?

AR : There are various methods of language documentation – collecting wordlists, undertaking grammatical analysis, creating dictionaries, recording audio and video of different styles of speech. All of these are important. At this stage, our focus is on producing short videos which we hope will have broad value and appeal – to linguists studying the languages, to community members interested in preserving examples of their language or using them for educational purposes, and to the general public interested in learning more about the languages and lives of the speakers.

In terms of content, we usually ask the participants to discuss the experience of being a speaker of their language in the context of Toronto – and also where relevant their experience immigrating to the city. In this way, we wish to explore the common themes of the immigrant experience in Toronto and Toronto as a city of languages.

MI : What do you think is the most crucial thing for the survival of Harari, and the other languages studied, in Toronto?

AR : Languages survive by being passed down to younger generations. Once this transmission declines, a language is at risk of disappearing. Although there are often outside forces working against a community’s retention of its language (governmental policies, economic factors, etc.) the motivation for maintaining a language must come from within the community. There are, however, things that others can do to support these communities, such as undertake documentation projects, create educational materials and assist with organizing classes and events.

In talking with endangered language communities in Toronto, I often hear speakers express concern that their language is dying because young people, in particular, are not interested in speaking it. However, I also often hear from young speakers or partial speakers who are very motivated to ensure that their language survives. These young community members are the key to their language’s future. Supporting and collaborating with these individuals by sharing ideas, tools and resources is an important way to ensure a language survives, whether in Toronto or elsewhere in the world.

MI : What can the average person do to help these languages?

AR : Talk to your relatives, friends and neighbours about their linguistic histories. You will be surprised how many people have interesting stories to share. If you meet someone who speaks one of the world’s smaller languages, seek help with documentation. If you are interested in particular languages, you can get involved with the relevant community groups in your area. You can also lend your time, expertise and resources to organizations that work to document and preserve endangered languages. Perhaps most importantly, support a world where multilingualism and the rights of minority language communities are valued.

 

A sincere thank you to Anastasia Riehl and to Abdullah Sherif. The work they do is undeniably valuable. Every language in the world is worth saving and documenting. In recent decades with so many communities fracturing and moving to various parts of the world, the widespread pieces of the community cannot keep their language alive when surrounded by a new language. These efforts at documentation are important because these languages have not been studied a great deal, but also because the communities in Toronto might speak a different variety or dialect of the language than the people who remain where the language is originally “from”.

If you want to learn more, please follow this link to the Endangered Language Alliance of Toronto: http://www.elalliance.com

 

Take care eh,

 

Michael Iannozzi