Canadian First Nation wins award for work preserving Kaska Indigenous language
The Liard First Nation’s language department is being recognized by Canada’s premiers for decades of work done to promote and preserve the Kaska language.
The Council of the Federation announced the winners of its annual Literacy Award this week. Each year, a recipient is announced for each province and territory.
Volfova says the language department has worked hard for many years to document the Kaska language, make recordings and transcripts, and collect traditional knowledge.
She says the work would not be possible without a lot of people contributing.
“We have to recognize the speakers that have participated in all these different activities and the elders that still are with us and are actively involved with the work,” she said.
New learners and going online
The Council of the Federation also recognizes the department’s recent efforts to digitize their collected materials, to make them more accessible to people online.
Volfova says it’s a big job, but worth the effort.
“Lots of work needs to still, of course, [to] happen. It is totally ongoing, but we’re really excited that we are getting some new learners that have been taking it very seriously and dedicating their time to the language,” she said.
The COVID-19 pandemic has put a halt to the department’s community language classes right now, but Volfova says the hope is to soon offer an online Kaska course.
This year’s other Northern recipients of the Literacy Award include Delores Vittrekwa from Fort McPherson, N.W.T., who’s been recognized for her years of work running literacy programs in her community.
And Nunavut’s recipient this year is Charmaine Okatsiak, who works with youth in Rankin Inlet to help them learn and speak Inuktitut.
With files from Roch Shannon Fraser
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Inuit TV coming to Northern Canada from new Inuktut-language broadcaster, CBC News
Finland: Budget cuts threaten international Sámi language cooperation, Yle News
Norway: Walt Disney Animation Studios to release Saami-language version of “Frozen 2”, Eye on the Arctic
Sweden: Sami Language Week to take place October 19-25, Eye on the Arctic
United States: Inuit leaders applaud UN move to designate International Decade of Indigenous Languages, Eye on the Arctic
