Use Of Indigenous Languages Research Articles

Disengagement From Schools: Possible Solutions

This article investigated possible solutions to disengagement from schools by ethnic minority learners in Botswana. Disengagement is a concern for educationists and researchers. The study used qualitative approach to investigate the problem. The reason for disengagement include cultural misfit. The theory of social integration was used to understand the problem under study. The findings indicated that there must be consultation with farm owners and they use local languages for teaching. The article concludes that there is a need to liaise with stakeholders to review certain practices to encourage retainment in schools such as mobile schools and the use of indigenous languages.

The positive relationship between Indigenous language use and community-based well-being in four Nahua ethnic groups in Mexico.

In this article, we examine the relationship between Indigenous language use and community-based well-being among four Nahua ethnic groups in Mexico, taking into account the role of positive emotions related to speaking the heritage language as a mediator of the influence of its use in the family domain on community-based well-being. We employ an emic community-based well-being scale, a second scale measuring the use of Nahuatl and Spanish across different domains of social life, and a third scale measuring positive emotions related to the use of Nahuatl in order to examine the relationship between Nahuatl use and community-based well-being, in a sample (N = 552) of Indigenous Nahua participants (55.4% female, Mage = 37.9, SD = 18.3) coming from four different regions of Mexico. Results from the mediation analysis revealed that the relation between the frequency of Nahuatl use and community-based well-being in the total sample is partially mediated by experiencing positive emotions related with Nahuatl use. Furthermore, the relation between Nahuatl use and community-based well-being was also found to be moderated by group membership. Our study confirms that the role of heritage language use for Nahua communities in Mexico is beneficial and that this effect is also significant in communities strongly affected by language loss and assimilation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Perceptions on mobile health use for health education in an Indigenous population.

IntroductionIndigenous peoples in Canada face numerous health needs and challenges and often have poor health status due to inequitable access to care. Providing culturally appropriate support for health conditions, particularly chronic conditions that require self-management, can assist in averting complications and morbidity. Mobile health is a useful medium for delivering health education across different populations. However, meaningful user involvement is necessary because mobile health interventions suitable for one population may not be appropriate for another. Indigenous people’s views will inform the use of mobile health interventions in Indigenous communities.ObjectiveThe study explored the perception of Indigenous women on using mobile health as a tool for receiving health information.MethodsThis was a qualitative study, and participants comprised of 22 Indigenous women (First Nations and Métis) with or at risk of diabetes, aged 18–69 years in Saskatoon, Canada. After 12 weeks of disseminating diabetic eye care information via text messaging, data were collected via sharing circle discussions and analyzed using thematic analysis.ResultsParticipants indicated that the nature of messages such as the use of Indigenous languages, the message content, frequency of messages, group activities, and delivery formats such as voice messages, mobile applications, Internet, two-way messaging, and text messages were essential considerations in using mobile health as a tool for receiving health information.ConclusionDifferent factors need to be considered in using mobile health as a tool for health education among Indigenous peoples. These factors could be applicable in implementing mobile health solutions in other populations for the management of health conditions.

Whose language is it anyway? Students’ sense of belonging and role of English for Higher Education in the multilingual, South African context

The current decolonial commitments in Higher Education necessitate a need to deepen our understanding of the relationship between English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) and students’ sense of belonging, their identity, and epistemological access. This article investigates how EMI influences students’ personal and academic identities as well as their sense of belonging to the higher education space. Using student focus groups, this study is exploratory in nature and informed by the voices of undergraduate and postgraduate Humanities students at a South African university in the Free State. The responses were mixed, but there was general consensus that although English does have a place in higher education and can contribute to their sense of belonging, it also has an adverse effect on their identity; the use of indigenous languages provides them with greater epistemological access. A differentiated approach to multilingualism is a possible way forward. Keywords: English as a medium of instruction, belonging, higher education, identity, epistemological access, multilingualism

Integrating Indigenous Language to Promote Unity in Diversity among Broadcast Media in Nigeria

Abstract: This paper interrogates the status of indigenous language in promoting unity in diversity among broadcast media in Nigeria. The paper is exploratory in nature, as it utilises the descriptive research method whereby relevant literature, documents and records were consulted and analysed based on the existing literature. The paper is predominantly based on information derived from the qualitative data using secondary sources, such as relevant texts, journals, official publications, historical documents and the Internet, which served as tangible sources of insight into the analysis. The method help findings in the works available, check the consistency of such findings, evaluates such findings with other findings. Based on the findings, English is the dominant language of use followed by the major national languages of Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba. English is nationally dominant, but the three major languages are regionally applied with Hausa commanding higher airtime across majority of the states in Northern part of Nigeria; Igbo in the Southeast and Yoruba ranks next to English in the Southwest. In the South-south, Pidgin and some indigenous languages rank next to English. Instead of a rise in indigenous language use in broadcasting in the country, the situation appears to be worsening because most broadcasters find it economically unattractive and financially costly to run news and programs in the indigenous languages. The study concludes that there is a weakness in the use of indigenous language among broadcast media in Nigeria. The use of indigenous language among broadcast media has been ignored in the communication industry. The study concludes that there is a need for language policy, because in the domain of mass communication today, the use of indigenous language is not properly addressed.

The Role of Language in Structuring Social Networks Following Market Integration in a Yucatec Maya Population.

Language is the human universal mode of communication, and is dynamic and constantly in flux accommodating user needs as individuals interface with a changing world. However, we know surprisingly little about how language responds to market integration, a pressing force affecting indigenous communities worldwide today. While models of culture change often emphasize the replacement of one language, trait, or phenomenon with another following socioeconomic transitions, we present a more nuanced framework. We use demographic, economic, linguistic, and social network data from a rural Maya community that spans a 27-year period and the transition to market integration. By adopting this multivariate approach for the acquisition and use of languages, we find that while the number of bilingual speakers has significantly increased over time, bilingualism appears stable rather than transitionary. We provide evidence that when indigenous and majority languages provide complementary social and economic payoffs, both can be maintained. Our results predict the circumstances under which indigenous language use may be sustained or at risk. More broadly, the results point to the evolutionary dynamics that shaped the current distribution of the world’s linguistic diversity.

Proposal to ‘restore’ indigenous names misunderstands the complementary nature of botanical nomenclature and indigenous vernacular plant names

ABSTRACT Indigenous plant naming systems and systematic botanical nomenclature involve different methodologies that result in different knowledge systems. Botanical nomenclature provides a single, universal name for a plant based on its taxonomic and evolutionary relationships. Indigenous classifications allow ready identification of plants for particular communities sharing a common language and cultural milieu to which the names are specific. The two systems are independent, but they can profit from mutual comparison, and each should be respected and valued for its distinctive role. A recent proposal argues that indigenous vernacular plant names, being older than those given in colonial circumstances, should have priority over existing botanical names. This suggestion, along with the call for greater use of indigenous languages in specific epithets, is here discussed in relation to the New Zealand flora. We conclude that the proposal would require extensive, complex changes to the International Code of Nomenclature, result in nomenclatural instability, and subject indigenous names to the rules of botanical nomenclature while severing them from their local cultural contexts. We suggest the proposal undermines indigenous naming systems, threatens the integrity of indigenous languages, and would disrupt botanical nomenclature for little benefit.

Does community cultural connectedness reduce the influence of area disadvantage on Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander young peoples’ suicide?

ObjectiveThe study aimed to examine associations of community cultural connectedness with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young peoples’ suicide rates in areas with elevated risk factors. MethodsAge‐specific suicide rates (ASSRs) were calculated using suicides recorded by the Queensland Suicide Register (QSR) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people (aged 15–24 years) in Queensland from 2001–2015. Rate Ratios (RRs) compared young peoples’ suicide rates in areas with high and low levels of cultural connectedness indicators (cultural social capital and Indigenous language use) within areas with elevated risk factors (high rates of discrimination, low socioeconomic resources, and remoteness). ResultsWithin low socioeconomically resourced areas and where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people experienced more discrimination, greater engagement and involvement with cultural events, ceremonies and organisations was associated with 36% and 47% lower young peoples’ suicide rates respectively (RR=1.57, 95%CI=1.13–2.21, p=<0.01; RR=1.88, 95%CI=1.25–2.89, p=<0.01). Within remote and regional areas, higher levels of community language use was associated with 26% lower suicide rates (RR=1.35, 95%CI=1–1.93, p=0.04), and in communities experiencing more discrimination, language use was associated with 34% lower rates (RR=1.53, 95%CI=1.01–2.37, p=0.04). ConclusionCultural connectedness indicators were associated with lower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young peoples’ suicide rates in communities experiencing the most disadvantage. Implications for public healthThis provides initial evidence for trialling and evaluating interventions using cultural practices and engagement to mitigate against the impacts of community risk factors on Aboriginal and Torres Islander suicide.

IMPACT OF INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE AS A PRE-REQUISITE FOR ETHNIC INTEGRATION IN OSUN STATE, NIGERIA

The study assessed the impact of indigenous language as a pre-requisite for ethnic integration in Osun State, Nigeria. The study employed descriptive survey research design where questionnaire was used to acquire necessary data for the research work. Population comprises of all primary schools in Ayedade Local Government, Osun State. Nigeria. Simple random sampling technique was used to select ten (10) primary schools in Ayedade Local Government, Osun State, Nigeria. Fifteen (15) teachers were randomly selected from each of the chosen school to make a total of one hundred and fifty (150) teachers as sample for the study. Two (2) research hypotheses were raised and tested in this study. Reliability of the instrument was determined using Cronbach Alpha. The statistical techniques were employed to analyze the data in order to test the hypotheses, Mean, Standard deviation, t-ratio. The research findings concluded that the use of indigenous languages is central to the holistic development of any nation and the issue of indigenous languages be handled with total commitment and seriousness. It was further revealed that, local language is the pride of any Nation’s development that promote cultural heritage so as not to go into extinction. The paper therefore recommended that, a body of committed linguists be set up in Nigeria and that amendment of National Policy on Education be done to integrate the use of indigenous language for teaching-learning purposes across all levels of education in Nigeria and Nigerian indigenous languages should be made official languages at state levels while maintaining English language as the official language at the federal level.

Supplemental Material for The Positive Relationship Between Indigenous Language Use and Community-Based Well-Being in Four Nahua Ethnic Groups in Mexico

Supplemental Material for The Positive Relationship Between Indigenous Language Use and Community-Based Well-Being in Four Nahua Ethnic Groups in Mexico

Spiritual connectedness through prayer as a mediator of the relationship between Indigenous language use and positive mental health.

The objective of this study is to understand how Indigenous language and spirituality revitalization efforts may affect mental health within Indigenous communities. Although Indigenous communities experience disproportionate rates of mental health problems, research supporting language and spirituality's role in improving mental health is under-researched and poorly understood. Data for this study are from a Community-based Participatory Research Project involving five Anishinaabe tribes in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Participants were sampled from clinic records of adults with a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes, living on or near the reservation, and self-identifying as American Indian (mean age = 46.3; n = 191). Structural equation modeling illustrates that language use in the home is associated with positive mental health through spiritual connectedness. Results support tribal community expressions of the positive effects of cultural involvement for Indigenous wellbeing, and improve what is known about the interconnectedness of language and spirituality. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Is English becoming a threat to the existence of indigenous languages in institutions of higher learning in South Africa?

This article provides a critique of the judgment of the Constitutional Court of South Africa in Gelyke Kanse v Chairperson of the Senate of the University of Stellenbosch1 with specific reference to the concept of transformative constitutionalism and the use of indigenous languages in tertiary education. The discussion further highlights the significant role played by one's own language in his or her day-to-day life encounters and argues that the wait has been too long to have one of the indigenous languages fully utilised in one of the tertiary institutions, amongst others. Finally, the paper recommends that the use of indigenous languages at institutions of higher learning needs to be given urgent attention by all stakeholders and can no longer remain at the mercy of those who are tasked with language policies at tertiary institutions.

ICT enabled Almajiri education in Nigeria: Challenges and prospects.

The Almajiri children in Nigeria are deserving of special interventions to reduce the life-long divide in educational achievement, social status, and economic empowerment. One way of speedily achieving this is through the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs). This study examined the prospects and challenges of using ICT in the teaching and learning processes of Almajiri children’s education in Nigeria. A descriptive research methodology was adopted and data were collected from the Almajiri children, their teachers, and parents from communities with a high concentration of Almajiri schools. The results showed that while the official language of instruction in schools in Nigeria is English, the language often spoken by children and teachers was Hausa. Also, while teachers and parents were quite familiar with ICTs such as mobile phones, computers, and television, the Almajiri children were more familiar with television and mobile phones, and very few had used a computer. Some strategies proposed for successful adoption of ICT in Almajiri education include the use of indigenous languages in courseware development and the use of one-to-many ICT facilities, such as multimedia teaching aids, projectors, and smart televisions.

Dialect Levelling: A Case Study of Ìkàr??-Àkókó Dialect

This study investigates the factors that are responsible for the levelling of Ìkàr??-Àkókó dialect. Specifically, the paper examines the impacts of Nigerian indigenous languages, especially Yorùbá, on the dialect. The study aims at identifying the patterns of changes in the dialect and their impacts on the ethnic identities of the people. The work is based on the variationist approach pioneered by William Labov in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The tools used for data collection include questionnaire, oral interview and observation. The findings of the study reveal that the dialect manifests different stages of changes, vital domains like home, school and work place, which are supposed to be the strongholds of this dialect are being encroached upon by languages other than the mother tongue in the study area. It was found that the changes in the dialect are not due to the influence of English language only, but to indigenous Nigerian languages, mostly Yorùbá. It was concluded that the gradual levelling of Ìkàr??-Àkókó dialect is caused in part by restricted domains of use, increase in population; lack of commitment to indigenous language use by the native speakers; and suppressive language policy in the nation. The study recommends sensitization campaigns as a way of maintaining and sustaining the status of indigenous languages.

Identification of Lampung Script Using K-Neighbor, Manhattan Distance And Population Matrix Algorithm

Language is a communication tool that is used as interaction with others. The use of indigenous languages is decreasing and erasing over time. Lampung script is a script that becomes the identity of the province of Lampung. However, only a few native Lampung residents who know the Lampung script and the younger generation often write Lampung in Latin letters because it is considered easier. This study uses Optical Character Recognition to recognize Lampung characters in image images using a smartphone. This study uses the Pixel Population Matrix feature extraction to extract the characteristics of the characters. The distance calculation for each test character and database uses Manhattan Distance and is classified using K-Nearest Neighbor with the value of k is 3. The results of the character recognition process can be translated into Indonesian. Testing this application is done by taking image samples with several conditions. The script image tested is in the form of a screenshot image of printed writing with random fonts, a handwritten photo image, a screenshot image with a combination of several words and a photo image with a smaller size and random slope. The test results according to these conditions obtained an average percentage of success of 91.49%.

Potential for indigenous communication systems to improve financial literacy: evidence from Nigeria

The low level of education and lack of electricity hinder dissemination of financial literacy information in rural communities. To address this problem, this study investigated the roles of the indigenous communication system in closing the gaps in dissemination of financial literacy information among Nigerian rural farmers. It was found that the use of indigenous language in formal financial service literacy campaigns has a significant association with dissemination of formal financial service literacy information to rural farmers. Second, contrary to our earlier expectations, no significant association was found between community leaders and the dissemination of formal financial service literacy information to rural farmers. Third, town-criers’ participation in formal financial service literacy campaigns has a positive significant impact on the dissemination of formal financial service literacy information to rural farmers. The researchers conclude that financial authorities should encourage indigenous language and town-criers in the dissemination of financial literacy information to rural famers.

Suicide rates for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people: the influence of community level cultural connectedness.

To examine associations between community cultural connectedness indicators and suicide mortality rates for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Retrospective mortality study. Suicide deaths of people aged 10-19 years recorded by the Queensland Suicide Register, 2001-2015. Age-standardised suicide death rates, by Indigenous status, sex, and age group; age-standardised suicide death rates for young First Nations people by area level remoteness and Index of Relative Socioeconomic Advantage and Disadvantage, and by cultural connectedness indicators (at statistical area level 2): cultural social capital index score, community Indigenous language use, and reported discrimination. The age-specific suicide rate was 21.1 deaths per 100 000 persons/year for First Nations young people and 5.0 deaths per 100000 persons/year for non-Indigenous young people (rate ratio [RR], 4.3; 95% CI, 3.5-5.1). The rate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people was higher in areas with low levels of cultural social capital (greater participation of community members in cultural events, ceremonies, organisations, and community activities) than in areas classified as having high levels (RR, 1.8; 95% CI, 1.2-2.7), and also in communities with high levels of reported discrimination (RR, 2.7; 95% CI, 1.7-4.3). Associations with proportions of Indigenous language speakers and area level socio-economic resource levels were not statistically significant. We found that suicide mortality rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in Queensland were influenced by community level culturally specific risk and protective factors. Our findings suggest that strategies for increasing community cultural connectedness at the community level and reducing institutional and personal discrimination could reduce suicide rates.

Enhancing Language Services to Native American Children: A Look From the Inside

Enhancing Language Services to Native American Children: A Look From the Inside

Prospects of Mother Tongue as a Medium of Instruction in Nigerian Primary Level Education

This paper investigates the prospects in the use of mother tongue as a medium of instruction in Nigeria&amp;rsquo;s primary level of education. With the multilingual nature of Nigeria, many scholars have continued to clamour for the use of indigenous languages as a medium of instruction in Nigeria&amp;rsquo;s primary schools. This paper also seeks to justify the reasons why mother tongue education may not be feasible in the nearest future especially with the numerous roles that the English language plays in Nigeria, and the myriads of difficulties which constitute stumbling blocks to its realization. In doing this, two research questions were generated, and data collected from 150 primary school teachers, from both private and public primary schools in Gwagwalada Area Council of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) through purposive sampling technique. The instrument for data collection is a well-structured questionnaire. The questionnaire is made up of two sections, sections A and B. Section A sought for demographic data of respondents, while section B sought for information on the factors militating against mother tongue as a medium of instruction in primary schools in Nigeria. The data collected were analyzed using Crombatch Alpha, mean and standard deviation. The result of the analysis revealed that the multilingual nature of Nigeria, and lack of names of instructional materials and science equipment in the indigenous languages are impediments to the use of mother tongue as a medium of instruction in Nigerian primary level of education.

Revisiting the Debate on the Constitutionalised Status of Indigenous Languages as Language of Record in South African Judicial Proceedings

South Africa’s 1996 Constitution, subsequent to the attainment of democracy in 1994, was hailed as a distinct document in protecting languages, particularly indigenous languages. The inclusion of these languages generated a new lease of life and provided a unique opportunity especially for the judiciary to ensure their transmission into the legal domain by developing the scope and content and to not limit them as communication tools but also of records in the judicial processes. This role by the courts is particularly important because in the past, courts were used as instruments of oppression against the black majority of South Africa’s populace. The subordination was extended to other institutions such as those of higher learning, that were handicapped in producing legal education which would infuse the African content in the generation of knowledge that may have societal change objectives. Today, the indigenous language’s occupation of the constitutional space and its transmission into reality has been minotirised and subject to intense debates and views on their legitimacy as language of records in the judicial processes. The Heads of Court’s resolution for the exclusive use of English as the language of record to the exclusion of other languages generated these debates. They cited logistical problems and the enhancement of access to justice that compelled them to adopt the resolution. However, the question the resolution raises is the impact it would have on the production and preservation of indigenous legal in the establishment of a “just society”. Against this background, the paper is revisiting the debates on the effect of the non-use of indigenous languages as languages of records in South Africa’s judicial processes through an assessment of the jurisprudence that emanates from the courts with reference to the scope and content of the interrelationship between the right of access to justice and right to understand. The objective of this paper is to advance an inclusive approach of the language of rights that will ensure that the richness of the meanings and concepts of indigenous languages are preserved in the archives of the administration of justice. The purpose to regenerate the debate is motivated by what appears to be the subsiding deafening debates and views on the development of the content of the constitutionalised indigenous languages in the judicial processes and acceptance of the status quo of the exclusive dominance of English as language of record. The argument is limited to record-keeping and starts off by setting a framework for the protection of the right to a language and its linkage to the right to understand. The discussion is reinforced by case law relating to the use of indigenous languages and the impact it would have on the consolidation of the preservation project.