B.C. first nations aim to preserve dying languages with Google’s help

First nations in B.C. are seeking to preserve dying indigenous languages with the help of a new international website developed by Google.

The Google Endangered Languages Project website, which launched Thursday and coincided with National Aboriginal Day, invites language experts from around the world to post videos, audio clips, books and other publications to catalogue endangered or extinct languages.

It was created by a committee of international language experts called the Alliance for Linguistic Development and Google staff. The First Peoples’ Cultural Council, a first nations-run Crown corporation based on Vancouver Island, is chair of the committee and will eventually oversee the project.

Users can type an endangered language such as ‘Squamish’ into the search engine and find out information on its classification and origin. The website’s creators hope that eventually samples of the language will be available for download.

Only half of the 7,000 languages spoken in the world are expected to survive past the end of the century, according to the website.

Dr. Lorna Williams, chair of the First Peoples’ Cultural Council, says the website is an opportunity for people to share the work that is being done to support and protect indigenous languages.

Williams said the site will also help future generations of aboriginal people learn to speak their cultural language.

“Today we celebrate Google’s contribution as a language champion in the effort to revitalize the world’s endangered languages,” she said.

A diverse group of collaborators have already begun to contribute content ranging from 18th-century manuscripts to modern teaching tools like video and audio language samples and knowledge-sharing articles, said project managers Clara Rivera Rodriguez and Jason Rissman, in a Google blog post Thursday.

“We are very grateful to the First Peoples’ Cultural Council’s help in ensuring that this project addresses the needs and interests of language communities working to protect their languages,” said Rissman.

The website also includes a Google group forum where users can share advice, opportunities and questions related to documenting endangered languages.

A provincial report called the Status of B.C. First Nations Languages, published in 2010, stated that B.C. First Nations languages are in a state of emergency.

The aboriginal language considered the most vital is Gitsxan in north central B.C. with 1,219 who speak it fluently. All remaining indigenous languages are either severely endangered or nearly extinct. Kwakwala spoken around Alert Bay has only 148 fluent speakers; Haida, 39 speakers, and Squamish, just 10.

The only language with fewer speakers is Sechelt with eight. Three languages have already gone extinct including Nicola and Pantl’ac.