Committee on Endangered Languages and Their Preservation (CELP)
Background
Established in 1992.
Charge
The Committee on Endangered Languages and their Preservation (CELP) calls attention to the rapid loss of language diversity worldwide and encourages the documentation and study of endangered languages.
Responsibilities
The work of the Committee includes but is not limited to the following:
- Promotes strategies for use by individuals, institutions, and communities to assist and support the maintenance and revitalization of language varieties in language communities at risk of, or currently experiencing, significant language or dialect loss.
- Assists institutions to offer training and degree programs oriented to the preparation of grammars and dictionaries of threatened and poorly documented languages, as well as to the documentation and study of naturally occurring speech of all kinds in communities whose traditional linguistic variety is threatened.
- Advocates for language diversity and the respect of all languages and their users.
- Promotes ethical practices of collaboration and partnership with members of endangered language communities by exploring shared interests and mutually beneficial projects.
- Coordinates activities with other organizations, including the Society for the Study of Indigenous Languages of the Americas (SSILA), the Permanent International Commitee/Comité International Permanent des Linguistes (CIPL), the American Anthropological Association (AAA) and its Society for Linguistic Anthropology (SLA), the Consortium for Training in Language Documentation and Conservation (CTLDC), and the Resource Network for Linguistic Diversity (RNLD).
Membership (open)
At least 6 members, serving three-year terms.
Committee Structure, 2023
- Senior Chair: Mizuki Miyashita, University of Montana
- Junior Chair: Joseph Dupris, University of Colorado at Boulder
- Student Representative: Martin Renard, University of Toronto
- Executive Committee Liaison: Carmen Dagostino
- Staff Liaison: Vy Le
- Sub-committee Structure: Activism, Awards, Events, and Social Media; read more about each here
- Complete list of previous Chairs
Activities
Symposia and Education
CELP regularly addresses methodology and ethics by planning and co-sponsoring events at the LSA’s Annual Meeting:
- Symposium on the International Decade of Indigenous Languages 2022-2032 [2023]
- Pedagogical Concerns in Language Reclamation (Workshop) [2021]
- Natives4Linguistics 2018 – Sharing Our Findings (Symposium) [2019, co-sponsored with SSILA]
- International Year of Indigenous Languages (IYIL) Kickoff Celebration [2019, co-sponsored with SSILA]
- Community-based Language Research across the Americas (CBLRAA) (Workshop) [2019, co-sponsored with SSILA]
- Documenting Multilingualism [2019, co-sponsored with SSILA]
- Sharing Our Views; Native Americans Speak About Language and Linguistics (Symposium) [2018, co-sponsored with SSILA]
- Endangered Languages in the Undergraduate Curriculum (Symposium and Poster Session) [2017, co-sponsored with Linguistics in Higher Education Committee]
- LSA Awarded Grant on Building Capacity in Linguistics and Endangered Languages at Tribal Colleges and Universities (Workshop) [2016, Advisory Committee]
- Documenting Variation in Endangered Languages (Symposium) [2016]
- Utilization of language archives in endangered language research, revitalization, and documentation (Symposium) [2015]
- Documenting Conversation (Panel) [2014]
- Contexts for Language Documentation and Revitalization in Latin America (Special Session) [2013, co-sponsored with SSILA]
- Methodology and Practice in Collaborative Language Research (Posters and Presentations) [2013, co-sponsored with SSILA]
- We Still Live Here – Âs Nutayuneân (Screening) [2012]
- From Language Documentation to Language Revitalization (Panel) [2012, co-sponsored by SSILA]
- Documenting Endangered Languages: NSF-NEH DEL Projects in Honor of the 20th Anniversary of the LSA Panel on Endangered Languages (Panel) [2011]
- Documentary Linguistics: Retrospective and Prospective (Plenary Symposium) [2010]
- Endangered Languages and Linguistic Theory (Panel) [2007]
- A Field Linguist’s Guide to Making Great Audio and Video Recordings (Tutorial) [2006]
- More Challenges and Issues in Endangered Language Fieldwork (Poster Session) [2006, co-sponsored with OLAC]
- Victor Golla: The attractions of American Indian languages (Plenary Address) [2005]
- Challenges and Issues in Endangered Language Fieldwork (Poster Session) [2005]
- Endangered Languages and Linguistic Theory (Symposium) [2004]
- Field work and linguistic theory: American Indianists in the development of American linguistics (Symposium) [1998]
- Monolingual Situations in Field Research (Tutorial) [1997]
- Practical Fieldwork: conflicting constraints on the ethical researcher (Special Session) [1997]
Activism
In recent years, CELP has worked with the LSA to issue a number of resolutions, statements, and endorsements:
- Statement on the Dakota Access Pipeline and the Sioux Nations at Standing Rock [20 December 2016]
- U.S. Government Action to Support the Preservation and Revitalization of Native American Languages [4 April 2011]
- Recognizing the Scholarly Merit of Language Documentation [8 January 2010]
- The Need for the Documentation of Linguistic Diversity
- Language Rights
- Native American Language Revitalization Legislation in the U.S. Congress
- The Need for the Documentation of Linguistic Diversity [June 1994]
CELP also initiated a letter-writing campaign in 2011 urging President Obama to sign a Draft Executive Order titled "White House Initiative on Native American Language Revitalization." The LSA works closely with the National Humanities Alliance to support humanities advocacy on behalf of funding for language documentation and revitalization.
Awards
The LSA promotes work on endangered languages by offering several awards:
- The Excellence in Community Linguistics Award. For a list of previous holders of the Excellence in Community Linguistics Award, click here.
- The Ken Hale Award. For a list of previous holders of the Kenneth Hale award, click here.
- The Ken Hale Professorship
Follow us!
- Get updates from CELP on Facebook or Twitter (@LSA_CELP).
- Follow or contribute to our CELP Discussion Blog
CELP-Endorsed LSA Statements and Resolutions:
- Evaluation of Language Documentation for Hiring and Promotion [25 September 2018]
- Statement on the Dakota Access Pipeline and the Sioux Nations at Standing Rock [20 December 2016]
- Resolution opposing the use of Native American-themed mascots and symbols by sports teams [27 February 2015]
- U.S. Government Action to Support the Preservation and Revitalization of Native American Languages [4 April 2011]
- Recognizing the Scholarly Merit of Language Documentation [8 January 2010]
Resources
- New Resource! Help Program for Endangered Language Legacy Collections
- Educational and funding resources that support the documentation and study of endangered languages can be found here.
- For information about CELP's collaboration with the Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas (SSILA) in celebration of 2019 as the UN's International Year of Indigenous Languages, click HERE.
To Join the Committee on Endangered Languages and their Preservation, please contact the Secretariat staff, and cc the current CELP co-chairs.