02-21-2022, 05:22 PM
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/f...eaker-dies
An indigenous language from South America’s extreme south has all but vanished after the death of its last living speaker and guardian of its ancestral culture.
Cristina Calderón died on Wednesday, aged 93. She had mastered the Yamana language of the Yagan community, and after the death of her sister in 2003 was the last person in the world who could speak it. She worked to save her knowledge by creating a dictionary of the language with translations to Spanish.
“With her an important part of the cultural memory of our people is gone,” said Lidia González, Calderón’s daughter, on Twitter. González is one of the representatives currently drafting a new constitution in Chile.
The dictionary, however, meant there was hope of preserving the language in some form, she said.
RIP, Cristina Calderón . It's always sad when a language dies out - even if she had nobody to speak it with for nearly 20 years.
Still, I'm glad she spent her final years creating this dictionary. Hopefully, her people will treasure it, and ensure that this now-extinct language is not forgotten entirely.
An indigenous language from South America’s extreme south has all but vanished after the death of its last living speaker and guardian of its ancestral culture.
Cristina Calderón died on Wednesday, aged 93. She had mastered the Yamana language of the Yagan community, and after the death of her sister in 2003 was the last person in the world who could speak it. She worked to save her knowledge by creating a dictionary of the language with translations to Spanish.
“With her an important part of the cultural memory of our people is gone,” said Lidia González, Calderón’s daughter, on Twitter. González is one of the representatives currently drafting a new constitution in Chile.
The dictionary, however, meant there was hope of preserving the language in some form, she said.
RIP, Cristina Calderón . It's always sad when a language dies out - even if she had nobody to speak it with for nearly 20 years.
Still, I'm glad she spent her final years creating this dictionary. Hopefully, her people will treasure it, and ensure that this now-extinct language is not forgotten entirely.
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