The following are two awesome links that deal with the retention of indigenous language and its inextricable link to cultural identity. The first link is to a video in Nahuatl (subtitled in Spanish) based on the poem “When a tongue dies” by Miguel León Portilla. (English translation follows.) The second link is to a free app (for a mobile device) called “Vamos a aprender Mixteco” where you can learn Mixteco, an indigenous Mexican language spoken around Oaxaca, Puebla and Guerrero. Feel free to share with kids, friends and family. Enjoy!
“Cuando muere una lengua”
English Translation:
“When a tongue dies
Divine things,
The stars, the Sun, and the Moon
Human things,
Thinking and feeling
Are no longer reflected
In that mirror.
When a tongue dies
Everything in the World
Seas and rivers,
Animals and plants,
Are not thought of nor spoken of
With glimmers and sounds
That no longer
exist.
Then,
A window,
A door closes
For all peoples of the World.
A glance
In a different way
At divine and human things,
At everything that exists and is life on the ground.
When a tongue dies,
Its words of love,
Intonation of sorrow and fondness,
Perhaps old chants,
Tales, discourses, prayers,
Nobody, as they were
Will be able to repeat.
When a tongue dies,
Many more have already died
And many can die.
Mirrors forever broken
Voice shadows
Forever silenced:
Humankind is impoverished.”
English version: http://vimeo.com/80222661
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LINK #2: Vamos a aprender Mixteco” free app
ANDROID: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.manuvo.coronasdk.nuu_davi&hl=es_419
