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Revitalizing Oneida language
Revitalizing Oneida language
New program will address an urgent need to grow the number of Oneida language speakers.
According to Hubert Antone, coordinator of Fanshawe’s new Oneida – Language Immersion, Culture and Teaching advanced diploma program, there are fewer than 20 people in the Oneida of the Thames community who can communicate in the language.
“None of the speakers are young enough to continue to teach. My family is the youngest speaking family in the community and we are all up there in age,” he says. “If we lose the language now, we’re going to lose another part of our culture.”
The new program was developed in partnership with the Oneida Nation of the Thames and will prepare students for careers including teacher of Onyota’a:ka as a second language, translator, language consultant, language specialist or storyteller.
Hubert Antone, Coordinator of Oneida – Language Immersion, Culture and Teaching advanced diploma program
Hubert says the program will be a challenge that requires students to immerse themselves beyond in-class instruction and take advantage of opportunities embedded within the curriculum to practice in the community.
“The linguists I’ve met tell me Oneida is one of the hardest languages in the world to learn,” he says. “It’s essential that students hear the correct pronunciation and feel the meaningful relationships coming from a fluent speaker.”
Brennan Ireland, one of 17 students in the program, is fully committed to immersing himself in the process. His father is from Oneida of the Thames, and Brennan hopes to return to his Oneida roots when he graduates and teach the language to others, doing his part to revitalize the culture he loves.
“We’re in a time of healing from historical trauma,” says Brennan. “So, for us to heal, the young people have to come up and start learning the language, start learning our culture.”
