Vitality of Damana, the language of the Wiwa Indigenous community
Abstract
The Wiwa are Indigenous[1] people who live in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in Colombia. This project examines the vitality of Damana [ISO 693-3: mbp], their language, in two communities that offer bilingual high school education in Damana and Spanish. Its aim is to measure the level of endangerment of Damana according to the factors used in the UNESCO Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected through a questionnaire that gathered demographic and background language information, self-reported proficiency and use of Spanish and Damana [n=56]. Besides the questionnaire, interviews with teachers and parents [n=27], and students [n=29] elicit attitudes towards the languages in question and describe the condition of Damana. Finally, the project includes detailed field notes.Results indicate a difference in language use and competence between older and younger generations, suggesting a pattern of language shift that results in rating the language as definitely endangered. The most urgent linguistic needs for these communities include Native Damana-speaking teachers, language documentation and pedagogical material.
[1] In his style guide, Practical English Usage, Swan (as cited by the Department of Justice of Canada, 2015) states that initial capitals are used for “nouns and adjectives referring to… ethnic groups.” And despite the fact that the Canadian Constitution Act, 1982 does not capitalize the term aboriginal peoples, the words Aboriginal, Indigenous and Natives are capitalized in the Canadian context. This does not only show proper grammar but demonstrates respect.