"Over a thousand of these languages are still used today..."
A study of the Indigenous languages spoken by Native American tribes and the efforts to preserve and revitalize them.
History of Native American Languages: The study of the origins, growth, and decline of indigenous languages.
Linguistics: The science of the study of language structure, including phonetics, morphology, syntax, and semantics.
Language Documentation and Revitalization: The process of documenting, preserving, and promoting endangered languages.
Indigenous Knowledge and Practices: The cultural significance of language among Native American communities, including traditional language use, community language immersion, and language learning among youth.
Cultural Anthropology: The study of how different Native American cultures use and value their languages in various contexts, including music, storytelling, and other forms of cultural expression.
Language Policy: The ways in which governments influence or impede the preservation and revitalization of native languages.
Native Language Education: The role of schools and educators in supporting the teaching and learning of indigenous languages.
Language Planning and Development: The process of creating and implementing policies and programs to promote and support native language use and revitalization.
Language Preservation Techniques: The process of recording, identifying, and maintaining indigenous languages using technology.
Tribal Sovereignty: The legal rights and powers exercised by indigenous nations with regard to cultural and language preservation.
Linguistic Diversity: An exploration of the linguistic diversity among Native American communities, including regional differences and dialects.
Intertribal Communication: An examination of the ways in which different indigenous communities have historically interacted and communicated with each other.
Multilingualism: An exploration of the role of bilingualism in Native American communities and the ways in which languages can influence and enhance each other.
Language Loss and Revitalization: The process of language loss, the factors that have contributed to it, and the methods used to revitalize endangered languages.
Oral Tradition: The importance of oral history in Native American communities, including the role of language in preserving and transmitting cultural knowledge.
Algonquian Languages: These are a group of related languages spoken by the Indigenous Peoples of the Eastern Woodlands, Great Plains, and Subarctic regions in North America and include dialects such as Ojibwe, Cree, and Blackfoot.
Athabaskan Languages: These are a group of Indigenous languages spoken in Western, Northwestern, and Subarctic regions of North America, including Alaska, and include dialects such as Navajo, Apache, and Chipewyan.
Siouan Languages: These are a group of related languages spoken by Indigenous Peoples primarily in the Great Plains region of North America and include dialects such as Lakota, Dakota, and Omaha.
Iroquoian Languages: These are a group of Indigenous languages spoken by the Indigenous Peoples of Northeastern North America, including the Mohawk, Oneida, and Seneca.
Salishan Languages: These are a group of Indigenous languages spoken by Indigenous Peoples in the Pacific Northwest region of North America, including dialects such as Lushootseed, Coeur d'Alene, and Kalispel.
Tlingit Language: This is an Indigenous language spoken by the Tlingit People in Southeast Alaska and Yukon Territory.
Inuit Languages: These are a group of Indigenous languages spoken by the Inuit People, also known as Eskimo, in Arctic regions of North America, including dialects such as Inuktitut and Inupiaq.
Haida Language: This is an Indigenous language spoken by the Haida People in British Columbia and Alaska.
O'odham Language: This is an Indigenous language spoken by the O'odham People in Arizona and Mexico.
Cherokee Language: This is an Indigenous language spoken by the Cherokee Nation in the Southeastern United States.
"while many more are now extinct."
"...they are classified into a hundred or so language families (including a large number of language isolates)..."
"The most widely reported is Joseph Greenberg's Amerind hypothesis..."
"...however, nearly all specialists reject because of severe methodological flaws; spurious data; and a failure to distinguish cognation, contact, and coincidence."
"According to UNESCO, most of the Indigenous languages of the Americas are critically endangered..."
"The most widely spoken Indigenous languages are Southern Quechua...and Guarani...with perhaps six or seven million speakers apiece..."
"Only half a dozen others have more than a million speakers; these are Aymara...Nahuatl...the Mayan languages Kekchi, Quiché, and Yucatec..."
"In the United States, 372,000 people reported speaking an Indigenous language at home in the 2010 census."
"Similarly in Canada, 133,000 people reported speaking an Indigenous language at home in the 2011 census."
"In Greenland, about 90% of the population speaks Greenlandic..."
"many are dormant (without native speakers but with a community of heritage-language users) or entirely extinct."
"The Indigenous languages of the Americas are not all related to each other..."
"...they are classified into a hundred or so language families..."
"...as well as a number of extinct languages that are unclassified due to the lack of information on them."
"..the Mayan languages Kekchi, Quiché, and Yucatec of Guatemala and Mexico..."
"...where it shares national language status with Spanish..."
"...with about 1 million apiece."
"...the most widely spoken Eskaleut language."
"In Greenland, about 90% of the population speaks Greenlandic..."