Small indigenous peoples are offered to preserve their speech
All methods of preserving and reviving endangered languages used so far in Russia have not yielded results, stated participants of a forum dedicated to this problem in Krasnoyarsk. In their opinion, only the preservation of traditional forms of residence and management provides a guarantee for the continued existence of such languages. However, forum participants from among government representatives, the expert community and the indigenous peoples themselves agreed that the digital environment of indigenous peoples can help solve the problem.
In the middle of the last century, traditional farming guaranteed the preservation of native languages for the inhabitants of the indigenous northern peoples
Photo: Gorshkov V. / Photo archive of the magazine "Ogonyok" / Kommersant
The scope of use of the languages of indigenous minorities (IMN) of the North, Siberia and the Far East is gradually narrowing, which threatens their continued existence. This was discussed at the strategic session "Creating a digital environment for native languages through the prism of technology and creative industries", which opened in Krasnoyarsk on January 21. It was organized by the Regional Association of Indigenous Minorities of the Krasnoyarsk Territory.
The list of indigenous minorities of the North, Siberia and the Far East of the Russian Federation includes 40 ethnic groups. The largest of them are the Nenets, Evenks, Khanty, Evens, Chukchi and Mansi. Eight such peoples live in Krasnoyarsk Krai. The total number of indigenous minorities of Russia is 262.6 thousand people. The UN General Assembly proclaimed 2022-2032 the International Decade of Indigenous Languages.
"It is very unfortunate that we have to acknowledge the threatening language situation among almost all the indigenous minorities of the North. Thus, among the modern Evenks, only a few families have survived in which their native language is passed on to their children, and these are mostly those families that continue to preserve their traditional way of life," complained the leader of the Evenk Association of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) Aleksandr Varlamov. In his opinion, the education system, which involves teaching children of indigenous minorities in boarding schools, does not ensure the continuity of language knowledge and traditional forms of economic management. "In the current state of affairs, it is quite expected that in the course of decades we will lose not only our native language, but also the last reindeer herders and hunters - the true guardians of ethnocultural traditions," he made a sad forecast.
A similar point of view was expressed by the professor of the Siberian Federal University, the famous historian and ethnographer Viktor Krivonogov.
“Having studied more than 30 peoples of Siberia, the Far East and foreign countries, I have not encountered a single fact where any people has preserved or revived their language,” he summed up the results of his 50 years of research work.
The scientist noted that this happened despite the implementation of numerous laws, programs and the “heroic work of teachers.”
According to the results of surveys conducted during scientific expeditions, the Soyots in the Republic of Buryatia have completely lost their fluency in their native language. Among the Tofalars in the Irkutsk Region and the Kets in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, this figure is less than 10%. Among the Krasnoyarsk Nganasans and Nenets, it is no more than 15%. Although, back in 1993-1994, almost 40% of the representatives of this people spoke Nganasan fluently. At the same time, according to Mr. Krivonogov, even among the Evenks of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, who can study their native language in middle and high school, the number of those who speak it fluently is decreasing. There are no such people left at all under the age of 19, and about 1% of those aged 19-29.
"The language is actually preserved only in the environment where traditional farming is practiced... If a child comes to school at the age of seven with his native Russian language, not knowing a single word in the Evenki language, can this language become his native language again? Of course not," Viktor Krivonogov named the reason for the loss of the native language. According to his data, at present only 5% of the representatives of the indigenous minorities of the Krasnoyarsk Territory continue to roam the tundra. Among the Tundra Nenets, the proportion of those fluent in their native language reaches almost 100%.
“Due to various objective reasons, the young generation of indigenous peoples of the North is breaking away from the centuries-old occupations of their ancestors, losing their mother tongue, their customs and traditions,” confirmed Victoria Polikarenok, head of the Evenki nomadic kindergarten “Chipkan”.
The creation of a digital environment for indigenous languages can help solve the language problem, believes Grigory Dyukarev, Commissioner for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Krasnoyarsk Krai. In particular, he suggested that the session participants initiate the introduction of programs for training "teachers of native language and computer science" in universities, as well as include in the program advanced training for teachers of native languages and the use of digital technologies.
Sardana Sivtseva from the Arctic Capital company named the Ayana platform as an example of creating a digital environment. It is an offline version of an electronic translator of the Evenki language for nomadic schools and places with unstable mobile communications. "The project has found a continuation in Altai, Krasnoyarsk Krai, and other regions. We initially planned that after the Evenki language, other languages would follow," she said, calling on specialists to create electronic explanatory dictionaries of the languages of the indigenous minorities. During the session, a machine translator of the Mansi language, the Evenki language portal "Evengus" and a number of other projects were also presented.
"We will try this new method as well. Maybe it will work if the previous ones did not lead to significant changes," Viktor Krivonogov expressed hope, adding that the result of applying digitalization in this area will become clear "in about ten years."
