Post by Okwes on Dec 19, 2006 12:08:33 GMT -5
Native language lives in woman
Vi Hilbert of the Upper Skagit tribe stubbornly aims to keep the old
words of Lushootseed alive.
www.heraldnet.com/stories/06/11/17/100loc_c1language001.cfm
<http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/06/11/17/100loc_c1language001.cfm>
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<http://www.heraldnet.com/advertising/> EVERETT - By her own
admission, Vi Hilbert, 88, is stubborn.
She was an only child raised in the Upper Skagit tribe. Her mother loved
to perform and her father was a medicine man. When they passed the
stories on to Hilbert, he spoke in Lushootseed, the language of Western
Washington's Coast Salish tribes.
Hilbert was a child in a desperate era for American Indian tribes.
Tribal children went to boarding schools where they weren't allowed to
speak their native languages. Many children forgot Lushootseed, but not
Hilbert.
She stubbornly tucked it away in her mind and in her heart.
Years later, the language emerged from an age of darkness and was
brought into the light once again. Hilbert was one of the few people who
remembered enough of it to speak it again.
At an event sponsored by Everett Community College's Diversity and
Equity Center Thursday, Hilbert shared her language with about 70
students. The students leaned forward in their seats in an effort to
catch every word, and afterward they knelt on the floor in front of
Hilbert to thank her.
"She's living history," said Earl Martin, director of the college's
counseling center and a member of the Cree tribe. "The knowledge she
passes down orally is just as valuable as anything that's in our
library."
Hilbert has dedicated her life to the rebirth of Lushootseed. She worked
in the linguistics department at the University of Washington for 15
years. In 1989, she received an honorary doctorate from Seattle
University and was named a Washington State Living Treasure.
Hilbert has worked closely with linguists to develop a written form of
Lushootseed and publish dictionaries for the language.
"Given her age, I've wanted to get her here while she's still able to
speak," said Christina Castorena, associate dean for diversity for EvCC.
"She's a local jewel, and it's an honor to have her here."
Hilbert clutched a dark blanket around her thin shoulders as she sat in
a chair on the stage in Baker Hall on the EvCC campus. She demanded that
the students speak up if they wanted to ask her a question.
"I'm bossy," she said, smiling slyly.
Hilbert said she's been criticized by some tribal members for sharing
Upper Skagit culture. She argues that every culture is important and
should be shared with as many people as possible. Sharing Lushootseed
and ancient Coast Salish stories won't dilute the value of the culture.
"The language will live because it's important," she said. "The culture
will live because it's important."
Vi Hilbert of the Upper Skagit tribe stubbornly aims to keep the old
words of Lushootseed alive.
www.heraldnet.com/stories/06/11/17/100loc_c1language001.cfm
<http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/06/11/17/100loc_c1language001.cfm>
[http://www.heraldnet.com/graphics/spacer.gif]
<http://www.heraldnet.com/advertising/> EVERETT - By her own
admission, Vi Hilbert, 88, is stubborn.
She was an only child raised in the Upper Skagit tribe. Her mother loved
to perform and her father was a medicine man. When they passed the
stories on to Hilbert, he spoke in Lushootseed, the language of Western
Washington's Coast Salish tribes.
Hilbert was a child in a desperate era for American Indian tribes.
Tribal children went to boarding schools where they weren't allowed to
speak their native languages. Many children forgot Lushootseed, but not
Hilbert.
She stubbornly tucked it away in her mind and in her heart.
Years later, the language emerged from an age of darkness and was
brought into the light once again. Hilbert was one of the few people who
remembered enough of it to speak it again.
At an event sponsored by Everett Community College's Diversity and
Equity Center Thursday, Hilbert shared her language with about 70
students. The students leaned forward in their seats in an effort to
catch every word, and afterward they knelt on the floor in front of
Hilbert to thank her.
"She's living history," said Earl Martin, director of the college's
counseling center and a member of the Cree tribe. "The knowledge she
passes down orally is just as valuable as anything that's in our
library."
Hilbert has dedicated her life to the rebirth of Lushootseed. She worked
in the linguistics department at the University of Washington for 15
years. In 1989, she received an honorary doctorate from Seattle
University and was named a Washington State Living Treasure.
Hilbert has worked closely with linguists to develop a written form of
Lushootseed and publish dictionaries for the language.
"Given her age, I've wanted to get her here while she's still able to
speak," said Christina Castorena, associate dean for diversity for EvCC.
"She's a local jewel, and it's an honor to have her here."
Hilbert clutched a dark blanket around her thin shoulders as she sat in
a chair on the stage in Baker Hall on the EvCC campus. She demanded that
the students speak up if they wanted to ask her a question.
"I'm bossy," she said, smiling slyly.
Hilbert said she's been criticized by some tribal members for sharing
Upper Skagit culture. She argues that every culture is important and
should be shared with as many people as possible. Sharing Lushootseed
and ancient Coast Salish stories won't dilute the value of the culture.
"The language will live because it's important," she said. "The culture
will live because it's important."