Endangered Aboriginal languages are being given a new life in Victoria following increased offerings of language classes seen in schools last year.
Despite this growth, however, Aboriginal languages remain some of the least popular languages taught across the state.
There are still significant hurdles to overcome in the Aboriginal community before these languages can be taught broadly in schools, says Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages chairperson, and Keerray Woorroong woman, Vicki Couzens.
“Even the [languages] we think might be strong, in remote areas… they’re all endangered,” said Ms Couzens.
Prior to colonisation, more than 250 Aboriginal languages and additional language varieties were spoken spoken widely. Today, roughly three quarters of these languages have been lost.
“We have the oldest living languages in the world, and they’re going at the rate of the Amazon forest. When languages are gone, and it only takes one generation, the knowledge is gone with it. Not everything, but the nuance, and the subtleties, of one language to another.”
She says it’s the connection between cultural identity and language that makes this retrieval and revitalisation process so important.
“The connection between languages and cultural identity is, inherently, inalienable,” said MS Couzens. “It’s essentially about who you are. It holds all that knowledge about your culture, your identity, your stories, your world view… [language] holds all that knowledge.”
“There is pain, in people feeling they don’t know their language. There’s pain, or there’s shame… Many people say “I want my language; I want to understand my language’, but the work that needs to be done, to be able to communicate in our mother tongue the [way I’m talking to you] is huge.”
Ms Couzen’s father was also involved in language reclamation, and would speak of a certain disconnection he felt to his culture, not being able to deeply engage with his mother tongue.
“He used to go, because he worked at both the state and national level, to meetings and people were able to introduce themselves in their native language, and he felt that missing bit, he described that bit that was missing in him. And we all feel like that.”
From a grammatical sense, much of this struggle arises from a shortage of resources, or incomplete notes- for example, words, with no context or guide to pronunciation. Many languages are having to be rebuilt from the ground up.
“Because language and culture are so integrated, you might get one word or phrase, that tells you this is the season where blossoms are blown off the wattle. That means the swans will be laying their eggs, and you’ll get lots of rain, or whatever it means- so there’s this whole cultural knowledge connected to two seemingly little words.
“It’s not like learning ‘das Fenster’ or ‘der Stuhl’ (the window and the chair) in German. [Aboriginal languages can’t be] taught the same way as LOTE.”
However, before that teaching element can even really begin, the grammar and vocabulary itself must be built up more.
“[The reality is] some communities only have about a hundred words… We could have ten thousand words- if we don’t have the grammar, we can’t talk properly.”
However, Ms Couzens is excited about the progress that’s been made, and the shift she’s noticing in the broader community.
“I think we have moved into this new space, this new gear. There is a change I this country of people wanting to educate themselves.
“It’s still small numbers because people are so busy with health, and education and all those important things… but because those things have started to be taken care of and the work’s being done, there is time to pursue language, and culture, and ceremony. The demand for language- VACL can’t keep up.”
It’s a shift that is largely presenting itself through language programs being offered at Victorian schools- a significant number coming at the hands of the Koorie Language in Schools Program, launched in 2012.
Developed through a partnership between the Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Inc., Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages (VCAL), Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) and Department of Education and Training, the program is focused on protecting, reviving and strengthening traditional Aboriginal languages.
Since the initiative’s launch, the bodies have advocated the importance of reducing further language loss, promoted their maintenance, and provided support for schools seeking to include a Koorie Language program at their institution.
According to 2017 statistics from the Department of Education and Training, there is a renewed focus on incorporating Aboriginal culture and languages into school curriculum with the number of students studying Aboriginal languages growing from 172 in 2012 to 1,534 students in 2017.
That’s a proportionate increase of just over 890 per cent in five years.
With the growth of the teaching of languages across the state, Tina Sahin from VAEAI said that it is important that Australians learn to champion Aboriginal languages.
“Embrace it. If you want to learn something, especially when it comes to learning Aboriginal culture, embrace it and follow protocols. Contact local organisations, implement a language team, contact VAEAI.”
“All Victoria to have schools teaching an Aboriginal language is definitely the end goal,” Ms Tahin said. “Kinder gardens, primary schools, secondary colleges- it would be amazing. (with the Aboriginal Languages Initiative)”
However, both Ms Sahin and Ms Couzens stress the importance of seeking the approval, and co-operation, of the local Aboriginal community.
“It should be taught to all learners, [but] it should be in collaboration with an Aboriginal person, a traditional owner, speaking and teaching those languages,” said Ms Sahin. “There has to be support from traditional owners to forward these languages on.”
