Alaska Native Language Center facts for kids
The Alaska Native Language Center is a special place in Fairbanks, Alaska. It was started in 1972. This center studies and records the many different languages spoken by the Native people of Alaska.
They create books like grammars (rules for a language) and dictionaries (word lists). They also collect old stories and other important materials. The center has a huge collection of writings about languages like Eskimo and North Athabaskan. The Center also helps teachers and researchers. They offer training and advice to anyone working with Alaska Native languages. There's also a program called the Alaska Native Language Program. It works with the Center. This program helps keep these languages alive. It even offers college degrees in languages like Central Yup'ik and Inupiaq at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Contents
Understanding Alaska's Language Map
In 1974, a person named Michael E. Krauss created a map. This map showed all the different languages spoken in Alaska. He updated it again in 1982. For a long time, this map was the main one everyone used.
In the summer of 2011, the Alaska Native Language Center updated Krauss's map. One big reason for this update was that some language names had changed. The new map didn't look super different. But the best part is that the new map is completely digital. This makes it easier to use and share.
Alaska Native Languages and Their Speakers
Many different Native languages are spoken in Alaska. The table below shows some of these languages. It also shows how many people belong to that language group. And it shows how many people still speak the language. This information helps us understand which languages need more help to stay alive.
| Language | Population | Speakers | Percent Speakers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ahtna | 500 | 80 | %16.00 |
| Aleut | 2,200 | 300 | %13.64 |
| Alutiiq/Sugpiaq | 3,000 | 400 | %13.33 |
| Dena'ina | x | x | x |
| Deg Xinag | 275 | 40 | %14.55 |
| Eyak | 50 | 0 | %0.00 |
| Gwich'in | 1,100 | 300 | %27.27 |
| Haida | 600 | 15 | %2.50 |
| Hän | 50 | 12 | %24.00 |
| Holikachuk | 200 | 12 | %6.00 |
| Inupiat | 13,500 | 3,000 | %22.22 |
| Koyukon | 2,300 | 300 | %13.04 |
| Tanana | 380 | 30 | %7.89 |
| Tanacross | 220 | 65 | %29.55 |
| Tlingit | 10,000 | 500 | %5.00 |
| Tsimshian | 1,300 | 70 | %5.38 |
| Upper Kuskokwim | 160 | 40 | %25.00 |
| Upper Tanana | x | x | x |
| Yup'ik, Central Alaskan | 21,000 | 10,000 | %47.62 |
| Yupik, Siberian | 1,100 | 1,050 | %95.45 |
- This information comes from the Alaska Native Languages Center. You can find more details at [1].
Related Topics
- Alaska Native Language Archive
- Alaska Native languages
- Eskimo–Aleut languages
- Athabaskan languages
- Michael Krauss, who started the ANLC
- Dené–Yeniseian languages
See also
In Spanish: Alaska Native Language Center para niños
