National Museum of Language facts for kids
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| Established | May 3, 2008 |
|---|---|
| Location | P.O. Box 453 Greenbelt, Maryland, United States |
| Type | Online museum |
The National Museum of Language is a special place that explores the history, power, and art of language. It is one of the few museums in the world created just for this purpose. It was first thought of in 1997.
The museum officially opened on May 3, 2008, in College Park, Maryland. It had an exhibit called "Writing Language: Passing It On." In 2014, the museum changed. It closed its physical building and became a virtual museum. This means you can visit it online! Today, the museum focuses on online exhibits and activities. It also offers talks and learning programs for schools. Most of the museum's work is done by amazing volunteers.
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How the Museum Started
The idea for a national language museum began a long time ago, in 1971. Some language experts at the National Security Agency (NSA) created a special exhibit. It was called "Language, Its Infinite Variety."
However, the idea for a full museum didn't really take off until 1985. That's when the same language experts met again to talk about it. They couldn't set up exhibits right away. But they did form a group and chose a board of directors in 1997. Before the museum officially opened, it still did things. It had a newsletter, held dinners, and put on occasional programs. For example, in 2007, they had a talk about Creole languages and endangered languages.
Opening and Early Exhibits
The National Museum of Language officially opened its doors on May 3, 2008. Its first exhibit was called "Writing Language: Passing It On." This exhibit showed how early alphabet languages developed. It included languages like Arabic, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. It also featured character-based languages like Chinese and Japanese.
Another important exhibit was "Emerging American Language in 1812." This exhibit explained how American English became different from British English. It also showed the work of Noah Webster. He was known as the "First American Lexicographer." This means he was the first person to create a dictionary for American English. Other smaller exhibits focused on Native American languages, Amharic, and North American French. In 2011, the museum even displayed old Bibles and religious books. These were borrowed from the Alphabet Museum in Waxhaw, North Carolina.
Museum Resources and Programs
The museum used to have the Allen Walker Read Library. This library held many books from a famous American language expert. It also had the Ann Kietzman collection of children's books from around the world. You can find information about these books online through LibraryThing.
The museum also offered classes sometimes. One of its popular programs was a speaker series. This series was later named the Amelia C. Murdoch Speaker Series. It was named after the museum's founder. Experts would come and talk about different topics related to language. The museum also had programs for grade school students. It even ran a summer language camp!
When the museum became virtual, it kept its speaker series and the summer camp. It still has its book collections. The museum also displays its special flag at events. The National Museum of Language is one of the founding members of the International Network of Language Museums. This is a group of language museums from all over the world.
Online Features and the Flag of Language
Today, the museum has some cool online features. You can explore a virtual exhibit about the Dictionary of American Regional English (DARE). This dictionary shows how people speak differently across America. There's also a Greek language comic strip called Philogelos.
The National Museum of Language owns something very special. It has the world's only International Flag of Language! This flag was created after a contest held by the museum in 2008. The flag has three shades of green. These colors represent languages from the past, present, and future.
How the Museum is Funded
The National Museum of Language is mostly run by volunteers. This means people give their time to help the museum. Most of its money comes from donations. Sometimes, it also gets grants from the government. There is no fee to become a member of the museum.
