ONLINE RESOURCES FOR ENDANGERED LANGUAGES

Ethical issues

Documentation ethics 

Essentials of Language Documentation: Resources on Ethics and Rights

Jost Gippert, Nikolaus P. Himmelmann, Ulrike Mosel (eds.)

Links relating to issues of language documentation ethics and linguistic rights

LSA Ethics Statement Discussion Blog

Linguistic Society of America

In 2006 the LSA formed an Ethics Committee and charged it with drafting a statement of professional ethics on the Society’s behalf. The Ethics Committee is now (as of 2008) seeking feedback from LSA members on its draft statement through means of this blog.

Ethical practices in language documentation and archiving

Gary Holton

A presentation on how to document a language ethically.

Intellectual property 

Emerging Issues in Intellectual Property

World Intellectual Property Organisation

Various explanatory publications on emerging areas of current interest in intellectual property, from the WIPO.

Intellectual Property Guide: Indigenous Cultural Expression, Knowledge and Copyright

Caslon Analytics

An overview of indigenous IP issues with a list of some relevant laws and works.

Legal, Ethical, and Policy Issues Concerning the Recording and Publication of Primary Language Materials

Mark Liberman

The purpose of these background materials is to give workshop participants a general sense of the legal and regulatory context of language documentation projects in the United States, especially in academic settings.

Report on the SALSA Special Colloquium on Archiving Language Materials in Web-Accessible Databases

Endangered Language Fund

On ethical and legal issues surrounding digital archival of linguistic materials.

Software Tools for Indigenous Knowledge Management

Jane Hunter, DSTC Pty Ltd; Bevan Koopman, University of Queensland, Australia; and Jane Sledge, Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, USA

Describes a set of open source software tools designed to enable indigenous communities to protect unique cultural knowledge and materials preserved through digitization.

Who Owns Native Culture?

Michael F. Brown

Resources for understanding current debates about the legal status of indigenous art, music, folklore, biological knowledge, and sacred places.

Linguistic rights 

L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde

Jacques Leclerc

Details on the language policies and laws of the world's countries.

Bisharat: Basic documents on language policy in Africa

Osborn, Don

This page attempts to bring together key documents relating to language policy in Africa. They begin with consideration of orthography in the colonial period. Over the years since independence, there have been a number of conferences and meetings addressing various aspects of language policy, from standardization of transcription to policies to favor development of African languages. And in Bamako in 2000 & 2002, one can see the beginnings of consideration of how the new technologies will accommodate Africa's multilingual realities. The reports, declarations, and plans issued from these events can be useful references in the consideration of diverse aspects of the meeting of African languages and the new ICTs.

FATSIL Guide to Community Protocols for Indigenous Language Projects 2004

Federation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Languages

The aim of this document is to encourage positive relationships between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and their (linguist) consultants.

James Crawford's Language Policy Web Site & Emporium

James Crawford

This web site reports on the English Only movement, bilingual education, Native American language revitalization, minority language rights, demographic data on language usage, and related issues, with an emphasis on the author's own writings.

Linguistic Human Rights: A Sociolinguistic Introduction

Peter L. Patrick

Issues of language rights have become increasingly prominent in the last decade, and are often raised in the context of more general human rights. Linguists have become involved in this area via diverse pathways – e.g., language endangerment, preservation and revitalization; language planning; forensic (=legal) linguistics; bilingual education and other school-centered language issues; action research with urban linguistic minorities; work with indigenous peoples, including land claims; refugee and asylum issues, and more.

MERCATOR :: Linguistic Rights and Legislation

Mercator Network

As a research centre, Mercator-Legislation assembles a diversity of researchers and projects within the fields of sociolinguistics, glottopolitics and law. Its interdisciplinary character allows it to carry out a permanent monitoring work regarding the official recognition of languages, their juridical status and related regulation in force, or in process of development, that guarantee its public use.

MOST Clearing House: Linguistic Rights

UNESCO

To raise awareness about linguistic rights and to provide tools for decision-makers in governments, parliaments, and civil society, UNESCO's MOST Programme has collected the most relevant provisions in international conventions, declarations and multilateral treaties, which pertain to linguistic rights.

Support for Minority Languages in Europe

European Bureau for Lesser-Known Languages, European Centre for Minority Issues

The purpose of this report is to provide the necessary instruments for the orientation of European Union support to linguistic diversity. This issue is addressed in a broader context, characterised by the existence of other policies carried out at various levels (national, regional, local) aiming to protect and promote regional and minority languages (RMLs).

Tove Skutnabb-Kangas: Articles for downloading

Tove Skutnabb-Kangas

Fields of interest: Linguistic human rights, minority education, language and power, links between biodiversity and linguistic diversity, multilingualism, language policy, global (subtractive) spread of English, integration, ethnicity, racisms (including linguicism, linguistically argued racism), gender issues.

United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

United Nations

The UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues is an advisory body to the Economic and Social Council, with a mandate to discuss indigenous issues related to economic and social development, culture, the environment, education, health and human rights.

Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights

PEN International

An effort, led by PEN Iinternational, to establish a set of linguistic rights analogous to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.