Comment: Indigenous languages are central to culture and survival – Grand Chief Edward John (AKILE CH’OH) and Tracey Herbert / Times Colonist

Press Release

February 24, 2019

On Thursday, we celebrated International Mother Language Day to recognize the importance of language diversity worldwide.

This month, the B.C. government announced it would introduce historic legislation to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This follows an unprecedented $50-million investment in Indigenous languages in last year’s budget, and it aligns with the federal government’s recent introduction of Bill C-91 — An Act Respecting Indigenous Languages. The United Nations has declared 2019 as the International Year of Indigenous Languages.

Why, you might ask, all this focus on Indigenous languages?

The reason: Our languages are at the heart of our identity and important for our survival.

For Indigenous Peoples in Canada and worldwide, language is how we pass our traditional knowledge, culture and values from one generation to the next. Our languages embody our woridviews, our laws, our stories and our songs; they connect us with the land and our histories — who we are.

Research also suggests that restoring connections to Indigenous language and culture builds resilience and supports healthy individuals and communities. Being able to speak one’s mother tongue plays a key role in lower rates of suicide and better education and employment outcomes among Indigenous people.

Despite their importance, Indigenous languages in B.C., in Canada and around the world are at risk of disappearing.

According to the UN, about 40 per cent of the estimated 6,700 languages worldwide are at risk; most of these are Indigenous languages. This is the case, too, with the majority of the 60 or so Indigenous languages in Canada, more than half of them in B.C.

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