Abstract
The rise of language advocacy and interest in language as intangible heritage has produced a small body of literature about the intersections between language and museums. Previous research has shown that museums can engage with language advocacy through language exhibitions, archival research and documentation, and other engaging language-based programming. This research has not yet applied multi-sited ethnography, however, to examine its use within decolonizing contexts. My work engages with this methodology and theory, focusing on how Linda Tuhiwai Smith’s Indigenous Projects apply to language work encountered through three museums and/or cultural centers. My findings indicate a broad range of ways that these institutions decide and communicate ideas about language, as well as ways in which they use language to contextualize other educational focuses regarding Indigeneity.
Advisor
Derderian, Beth
Department
Sociology and Anthropology
Recommended Citation
Villa, Oli Castañon, "An Investigation of Indigenous Projects for Indigenous Language Work in Pacific Northwest Coast Museums" (2025). Senior Independent Study Theses. Paper 11299.
https://openworks.wooster.edu/independentstudy/11299
Disciplines
Anthropology | Library and Information Science | Linguistic Anthropology
Keywords
endangered languages, decolonial, heritage languages, museums, museums and cultural centers, Indigeneity
Publication Date
2025
Degree Granted
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type
Senior Independent Study Thesis
© Copyright 2025 Oli Castañon Villa