JALT2025 - Tokyo

Indigenous Language Learning: Challenges and Perspectives

Oct 31, 2025, 5:10 PM

30m

National Olympics Memorial Youth Center / 国立オリンピック記念青少年総合センター

Research-oriented Presentation (30-minutes) Japanese and Other Language Teaching & Learning Room 302

Speaker

Helen Takahashi (Sapporo Gakuin University)

Description

Challenges facing the revival of indigenous languages such as Welsh in the UK and Ainu in Japan are outlined and discussed. The past, present and future challenges of these languages are compared and contrasted. The potential for sharing strategies and approaches between indigenous languages is considered as well as how learning an indigenous language might influence the subsequent learning of other languages.

Summary

Challenges facing the revival of indigenous languages such as Welsh in the UK and Ainu in Japan are outlined and discussed. The past, present and future challenges of these languages are compared and contrasted. The potential for sharing strategies and approaches between indigenous languages is considered as well as how learning an indigenous language might influence the subsequent learning of other languages.

Presentation materials

Indigenous Language Learning 2025.pdf