https://www.pri.org/stories/2021-05-06/small-town-sweden-fights-preserve-elfdalian-dying-forest-language

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A red and white sign that says "Welcome to Alvdalen" in the language
Elfdalian

Language

A small town in Sweden fights to preserve Elfdalian, a dying forest
language

The town of Alvdalen is fighting to preserve its local language amid
pushback from some members of parliament.

The World

May 06, 2021 * 5:30 PM EDT

By Bianca Hillier

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A sign in a Swedish town that reads, "Welcome to Alvdalen" in the
language Elfdalian.

Credit:

Courtesy of Yair Sapir

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An organization called Ulum Dalska, based in a small Swedish town
called Alvdalen, is on a mission. 

For decades, members have been working hard to help save a language
called Elfdalian, a remnant of Old Norse.

"We had our first meeting on the 1st of June in 1984," said press
secretary Bjorn Rehnstrom. "And the biggest hall in Alvdalen was
filled with people."

Elfdalian sounds nothing like the country's national language,
Swedish, which Rehnstrom said destabilized the language about 100
years ago. At that point, Elfdalian became stigmatized.

Related: Does the Language You Speak Determine How Much Money You
Save?

Ulla Schutt, also a Ulum Dalska member, saw the impact firsthand
while growing up in Alvdalen.

    ""My parents spoke Elfdalian with each other, and with my grandma
    and my aunts and uncles and everyone around. ... But when they
    turned to me, they spoke Swedish."

    Ulla Schutt, Ulum Dalska member

"My parents spoke Elfdalian with each other, and with my grandma and
my aunts and uncles and everyone around," Schutt said. "But when they
turned to me, they spoke Swedish."

Schutt said her parents spoke Swedish with her because that's what
was spoken in schools. Students were even discouraged to speak
Elfdalian in the classroom. Now, there's only about 2,500 speakers
left.

But people are getting creative in the fight to change that trend.

The language is getting a boost on Minecraft. Musicians are releasing
new songs with Elfdalian lyrics. Several children's books were also
translated into Elfdalian, including "Le Petit Prince," by Antoine de
Saint-Exupery.

Related: Is this remote Siberian language an ancestor to Navajo?

Additionally, Rehnstrom helps run a popular Facebook group that
offers courses in the Elfdalian language, where he posts lessons to
the group's 1,800 global members.

 
Man in white T-shirt sits to the left of the image in a room with
books and photos on the wall

Bjorn Rehnstrom teaches lessons in Elfdalian.

Credit:

Screenshot from "Course in Elfdalian" Facebook group page/Facebook

    "It's not only these language nerds from all over the world, but
    it's also people from Alvdalen who have lost it."

    Bjorn Rehnstrom, Ulum Dalska press secretary

"[People are from] America, Australia, South America, Indonesia,
Haiti, Cape Verde," he said. "People read it. People are saying they
want to go to Alvdalen to help the language survive. It's fantastic,
because it's not only these language nerds from all over the world,
but it's also people from Alvdalen who have lost it, and want to take
back the language."

The local government supports the teaching and preservation of
Elfdalian. Rehnstrom said they eagerly paid for a sign that reads:
"Welcome to Alvdalen" in Elfdalian.

The language is also recognized on an international level. In 2016,
it was assigned an ISO language code, which helps the internet
distinguish one language from another.

But the national government of Sweden is a different story. They
currently consider Elfdalian a dialect of Swedish, not its own
language.

Related: The Standing Rock Sioux are also fighting for their language

Speaking in Elfdalian, Swedish MP Peter Helander recently asked
Parliament why that's the case. But before Culture Minister Amanda
Lind could answer the question, the parliamentary speaker interrupted
them both to say that only Swedish may be spoken in the chamber.
Helander said the "only Swedish" remark proves his point, that
Elfdalian should be considered its own language.

That stance is shared by linguists across the country, said Yair
Sapir, an associate professor of Scandinavian linguistics at
Kristianstad University in Sweden.

    "[Elfdalian speakers] have something that is very different and
    very important to preserve."

    Yair Sapir, associate professor of Scandinavian linguistics at
    Kristianstad University in Sweden

"The distance is so large between Swedish and Elfdalian that it
should be recognized as a separate language," he said. "Alvdalen is
quite remote, so Elfdalian hasn't been that influenced by Swedish.
Due to this distance, it has kept a stronger character, and also a
stronger feeling, among its speakers, that they have something that
is very different and very important to preserve."

Related: Welsh is considered a model for language revitalization, but
its fate is still uncertain

Schutt said every time a language dies -- which some research suggests
is as often as once every two weeks -- it is a sad moment. To her,
losing Elfdalian would be an especially tragic loss.

"It's a part of our identity. It's part of our culture," she said.
"And if part of your identity and culture dies, a part of yourself
dies."

Getting Elfdalian recognized as a language by the Swedish government,
she added, is key to making sure that death doesn't come.

"If we get the recognition, it would be a lot easier to get into the
school system," Schutt said. "And if we are going to succeed with our
goals to revitalize our language, we have to teach our younger
generation."

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Categories:
Arts, Culture & MediaCultureLanguageConflict & JusticeJustice
Development & EducationEducationImmigrationCommunityLifestyle &
BeliefHistoryHuman rightsIdentityLifestylePoliticsGlobal Politics
Tagged:
AlvdalenSwedenUlla SchuttYair SapirBjorn Rehnstrom

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