The new EU-funded Fosterlang project was successfully launched in Wilamovice, Poland with an inaugural event that gathered representatives from across Europe, including from ELEN and several of its member organisations, as well as featuring presentations from minoritized languages spoken in Poland and various workshops and discussions on effective language revitalization. Further good news was that the town’s endangered language, Wymysiöeryś, is set for official recognition by the Polish Government pending the approval of the President.
The event, which was held in the Museum for Vilamovian Culture in Wilamowice from Thursday 25th September to Saturday 27th September, featured a number of activities, including presentations, workshops and a focus group discussion from leading academics and community-based activists on a wide range of topics including the present challenges faced by the speakers of Wymysiöeryś, Lemko and Kashubian, effective intergenerational language transmission, grassroots multilingualism and its sustainability, and re-defining and operationalizing linguistic capital. Saturday’s proceedings included the Second Vilamovian Conference and focused on the Wymysiöeryś research, recovery and revitalisation effort.
Opening the inaugural event, project coordinator Prof. Justyna Olko (Univ. of Warsaw) highlighted some good news in that Wymysiöeryś may get official recognition as a minority language from the Polish Government. She said that this showed that, “No matter how small a language is, it should be supported and should be seen as a source of pride and enrichment for the whole country.”
The opening presentations focused on the reclamation efforts of the Wymysiöeryś language led by its key revitalizers and experts Tymoteusz Król and Justyna Majerska, both of whom have been instrumental in the town’s linguistic-cultural recovery effort. Dr. Król outlined how interest from the outside in Wymysiöeryś as a case study has acted to show what was possible in language recovery.
A stand out event was the workshop on networking and exchange where different organisations came together to discuss effective networking. Izar Mendiguren from Aiaraldea Ekintzen Faktoria commented (in Basque): “When we do networking everything is possible. The result of networking is community building. One wave on its own does not do much but many waves together can move an ocean.”
Another highlight was the hands-on afternoon workshop “See, hear and discover your strengths” with local parents and teachers at the Wilamowice primary school, exploring how adults can create a rich and supportive multilingual environment for children.
On Friday the Fosterlang event celebrated the European Day of Languages with a vibrant musical showcase featuring the Wilamowice Dance Ensemble who performed a series of traditional community dances to a packed audience. This was followed by an amazing performance by the Ufa Fisa Reviteatralization Group with their play ‘Hołdy Bołdy’ performed bilingually, and with a bilingual backdrop, in Polish and Wymysiöeryś.
Speaking to the media ELEN President Prof. Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones said that: “As President of ELEN and Professor at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David – both partners in FOSTERLANG, I’m delighted that academic institutions and civil society organisations have come together to address key issues to support language diversity in Europe. Our languages are facing substantial political and economic challenges – and both analysis and activism are essential tools to counteract these threats.”
ELEN Secretary-General, Davyth Hicks, said that: “We’re delighted to be working with some of Europe’s leading experts on minoritised and endangered languages. Its vital for ELEN that we have the latest, detailed, up-to-date research in order to help effectively target our ongoing advocacy work, and Fosterlang, where we are working to develop a Linguistic Capital Roadmap, will be able to chart the way forward on how we move towards a sustainable future for our languages.”
The event was preceded by an Interdisciplinary Workshop entitled: “Language and Trauma: Grassroots multilingualism, trauma and healing. Revitalization and minoritized experiences,” organized by Prof. Judith Purkharthofer from the University of Essen on the 23 – 24th September.
Fosterlang launch event picture gallery on Facebook