What is the future of linguistic diversity in America? Today it is more uncertain than ever. This land is home to hundreds of Native languages and has received hundreds more through immigration—nowhere more so than in ELA’s home of New York City—but very few of those languages are assured a future here. Language shift and…
Recent events at ELA have included weekly textile and language sessions with Indigenous Mexican New York women (below right) and a workshop with Indian “fontwallah”, master typographer and calligrapher Rajeev Prakash Khare organized by his niece, actor/playwright Shubhra Prakash (below left). Not to mention a very ELA celebration (not pictured) of El dia de los…
Since this summer, an ELA team has been working closely and consistently with a young Afghani refugee from the remote Nuristan region, which contains a group of languages that have long puzzled specialists as to their historical position within the Indo-Iranian branch of Indo-European. We have been working with her to map the sound system, basic vocabulary and…
Get ready for Language City, an outdoor performance about the past, present, and future of New York — the world’s most linguistically diverse city. The project is a collaboration between ELA and Gung Ho Projects, premiering at Little Island, Manhattan’s extraordinary new park, on August 14, 15, 17, and 18 at 6:30 pm (note no…
Thanks for your patience as we slowly edge our way into the modern world! Check out https://elalliance.myshopify.com/, where it’s easy than ever to donate any amount to ELA or give to get one of our maps, t-shirts, or storybooks. It’ll soon be integrated into this site as well. Shoot us a note at info@elalliance.org if…
In “The World Capital of Endangered Languages”, New York Times journalist Alex Carp follows ELA’s work documenting and mapping endangered languages in New York and beyond. Citing LANGUAGE CITY—the new book about the city’s languages and ELA’s work by co-director Ross Perlin—the piece also features (literally) moving portraits of speakers of a dozen languages from…
Free upcoming NYC and virtual events for LANGUAGE CITY, the story of NYC’s linguistic diversity and ELA’s work—with more to come! Tuesday 2/20, 7 pm: Strand Bookstore (Manhattan) w/Thomas Dyja (SOLD OUT) Wednesday 2/28, 6:30 pm: Gotham Center for NYC History (virtual) w/Nancy Foner (SOLD OUT) Sunday 3/3, 7:30 pm: Topos Too (Queens) w/Maru Ponce Wednesday…
Happy International Mother Language Day! We’re celebrating with the launch of ELA Co-Director Ross Perlin’s new book Language City: The Fight to Preserve Endangered Mother Tongues in New York. The book is about the past, present, and future of the most linguistically diverse place in history, New York City, as told through ELA’s work at the…