By Carrie Bradshaw-Buckley, Media Relations Specialist
Chickasaw Nation Media Relations Office
"Let's Speak Chickasaw (Chikashshanompa' Kilanompoli')" will be the first textbook and grammar workbook to be used to teach the Chickasaw language.
The textbook is the second collaborative work by authors Catherine Pickens Willmond, native speaker and Pamela Munro, UCLA Professor of Linguistics. The first, "Chickasaw: An Analytical Dictionary" was published in 1994.
"I love Chickasaw," Munro said. "I’m very proud to have helped develop a resource for more people to learn about it."
The content is based on Munro’s work with Willmond and numerous trips to Oklahoma to visit with dozens of fluent speakers.
"Let's Speak Chickasaw" treats the Chickasaw language as a living thing, not a historical artifact.
"Hopefully, this will help bring back competence in this beautiful language, which is now sadly endangered," Munro said.
Joshua Hinson, Chickasaw Nation director of cultural education and outreach, hopes that the book will help create not only fluent speakers, but also fluent writers and readers.
"It will provide a thorough grounding in reading, writing and speaking Chickasaw and will be a valuable tool that describes the detail and intricacies of a very complicated language," he said.
Designed for Chickasaw students from beginner to intermediate, the text covers pronunciation, world building, structure and usage. It also contains "Beyond the Grammar" sections that offer insight into the history of the language and a CD to convey fine points of pronunciation.
Each of the twenty units includes dialogues or readings that reflect language use by native speakers. These sections are meant to enhance the students' understanding of how words and sentences are put together.
Classroom tested for 14 years, "Let's Speak Chickasaw" will now be the centerpiece of Chickasaw language courses.
"Let's Speak Chickasaw" is currently available through the University of Oklahoma Press. To purchase, visit http://www.oupress.com/.
