The loss of a Native American elder from the Caddo Nation tribe in Oklahoma is shining a light on lost languages.
Tribe members say 95-year-old Edmond Johnson was one of the last fluent speakers of their language, which is also known as Hasinai.
It’s one of many global languages that are under the threat of extinction.
Edmond Johnson was a revered tribe member and elder of the Caddo Tribe
Members of the Caddo Nation announced Johnson’s passing on July 14th, calling him a “vital knowledge bearer of our language” and “treasured elder.”
On their website, the Caddo Nation said Johnson’s passing “marks an irreplaceable loss to our heritage, and we extend our deepest condolences to his family and all who mourn with us.”
The group observed a day of remembrance for Johnson on July 15th, their website said.
According to a local TV station, Johnson had been working with the tribe’s preservation director to keep the language alive.
“He was really good at explaining things, [an] awesome storyteller,” the tribe’s language preservation director, Alaina Tahlate told KOCO News, continuing that their “language connects every part of our culture together,” and that people are encouraged to use their “language however much, or however little, that you know.”
The Caddo people once lived in Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma
According to their website, the Caddo people are descendants of agriculturalists who once lived in what is today Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma.
It says that archeologists discovered ancient relics that suggest the tribe could have existed as early as 900 AD.
But in 1542, when Spanish explorers arrived, Caddo’s thriving communities were dispersed.
Today, the Caddo largely reside in Binger, Oklahoma, far from their ancestral lands. Local news says there are about “7,000 people enrolled in the Caddo Nation today. Most live in and around Southwest Oklahoma.”
Modern-day efforts to revitalize economic and political institutions have enabled Caddo people to “maintain a distinctive identity today and continue building toward a hopeful and prosperous future.”
After the pandemic, there were only two Caddo tribe members who spoke fluently
According to a story by NPR station KERA News from 2023, there were actually seven people who spoke Caddo before COVID-19.
“But during the pandemic, the tribe found that five of the seven fluent speakers had d*ed,” the article said.
At the time, Tahlate told the outlet that it was “extremely devastating for us. It brought our count to two speakers.”
It was then that Tahlate was officially hired by the tribe to lead a program that would preserve the language.
One of her more important responsibilities was working with Johnson, then 93, to preserve and pass along knowledge of the language.
Interestingly, the article said that the origin of the word “Texas” comes from the Caddo word “taysha” which means “friend.”
“Our people mourn with yours”: Members of other Native American tribes send their tributes
Reactions online were heartfelt and supportive. Many people wished Johnson a ‘safe journey’ as is customary in many Native American cultures. It is believed that when someone passes, their spirit lives on in another realm.
Many messages came in from other Native American nations in the U.S.
Someone from the Hunkpati Nation wrote: “Our people mourn with yours. Sending strength and hope from the Hunkpati Dakota people living in occupied lands in South Dakota, USA.”
Members of the Cherokee and Chickasaw Nations also paid their respects: “Deepest sympathies to his family, friends, and tribe from the Cherokee and Chickasaw Nations.”
“You all have experienced a great loss. My absolute love and prayers from Members of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma,” wrote another.
“50% of today’s languages will be extinct by 2100”: A UN report says global languages are at risk of extinction
It’s not the only language at risk of going extinct. According to an article in The Guardian from earlier this year, the rate of language loss around the world is increasing.
The article says that a decade ago, one language was reported lost every three months. But since 2019, it’s been “one every 40 days, which is nine languages per year” that are considered extinct.
The article quotes a United Nations study that estimates that “at least 50 percent of today’s spoken languages will be extinct or seriously endangered by 2100.”
The report says that most of these lost languages are Indigenous. “Humanity may well have only 300-600 oral languages left that are unthreatened by the end of this century.”
Netizens offer support and concern over the fact that a centuries-old language might be lost
