Garifuna Waguia

Abstract

The Garifuna Nation is an afro-indigenous ethnic group that can be found throughout Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the island of St. Vincent. This project outlines the current status and community efforts towards the revitalization of Garifuna language in the Southern Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua, specifically the town of Orinoco. While there are an estimated 100,000 speakers of Garifuna across the world, there are currently only two fluent speakers in Orinoco, both of whom are elderly. Although language classes are given at the Manuel Mongalo Elementary School in Orinoco, Nicaragua, language education is not provided to those who are not enrolled in school. My thesis reports on community demands towards the implementation of a language program for the adults of the community who may not have the opportunity to learn the language otherwise. In order to meet the community demands and needs, this work draws from two approaches: a comparison between other indigenous language revitalization efforts throughout Latin America and the United States and the development of a Pedagogical Grammar for Garifuna, the latter of which aids adult learners with second language acquisition. The overarching objective of this study is to contribute to the ongoing effort of the Garifuna community in order to achieve an accessible pathway to the revitalization and conservation of the language.