Savoir culturel et langue en danger : l’exemple du rituel de l’igname chez les Kwoma

L’objectif de cet article est d’illustrer la relation intrinsèque existant chez les Kwoma entre le rituel de l’igname et la connaissance linguistique associée aux chants invoqués lors de sa pratique. Le rituel autour de l’igname est constitué de trois cérémonies distinctes, Yena, Mija et Nowkwi, et inclut des chants et des danses en l’honneur de ces esprits. Les chants rituels sont une source de savoir pour l’histoire mais aussi sur les valeurs et les normes socioculturelles à l’œuvre dans la communauté. Après une présentation de la structure sociale de la société kwoma, un examen du rituel de l’igname puis une analyse de deux chants rituels, sawo howkwa et magwiy howkwa, on montrera que la sauvegarde du patrimoine culturel kwoma ne peut se faire sans la sauvegarde du patrimoine culturel immatériel.The purpose of this article is to illustrate the intrinsic relationship among the Kwoma between the practice of the yam ritual and the linguistic knowledge associated with the songs and formulas invoked during its performance. The yam ritual is composed of three distinct ceremonies, Yena, Mija and Nowkwi, and includes songs and dances to honor these spirits. Ritual songs are a source of knowledge about history and the socio-cultural values and standards expected in this community. After an overview of the social structure of the Kwoma society, a presentation of the yam ritual, and an analysis of two ritual songs – sawo howkwa and magwiy howkwa –, this article demonstrates that the preservation of the Kwoma cultural heritage cannot be done at the expense of its intangible cultural heritage

Ethical Dilemmas in Documenting the Kwoma Language

This paper discusses ethical issues that arose while documenting Kwoma, an endangered language spoken by approximately four thousand speakers in the East-Sepik province of Papua New Guinea. More specifically, it addresses questions related to the recording and archiving of sensitive ritual and ceremonial materials that the community wishes to preserve, but that the researcher cannot access. Yet, it is in the interest of the community that these texts be recorded, and minimally transcribed and translated, to preserve this traditional heritage. However, by agreeing to become a member of the community, the author of this paper has decided to embrace the Kwoma traditions and as a woman, cannot be in contact with these cultural elements, at the risk of causing emotional distress and break her bonds with other members of the clan. The article discusses the ways in which the researcher can bridge linguists’ professional interests and the community’s expectations. ----- Cet article discute des questions éthiques qui se sont posées lors de la documentation du kwoma, une langue en voie de disparition parlée par environ quatre mille locuteurs dans la Province East-Sepik de la Papouasie-Nouvelle-Guinée. Plus particulièrement, il aborde des questions à propos de l’enregistrement et l’archivage des matériaux délicats de rituels et de cérémonies que la communauté souhaite conserver mais auxquels la chercheure ne peut pas accéder. It est pourtant dans l’intérêt de la communauté que ces textes soient enregistrés et au minimum transcrits et traduits afin de conserver ce patrimoine traditionnel. Toutefois, en s’engageant à devenir membre de la communauté, l’auteure du présent article a décidé d’adopter les traditions kwoma et, en tant que femme, ne peut pas être en contact avec ces éléments culturels, au risque de provoquer la détresse émotionnelle et de rompre ses liens avec d’autres membres du clan. L’article discute donc les moyens par lesquels la chercheure peut établir un rapprochement entre les intérêts professionnels des linguistes et les attentes de la communauté

La multifonctionnalité des conjonctions bó et bɔ̀ en fon

L’objectif de cet article est d’analyser en fon d’un point de vue à la fois fonctionnel et typologique les constructions qui font intervenir les deux conjonctions bó et bɔ̀. Le fon est une langue kwa de la famille Niger-Congo parlée au Bénin par plus de deux millions de locuteurs. Après une revue des propriétés typologiques de la langue, nous portons notre attention sur les constructions coordonnées et subordonnées contenant les conjonctions bó et bɔ̀. En nous fondant sur le principe de l’iconicité, notre étude révèle que ces conjonctions sont toujours employées pour lier des propositions dénotant des événements se produisant dans l’ordre où ils apparaissent. De plus, les événements liés par la coordination présentent une intégration sémantique et syntaxique moins grande que les événements liés par la subordination. Notre démonstration inclut un scénario de grammaticalisation des conjonctions bó et bɔ̀, de coordonnants à subordonnants.The aim of this article is to analyze constructions in which the conjunctions bó and bɔ̀ in Fon are used to link clauses from a functional-typological perspective. Fon is a Kwa language of the Niger-Congo family spoken in Benin by more than two million speakers. After an overview of the typological characteristics of the language, we focus on coordinations and subordinations that exhibit the use of the conjunctions bó and bɔ̀. Based on the principle of iconicity, our study reveals that these conjunctions are always used to link propositions denoting events occurring in the order in which they appear. In addition, events linked by coordination structure present less semantic and syntactic integration than events linked by subordination. Our demonstration includes a scenario of grammaticalization of the conjunctions bó and bɔ̀, from coordination to subordination

Making the most out of the past: Retrieving and archiving old records of the Innu language

In a situation of language endangerment, communities express a strong need for the documentation and preservation of their language which is increasingly threatened as the older generations of monolinguals pass away. This paper presents the documentation project of Innu, an endangered Algonquian language spoken by roughly 13,000 people in 11 communities spread out over Northeastern Quebec and Labrador in Canada. It will specifically address the issues related to retrieving and converting a large body of existing linguistic materials into digital format, and making old language records available for the benefit of the people in their efforts of revitalization. Since the beginning of the 20th century, hydroelectric, mining and forestry projects are undertaken on the ancestral lands of the Innus. Many of these projects were carried out without their consent. However, since the late seventies, strategies for successful negotiations with government and private developers include discussions with the Innus to ensure a constructive dialogue with the province's economic development partners. Innu Elders play a critical role in these exercises by providing traditional ecological knowledge, e.g. about waterways, and documenting where people hunt, fish, trap, gather and camp. The outcome of these surveys constitutes precious information about the Innu culture, traditions, as well as language, since many of the Elders were monolinguals. As an illustration, in the early eighties, the Attikamek-Innu Council led a major investigation on territorial use and occupancy. The collected material comprises the testimony of more than 400 Innus and over one thousand hours of recordings. This documentation and all other existing analog records are precious for the collective memory and history of the Innu communities, and need to be located, retrieved, digitalised, and archived for the long-term sustainability of the language. We undertook this enterprise in partnership with the Innu Cultural Institute. With the constitution of an archive comprising old records and original materials, the Innu language documentation project aims to make an important contribution to the ongoing developments in language documentation research and a major step in building a valuable tool for language maintenance and revitalization