Native Tongue Title is a revivalistic term that refers to compensation for linguicide ( language killing). Native Tongue Title is the enactment of a statute-based,Dr Anna Goldsworthy on the Barngarla language reclamation

The Monthly ''The Monthly'' is an Australian national magazine of politics, society and the arts, which is published eleven times per year on a monthly basis except the December/January issue. Founded in 2005, it is published by Melbourne property developer ...

, September 2014 ''

ex gratia (; also spelled ''ex-gratia'') is Latin for "by favour", and is most often used in a legal context. When something has been done ''ex gratia'', it has been done voluntarily, out of kindness or grace. In law, an ''ex gratia payment'' is a payme ...

'' financial compensation scheme, to cover efforts to resuscitate a heritage tongue that was killed (for example, due to colonisation), or to empower an endangered one.

Origin

The term was coined by

linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Lingu ...

and language revivalist

Ghil'ad Zuckermann Ghil'ad Zuckermann ( he, גלעד צוקרמן, ; ) is an Israeli-born language revivalist and linguist who works in contact linguistics, lexicology and the study of language, culture and identity. Zuckermann is Professor of Linguistics and Ch ...

.One Israeli's Mission to Revive Aboriginal Language Down Under

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner ...

, March 20, 2016. He modelled it on the Australian term

native title Aboriginal title is a common law doctrine that the land rights of indigenous peoples to customary tenure persist after the assumption of sovereignty under settler colonialism. The requirements of proof for the recognition of aboriginal title, ...

, which refers to the common law doctrine according to which the land rights of Indigenous peoples persist after the assumption of sovereignty under settler colonialism.

Native tongue title vs native title

Zuckermann argues that despite native title, and although some Australian states have enacted ''ex gratia'' compensation schemes for the victims of the

Stolen Generations The Stolen Generations (also known as Stolen Children) were the children of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent who were removed from their families by the Australian federal and state government agencies and church mis ...

policies, the victims of linguicide are overlooked. He proposes that existing competitive grant schemes by the

Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Governmen ...

to support

Australian Aboriginal languages The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

should be complemented with compensation schemes, which are based on a claim of right rather than on competition.

Anthropologist An anthropologist is a person engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropology is the study of aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms an ...

Timothy Haines wrote that Zuckermann's "remarkable achievement" of reclaiming the Barngarla language in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest o ...

may have "assisted in the process of the recognition of the

Barngarla people The Barngarla, formerly known as Parnkalla and also known as Pangkala, are an Aboriginal people of the Port Lincoln, Whyalla and Port Augusta areas. The Barngarla are the traditional owners of much of Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. Language ...

's native title". The presiding Federal Court judge, Justice John Mansfield, had commented that their active pursuit of language revival, assisted by Zuckermann, showed evidence of the people's continued connection with their land and culture "despite the separation that many had endured as 'Stolen Generation' children of the 1960s and 70s, when they were forcibly removed by the State to homes in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

, far distant from their native

Eyre Peninsula The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north. Originally called Eyre’s Peninsula, it was named af ...

in South Australia's west".

References

{{reflist, 30em Linguistics Language revival Aboriginal title