Canadian Language Museum
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The Canadian Language Museum (
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
: Le Musée canadien des langues), is a language
museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...
and registered charity located in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
,
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. Its mission is to promote an appreciation of all of the
languages Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...
used in Canada, and of their role in the development of the country. The museum was established in 2011 and opened its permanent gallery space in 2016.


History

The initial conceptualization of the Canadian Language Museum began in 2007 by linguist Elaine Gold with additional support from a collection of Canadian linguists and graduate students from the University of Toronto. The museum was founded in 2011 at a meeting of the
Canadian Linguistic Association The Canadian Linguistic Association (CLA; French: Association canadienne de linguistique, ACL) is the principal professional organization of linguists in Canada. Yearly meetings are held, usually at the end of May, in which members present scho ...
and a mission statement was drafted to guide the museum’s purpose and activities. In its initial years, it operated as a ‘museum without walls’. Its exhibits travelled to venues across Canada, while not having an exhibition space of its own. In the summer of 2015, it opened an office in Toronto. The museum moved into its permanent gallery space at
Glendon College Glendon College is a public liberal arts college in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Formally the federated bilingual campus of York University, it is one of the school's nine colleges and 11 faculties with 100 full-time faculty members and a student po ...
, a French/English bilingual campus of
York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...
in 2016. This transition to a permanent gallery space allowed the museum to host guest speakers, educational events, and travelling exhibitions in addition to what it internally curates. The museum has been present at the annual meeting of the
Canadian Linguistic Association The Canadian Linguistic Association (CLA; French: Association canadienne de linguistique, ACL) is the principal professional organization of linguists in Canada. Yearly meetings are held, usually at the end of May, in which members present scho ...
each late May as part of the Congress for the Humanities and Social Sciences. The museum also supports its mission online by operating a website, where interested parties can request exhibit loans. It also promotes language revitalization, the work of Canadian linguists, and language research more broadly through its social media accounts, and with its blog, which publishes original interviews with people from across Canada working to protect and promote the languages of Canada.


Architecture

The museum is located inside Glendon Hall, the original manor house on the Edward R. Wood family estate. Situated at the eastern end of the building, the museum backs onto a formal rose garden.


Exhibitions

Since its founding, the Canadian Language Museum has curated a bilingual (French/English) exhibit each year. These include travelling exhibits, temporary exhibits and web exhibits. The museum has also hosted a number of exhibits from other institutions and artists.


Travelling Exhibits

Since the museum was started with no exhibition space of its own, it decided the best way to promote Canada's linguistic heritage was to curate exhibits that could travel to other venues for display. The travelling exhibits that have been produced so far include: * ''
Canadian English Canadian English (CanE, CE, en-CA) encompasses the varieties of English native to Canada. According to the 2016 census, English was the first language of 19.4 million Canadians or 58.1% of the total population; the remainder spoke French ( ...
, Eh?'' (2012) * ''Speaking the Inuit Way'' (2013) * ''French in Canada'' (2014) * ''Cree'''': The People's Language'' (2015) *''A Tapestry of Voices: Celebrating Canada's Languages'' (2016) *''Read Between the Signs: 150 Years of Language in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
'' (2017) *''Beyond Words: Dictionaries and Indigenous Languages'' (2019) *'' Sign Languages of Canada'' (2021) Each exhibit is produced with the assistance of students in the University of Toronto Masters of Museum Studies program, and is supported by academic and community stakeholders. Its exhibits are displayed on rotation at the Canadian Language Museum and they travel across Canada, from British Columbia to Newfoundland, being shown in venues such as schools, universities, community centres, libraries, airports, hospitals and small museums.


Temporary Exhibits

The museum produced ''Yiddish Spring,'' a temporary exhibit in 2019.


Web Exhibits

The museum produced two web exhibits available on its website: * ''Messages from the Mosaic'' (2018) * ''Anthem: Expressions of Canadian Identity'' (2020)


Hosted Exhibits

The museum has hosted art exhibits: *''Coolie Hauntings'' by Amar Wahab (2019) * ''Legacies: Our Heritage Through Our Grandmother's Eyes'' by Gina Valle (2019) *''A Newfoundland Treasury of Ice and Snow'' by Marlene Creates (2018) *''From Smoke to Cyber Signals'' by Nadine St-Louis (2018)


Promotion of Indigenous Languages

A primary focus of the Canadian Language Museum has been to address how colonization has played a major role in the endangerment and precarious position of Indigenous languages in Canada. The inclusion of Indigenous languages into museum programming and exhibits is central to the museum’s wider mission. The museum was founded while the
Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC; french: Commission de vérité et réconciliation du Canada []) was a truth and reconciliation commission active in Canada from 2008 to 2015, organized by the parties of the Indian Reside ...
was researching the impact of residential schools on Indigenous languages and culture. The museum works with fluent speakers from their communities and linguistic experts to ethically curate its exhibits. In 2019, the museum published ''Indigenous Languages in Canada'' to commemorate the International Year of Indigenous Languages. Written by one of the museum's board members, Professor Will Oxford, the 35-page booklet is available on the museum's website and covers a wide range of topics including the unique traits, writing systems, and continued vitality of Indigenous languages in Canada.


See also

* List of museums in Toronto


References


External links

* {{authority control Museums in Toronto University of Toronto University museums in Canada Language museums