Marie Smith Jones (May 14, 1918January 21, 2008) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

national who the last surviving speaker of the

Eyak language Eyak was a Na-Dené language, historically spoken by the Eyak people, indigenous to south-central Alaska, near the mouth of the Copper River. The name Eyak comes from a Chugach Sugpiaq name (''Igya'aq'') for an Eyak village at the mouth of the ...

of Southcentral Alaska. She was born in

Cordova, Alaska Cordova ( ) is a city in Chugach Census Area, Alaska, United States. It lies near the mouth of the Copper River, at the head of Orca Inlet on the east side of Prince William Sound. The population was 2,609 at the 2020 census, up from 2,239 i ...

, was an honorary chief of the

Eyak Nation The Eyak (Eyak language, Eyak: ʔi·ya·ɢdəlahɢəyu·, literally "inhabitants of Eyak Village at Mile 6"Krauss, Michael E. 1970. ''Eyak dictionary''. University of Alaska and Massachusetts Institute of Technology 1963-1970) are a Native Americ ...

and the last remaining full-blooded Eyak. In a 2005 interview, Smith Jones explained that her name in Eyak is which, she said, translates as ''"a sound that calls people from afar"''.

Biography

Jones married a fisherman, William F. Smith, on May 5, 1948. Although she had nine children with Smith, they did not learn to speak Eyak due to the

social stigma Social stigma is the disapproval of, or discrimination against, an individual or group based on perceived characteristics that serve to distinguish them from other members of a society. Social stigmas are commonly related to culture, gender, ra ...

associated with it at the time. She moved to

Anchorage Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring ...

in the 1970s. So that a record of the Eyak language would survive, she worked with linguist

Michael E. Krauss Michael E. Krauss (August 15, 1934 – August 11, 2019) was an American linguist, professor emeritus, founder and long-time head of the Alaska Native Language Center. He died on August 11, 2019, four days before his 85th birthday. The Alaska ...

, who compiled a dictionary and grammar of it. Her last older sibling died in the 1990s. Afterwards, Jones became politically active, and on two occasions she spoke at the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

on the issues of peace and indigenous languages. She was also active regarding environmental Indian issues, including

clearcutting Clearcutting, clearfelling or clearcut logging is a forestry/logging practice in which most or all trees in an area are uniformly cut down. Along with shelterwood and seed tree harvests, it is used by foresters to create certain types of fores ...

. Jones suffered from

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

earlier in her life, but gave up drinking while in her early 50s; she remained a heavy smoker until her death."Last Alaska language speaker dies"
BBC News, January 24, 2008. She died of natural causes on January 21, 2008 at age 89 at her home in Anchorage.

References

External links

* *
Obituary
by ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...

'', 7 February 2008
Article on Marie Smith Jones
from

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Marie 1918 births 2008 deaths Alaska Native people Last known speakers of a Native American language People from Anchorage, Alaska People from Cordova, Alaska Women in Alaska

Biography

See also

References

External links