21.10.22
What Happens Next?
What Do We Lose When Languages Die? | 70

When we travel through Europe, we expect to experience a wide array of culture and customs – in each country, different foods, different views, and different languages.

That’s not the expectation visitors to Australia have, but perhaps they should. Before British colonisation, this land was home to nearly 300 distinct Indigenous languages.

But frontier violence, years of harmful policies, and entrenched, systemic racism against the Traditional Owners of the land stamped many of those languages out entirely, and those remaining have struggled to survive, spoken in secret or kept alive only in the memories of Elders. Today, just 10 Indigenous Australian languages are considered strong.

In a new episode of Monash University’s podcast, “What Happens Next?”, linguists and Indigenous human rights advocates discuss how we lost these languages, what it means when a language is sleeping, and the lengths communities are going to to wake them up again.

Host Dr Susan Carland is joined this week by Associate Professor John Bradley, Acting Deputy Director of Monash University’s Indigenous Studies Centre; Associate Professor Alice Gaby, Deputy Chair of the Board of Living Languages; and Monash alumna Inala Cooper, Director of Murrup Barak, the Melbourne Institute for Indigenous Development at the University of Melbourne.

A full transcript of this episode is available on Monash Lens.

Learn more:
Saving language: The power of ancient Indigenous oral traditions
Our history, our nation: Why the National Archives must be preserved
The Uluru Statement from the Heart
Directory of language apps

“What Happens Next?” will be back next week with part two of this series, “Can We Save Endangered Languages?”.

If you’re enjoying the show, don’t forget to subscribe, or rate or review “What Happens Next?”  to help listeners like yourself discover it.

21.10.22 What Happens Next? What Do We Lose When Languages Die? | 70
When we travel through Europe, we expect to experience a wide array of culture and customs – in each country, different foods, different views, and different languages.
That’s not the expectation visitors to Australia have, but perhaps they should. Before British colonisation, this land was home to nearly 300 distinct Indigenous languages.
But frontier violence, years of harmful policies, and entrenched, systemic racism against the Traditional Owners of the land stamped many of those languages out entirely, and those remaining have struggled to survive, spoken in secret or kept alive only in the memories of Elders. Today, just 10 Indigenous Australian languages are considered strong.
In a new episode of Monash University’s podcast, “What Happens Next?”, linguists and Indigenous human rights advocates discuss how we lost these languages, what it means when a language is sleeping, and the lengths communities are going to to wake them up again.
Host Dr Susan Carland is joined this week by <a href="https://research.monash.edu/en/persons/john-bradley?utm_campaign=RESCH_ART&amp;utm_source=omny_studio&amp;utm_medium=organic&amp;utm_content=JohnBradley_website_oct_australia">Associate Professor John Bradley</a>, Acting Deputy Director of Monash University’s Indigenous Studies Centre; <a href="https://research.monash.edu/en/persons/alice-gaby?utm_campaign=RESCH_ART&amp;utm_source=omny_studio&amp;utm_medium=organic&amp;utm_content=AliceGaby_website_oct_australia">Associate Professor Alice Gaby</a>, Deputy Chair of the Board of Living Languages; and Monash alumna <a href="https://publishing.monash.edu/authors/inala-cooper/?utm_campaign=ERDAA_ERD&amp;utm_source=omny_studio&amp;utm_medium=organic&amp;utm_content=InalaCooper_website_oct_australia">Inala Cooper</a>, Director of Murrup Barak, the Melbourne Institute for Indigenous Development at the University of Melbourne.
<a href="https://lens.monash.edu/@what-happens-next/2022/10/21/1385197/whnpodcast-languages-1?utm_campaign=WHNPD_BRA&amp;utm_source=omny_studio&amp;utm_medium=organic&amp;utm_content=S7E70_podcast_oct_australia">A full transcript of this episode is available on Monash Lens.</a>
Learn more:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://lens.monash.edu/@john-bradley/2018/11/15/1364032/saving-language-the-power-of-ancient-indigenous-oral-traditions?utm_campaign=MLENS_ART&amp;utm_source=omny_studio&amp;utm_medium=organic&amp;utm_content=Oral%20traditions_article_oct_australia">Saving language: The power of ancient Indigenous oral traditions</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://lens.monash.edu/@politics-society/2021/06/17/1383400/our-history-our-nation-why-the-national-archives-must-be-preserved?utm_campaign=MLENS_ART&amp;utm_source=omny_studio&amp;utm_medium=organic&amp;utm_content=NationalArchives_article_oct_australia">Our history, our nation: Why the National Archives must be preserved</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://ulurustatement.org/">The Uluru Statement from the Heart</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.creativespirits.info/resources/apps#language-apps">Directory of language apps</a></li>
</ul>
“What Happens Next?” will be back next week with part two of this series, “Can We Save Endangered Languages?”.
If you’re enjoying the show,<a href="https://podfollow.com/1485676423"> don’t forget to subscribe</a>, or rate or review “What Happens Next?”  to help listeners like yourself discover it.

The Handmaid’s Tale. Brave New World. Mad Max. Fictional dystopias have never seemed so close to becoming reality. Is it too late to change our course?

What Happens Next?, a podcast from Monash University, examines some of the biggest challenges facing our world and asks the experts, what will happen if we don't change? And what can we do to create a better future? Learn from leaders, listen to the people making a difference, and discover how you can help drive change.

The Handmaid&rsquo;s Tale. Brave New World. Mad Max. Fictional dystopias have never seemed so close to becoming reality. Is it too late to change our course?
What Happens Next?, a podcast from Monash University, examines some of the biggest challenges facing our world and asks the experts, what will happen if we don't change? And what can we do to create a better future? Learn from leaders, listen to the people making a difference, and discover how you can help drive change.

What Happens Next?, a podcast from Monash University, examines some of the biggest challenges facing our world and asks the experts, what will happen if we don't change? And what can we do to create a better future?

What Happens Next?

Fictional dystopias have never seemed so close to becoming reality. Is it too late to change our course? On Monash University's podcast, academic and commentator Dr Susan Carland steps through the sliding doors with global experts and thought leaders to find out what could happen if we don’t change – and what the world could look like if we do. To learn more, visit lens.monash.edu.

Fictional dystopias have never seemed so close to becoming reality. Is it too late to change our course? On Monash University's podcast, academic and commentator Dr Susan Carland steps through the sliding doors with global experts and thought leaders to find out what could happen if we don’t change – and what the world could look like if we do. To learn more, visit <a href="https://lens.monash.edu/@what-happens-next">lens.monash.edu.</a>

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