The Santa Barbara County Archaeological Society is hosting an evening event dedicated to Indigenous language preservation and revitalization. In recognition of Native American Heritage Month, the program will feature a documentary film and a panel discussion with individuals involved in these efforts. The event is open to the public without charge, and no tickets or reservations are necessary.
The featured presentation is “Chasing Voices: The Story of John Peabody Harrington,” a 56-minute documentary released in 2021. Daniel Golding, a member of the Quechan tribe and the film's producer and director, will introduce the movie. The documentary explores the national scope and significant impact of Harrington's work, a linguist and ethnologist with strong local ties who graduated from Santa Barbara High School. Harrington repeatedly returned to the area during his long career as part of an extensive effort to document Native American languages.
Over his 50-year career, John Peabody Harrington meticulously collected an extensive record, amassing well over one million pages of notes on more than 100 distinct Native American languages. His diligent work, coupled with the trust of tribal elders who shared their knowledge, has provided a crucial foundation. Today, descendants of these last speakers are actively reviving their ancestral languages, drawing upon the materials Harrington preserved.
A key participant in the evening’s program is James Yee, a UCSB Linguistics Ph.D. candidate and the past chairman of the Barbareño Band of Chumash Indians. Yee will begin the event by offering a welcoming statement in his ancestral language, ‘alapkaswa’. This is the Indigenous language specific to the Santa Barbara region, also known as Barbareño Chumash. The screening of “Chasing Voices” holds particular regional significance as Yee's aunt, the late Chumash Elder Ernestine Ygnacio-DeSoto, appears in the film. The entire screening is dedicated to her memory.
Following the documentary, Daniel Golding and James Yee will lead a panel discussion. They will be joined by other individuals who are engaged in Indigenous language revitalization efforts. The panel will also dedicate time to answer questions from the audience, fostering further engagement and understanding of the challenges and successes in bringing these languages back to life.
This evening aims to illuminate the profound historical and ongoing efforts to protect and rejuvenate Indigenous languages, connecting national scholarship with specific local heritage through the lens of figures like Harrington and contemporary advocates like Yee. The free access underscores the community-focused nature of this celebration during Native American Heritage Month.
