sherrymaki25-blog-blog - Tumblr blog

sherrymaki25-blog-blog · 2 years

Text

About Language

I had a conversation about language with a Ryukyuan who grew up in Luchu. They told me my view of language was Westernized, and it’s my Western education that caused me to think in this way. After reflection, I realized they were right.

To explain, let me first ask you: What is the difference between a “language” and a “dialect”? Some say “dialects” of a language are mutually intelligible, while languages are not.

The truth is, and even Western linguists know this but won’t say it, there isn’t really any difference between what’s called a “dialect”, and what’s called a “language”. In both cases, they refer to a way of speaking used by a community. In both cases, a particular way of speaking is used by a group of people who share a common identity.

The reality is that language change is generally on a continuum. And that mutual intelligibility is often unbroken. For example, people of village A may have a pretty easy time understanding people of neighboring village B, even if it’s a little different . And people of village B can easily understand people of neighboring village C, and C of D. But the villagers of A may have a hard time understanding people of village D. At what point does a way of speaking become a different language? It’s completely arbitrary.

Do you know how many languages there are in Luchu? Some say 6, some say 8, some say at least 12. There is no agreed upon number. And the reason why is because the Western conception of “language vs dialect”is faulty. There are as many ways of speaking as there are villages in all of Luchu.

In Uchinaaguchi, there is just one word for a way of speaking: “kutuba”. You can refer to a community’s way of speaking by using the name of their village + “kutuba”. For example, Naafakutuba, Itomankutuba, etc.. There is no need for a “language” vs “dialect” distinction in Uchinaaguchi, because there isn’t one. This distinction was a Western invention. Think about how degrading it is to call one way of speaking the “standard”, and other ways of speaking, just “dialects”.

I have known this for a while. But I continued to say it’s important to call Ryukyuan languages “languages” instead of “dialects”, for the sole reason that people take “languages” more seriously than “dialects”. But in doing so, I was acting in bad faith. Because the truth is, there is no difference.

This distinction is a Western concept that I imposed on our kutuba. It was violent, and I regret doing this. All ways of speaking, all kutuba are important. I was thinking in a Westernized way, and my Western education is what led me to think in this harmful manner.

What I said applies to pretty much everything we call, in English, a language. For example, with Japanese, there are many ways of speaking- Osaka-ben, Nagoya-ben, Touhoku-ben. People from one area of Japan may have a really tough time understanding people of a much further area of Japan. But the link is people in all these areas (besides perhaps some minorities) consider themselves Japanese. So they don’t mind calling all these different ways of speaking Japanese. Same goes for all other languages. If people share a common national identity, why not let these different ways of speaking be united under a “language” if that’s what the people want.

So then apply this logic to Ryukyu. How many “languages” do we have: 6? 8? 12? As many as there are villages? Or do we all speak “Ryukyuan”, just in our own ways in our own villages?

I think the answer is, what do the people want? I cannot decide for the community. I am one person, and I am humble enough to recognize that I have my limits as someone who grew up in a Western country and is still decolonizing. Western logic cannot & does not apply to Asian countries. The English language is a violent, colonial language, and there are concepts in other languages that the English language is not equipped to articulate.

Anyways, this is what I have been reflecting on. Nifee deebiru for reading.

7 notes · View notes

sherrymaki25-blog-blog · 3 years

Text

Cobra Kai

I confess, I haven’t seen all the episodes yet in Cobra Kai, but when I heard that there would be some episodes set in Okinawa (not actually filmed in Okinawa though), I skipped to Season 3 to watch them. As an Okinawan-American, I can’t give a good assessment of how accurately the show represented Okinawa since I didn’t grow up there, but I was extremely happy to see the character Tomiko, played by Tamlyn Tomita, say several words in Uchinaaguchi.

Here are some of the words I heard:

- Haisai (はいさい）- Means “Hello”. I explained about this word in more detail in a previous post.

- Akisamiyoo (あきさみよー) - It’s kinda like “Oh my God!” You say it when you are very shocked at something. This is a phrase I remember hearing my Okinawan mom say.

- Nankuru naisaa (なんくるないさー）- This is a commonly known phrase in Okinawa, but it’s often misunderstood. While many people think it just means “Don’t worry”, something you say to comfort someone, there’s more to it. “Nankuru naisaa” actually an abbreviation of the full phrase “Makutu sookee nankuru naisaa (まくとぅそーけーなんくるないさー), which means something like, “If you do to right thing and follow the right path, you will be OK.” I think it’s a great proverb, and I like how it includes the meaning of doing the right thing.

- Nifee deebiru (にふぇーでーびる） - It means “thank you”, very common phrase and well-known in Okinawa. It’s at a standard level of politeness, but if you want to be more casual, you can say “Nifeeroo/Nifeedoo” (にふぇーろー/にふぇーどー), which is like “Thanks”. The past tense of Nifee Deebiru is Nifee deebitan (にふぇーでーびたん）, which is used when you want to really express gratitude for something someone did for you.

- Wanumuyagwaa (わんうむやぐぁー）- It means “My dear child”. “Wan” mean “My”, and “Umuyagwaa” means dear child. “Gwa” is a diminutive marker that also mean “little”, so it’s an affectionate way to refer to someone.

- Tanmee (たんめー) - As was explained in the show, it means “grandfather”. There are other words for grandfather such as “Usumee” (うすめー) and “Wikigafaafuji” (ゐきがふぁーふじ）. For grandmother, you can say “Nmee”（んめー）, “Hamee” (はーめー）、or “Winagufaafuji” (ゐなぐふぁーふじ） It was so nice to hear the Okinawan language on a mainstream American show. One issue I have though is that in the subtitles, it says “Japanese”. It does bother me because it’s a common misconception that the Okinawan language is the same as Japanese. It’s not- linguists recognize it as a separate language. Nevertheless, I was happy to hear my heritage language being spoken, and i would love to hear more of it in the media.

14 notes · View notes

sherrymaki25-blog-blog · 3 years

Text

Haisai or Haitai?

Haisai and Haitai both mean “Hello” in Uchinaaguchi, but what is the difference? Both are commonly used in Okinawa today, and it is said that “Haisai” is used by men/male-presenting people, while “Haitai” is used by women/female-presenting people. When I see people teach the difference between Haisai and Haitai, they usually say that the distinction is strict, that women can’t say “Haisai” for example. However, I’ve learned that it depends on the dialect. I believe the Shuri dialect (considered the most prestigious dialect) has this distinction, while some other dialects don’t. My friend from Naha said that when he was growing up, both men and women would say “Haisai”. Personally, I prefer “Haisai” as a gender-neutral word. It is simpler, and doesn’t complicate things for people who are LGBTQIA. With that said, I leave it up to you whichever word you prefer to use :)

3 notes · View notes

sherrymaki25-blog-blog · 3 years

Text

うちなーんちゅとしてのアイデンティティ

やまとんちゅ、っていうくくりもきっと、うちなーぐちがなくなったら、なくなくなるんだろうな、って思う。うちなーぐちがなくなったら、”沖縄らしさ”もなくなってしまうんじゃないだろうか。

The term “Yamatonchu"itself is probably going to disappear when we lose Ryukyuan langauges….I wonder how the loss of the language would affect the society??

【うちなーんちゅとうちなーアイディンティティー】 Uchinanchu & Uchina Identity

大体のうちなーんちゅは Probably most Uchinanchu (people of Okinawa, in Uchinagushi) would answer to the following questions ….

①「あなたは日本人ですか？」と質問されると　「はい、日本人です」と答える。

①　Are you a Japanese?

Yes, I am a Japanese. ②「あなたは　うちなーんちゅ　ですか？」と聞かれると　「はい、うちなーんちゅです」と答える。

②　Are you Uchinanchu?

Yes, I am Uchinanshu. ③「あなたは　やまとぅんちゅ　ですか？」と聞かれると　「いいえ、違います。私はうちなーんちゅです」と答えるはず。

③　Are you a Yamatonchu (people from Japan)?

No, I am not…..

①と③は同じ質問のはずなのに答えが間逆。

Aren’t ①＆③ same questions? 日本語で質問しているか、うちなーぐちで質問しているかの違い。

The only difference is if one is asked whether in Uchinaguchi or Japanese…. 「うちなーぐち　なんて、なくなっても困らんよ～」って声をよく聞くけど、本当にそうかなぁ。

Some say, we don’t care if Uchinaguchi becomes extinct…..

But I wonder if it is really true….. うちなーぐちがなくなってしまったら我ったー　うちなーんちゅは　どうなってしまうんだろう？

If we lose Uchinaguchi,

What happens to our Uchinanchu?

(Translated by me)

34 notes · View notes

sherrymaki25-blog-blog · 3 years

Photo

Revisiting The Koza Uprising in Global Perspectives

December 19 @ 4:30 pm - 6:00 pm | Virtual Event

Fifty years ago this December, Okinawan protests against US military rule turned violent for the first and, so far, only time. On the anniversary, the Okinawa Memories Initiative will host a public discussion about the “Koza Riots,” featuring an eyewitness photojournalist, an American army veteran who had been stationed in Okinawa and two Okinawan American scholars reflecting on race and the meaning of the event fifty years on in the days of Black Lives Matter.

The event will kick off with remarks from Alan Christy, Director of the Okinawa Memories Initiative. We will then journey to Okinawa, where we will hear from Kazuo Kuniyoshi, who will discuss Mr. Kuniyoshi’s experience on the streets of Koza as a photojournalist and resident of the city on the night of December 20, 1970. Their conversation will feature photographs taken by Mr. Kuniyoshi that night as well as a tour of the district as it is today. The conversation will continue between Stan Rushworth and Dustin Wright, Associate Director of OMI, who will discuss Mr. Rushworth’s experiences as an American soldier stationed in Okinawa during the Vietnam War. Finally, we will hear from Alexyss McClellan-Ufugusuku and Wesley Ueunten who will discuss the meaning of the Koza Riot/Uprising from the perspective of the global Okinawan diaspora. The program will also feature music by Wesley Ueunten, Francis Wong and Scott Oshiro as interludes between interviews.

Register: https://ucsc.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_GdIcS0QwQ3WiUEfT1YCE3Q

https://thi.ucsc.edu/event/revisiting-the-koza-uprising-in-global-perspectives/?fbclid=IwAR091lu43-faalNVXnkyjRAgZRCaUbMDMkzBGSyE6ZGKYjxuw_mty2PwC8A

15 notes · View notes

sherrymaki25-blog-blog · 3 years

Text

What I have trouble understanding is that why people who speak a minority language/dialect would rather not let foreigners learn it even if it could possibly mean saving it from extinction. Would any of you mind enlightening me a little?

799 notes · View notes

sherrymaki25-blog-blog · 3 years

Photo

“45 years ago today, the Chicago Police Department and the FBI murdered Chicago Black Panther Chairman Fred Hampton while he slept in bed. The assassination was both the goal and endpoint of an illegal nighttime raid that saw agents and officers spray more than ninety bullets into the apartment where he, his pregnant fiance, and others slept. Prior to his death, Hampton had been the leader of a citywide interracial organizing effort, laboring to bring blacks, Puerto Ricans, and poor whites into a functioning alliance – what he called a “Rainbow Coalition.” Among his other core initiatives were the negotiation of a truce between Chicago’s gangs to curb street violence, establishment of a free health care clinic for the urban poor, and implementation of one of the most successful Free Breakfast for Children programs that the Panthers ever ran. He was 21 years old when they murdered him. No one was ever convicted in his death. The City of Chicago later settled a civil case for nearly two million dollars.“

-via Simon Balto

5K notes · View notes

sherrymaki25-blog-blog · 4 years

Link

By Jon Mitchell

Host to 31 U.S. military bases, Okinawa, Japan’s southernmost prefecture, is no stranger to the risks of bearing the burden of the U.S.-Japan alliance. In 1959, the U.S. military accidentally shot a nuclear rocket into a local harbor; six years later, it lost a hydrogen bomb in nearby seas; then in 1969, a leak of nerve agent on the island so shocked the world that President Richard Nixon was forced to renounce his nation’s first-use policy on chemical weapons.

But these incidents pale compared to what Okinawans are facing today: the U.S. military has polluted the drinking water for 450,000 people – a third of the prefecture’s population – in the worst case of environmental contamination in the island’s history.

The chemicals causing the problem are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (aka PFAS) which are used in the production of food wrapping, nonstick cookware and military firefighting foams. PFAS are highly resistant to heat, oil and water, but in these strengths lie their dangers. Virtually indestructible in nature, they accumulate in our bodies, taking decades to expel. According to the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, health problems linked to PFAS include cancers of the kidneys and testicles, high cholesterol and decreased vaccine response – a particular concern during the current pandemic.

Okinawans first realized their island was contaminated with PFAS in 2016 when tests by local authorities detected high levels of the substances in rivers running through and near Kadena Air Base, the largest U.S. Air Force installation in the Pacific. The discovery prompted further checks near military facilities on the island, revealing elevated PFAS levels in spring water, fish and farmers’ fields. Most alarming, prefectural officials found PFAS in the island’s drinking water, which is sourced from rivers near Kadena Air Base and an aquifer beneath the facility. Levels peaked at 120 parts per trillion (ppt); as a comparison, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommends a maximum level of 70 ppt – but even this, say experts, is way too high.