[LINK] The National Post on how a Canadian couple is preserving the Kumzari language of Oman

[rfmcdonald]

The National Post shared Diana Mehta's Canadian Press article noting how a pair of Canadian linguists are preserving the Kumzari language of northern Oman.

Erik Anonby and Christina van der Wal have dedicated nearly a decade to comprehensively documenting the language of Kumzari in a way no one appears to have done before.

Their efforts have seen them spend nearly two years living in the remote village of Kumzar, located on the tip of the Musandam peninsula in northern Oman, immersing themselves and their three young children in the community to study the language now spoken by about 5,000 people.

They’ve since developed a script for the oral language, compiled a dictionary and written a book on the grammar of Kumzari in an effort to help the language thrive in the future.

“It’s our hope that our work will be part of Kumzari living on as a vibrant language,” said Anonby.

[. . .]

Their interaction with Kumzari began in 2006, when after hearing about the language, they made a trip to the village to see whether they’d be able to research the language in depth. On that first visit, they met with community leaders, gained the approval needed for their work, and started building the relationships which would allow them to become a part of the community.