Here lived Dolly Pentreath, one of the last speakers of the Cornish language, as her native tongue. She died December 1777.” Written on the stone wall in South West England, this linguistic monument acknowledges the literal extinction of the Kernewek, known as Cornish. However, recently, Kernewek has been viewed as one of the few languages that successfully “came back from the dead,” and it is being selected as a second language for a growing number of speakers. This effort to revitalize an endangered language evidently shows how language is a dedicated mixture of culture, lifestyle, and identity.
Kernewek, an Indo-European Celtic language, dates back to the British Isles during the Roman Empire and was used in Cornwall, in the southwest of England. Before English took over as the primary language in Cornwall, it formerly coexisted with its sister languages, Welsh, and Breton. Kernewek barely survived until the mid-18th century, maintained as a vernacular or a community language, but Kernewek enjoyed a dazzling transformation of the status of a language due to the efforts of a scholar named Henry Jenner, who set off a kickstart in language revitalization.
Cornwall and Kernewek
In 2010, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) changed Kernewek’s status from “extinct” to “critically endangered”, highlighting the language’s shocking revival. Though Kernewek once enabled communication among 38,000 people in the 17th century, the Tudor period, which occurred between 1485 and 1603, the use of Kernewek was weakened as the Bible lacked translation in Kernewek. Moreover, as Cornish churches were coerced to use English after the Prayer Book Rebellion in 1549 which brought a mass uprising in the Southwest against the English monarchy, the language seemed to fade into history.
Many countries make an effort to resuscitate their past languages, but few are successful. Yet, in the case of Kernewek, it has regained its power as a means of communication by savoring the meticulous strategies planned by its scholars. Education initiatives have been a key component of several revival plans in terms of preserving the language. One such initiative, “Go Cornish”, has provided methodical programs to teach Kernewek in primary schools. According to BBC, it helps around 10,000 students learn Kernewek in 50 primary schools. “Pur lowen on ni bos meur a Skolyow Kynsa omrolys rag towlen Go Cornish,” (We are delighted that so many primary schools have signed up for the “Go Cornish” program), stated Will Coleman of Go Cornish, according to the Cornwall Council.
Alongside educational support, the preservation of Kernewek owes much to the cultural initiatives in the Cornwall region, such as literary documents and media representations. Located in the former mining town of Camborne, its own language bookshop, Kowsva, enriches full copies of Tin Tin comics, English-Kernewek dictionaries, and medieval plays. Cultural centers that house old Kernewek archives also enable a lively language exchange for their speakers. In addition, the provision of programming in Kernewek by BBC Radio Cornwall and the release of Gwenno Saunders’ music album Le Kov suggest that Kernewek is no longer a dead language. Professor Kim Sungdo (Department of Linguistics) also comments, “Revitalizing language cannot proceed without continuous communication among language speakers, considering the original purpose of what language is. Considering this, the Cornish government and its speakers are successfully bringing up Kernewek to discourse, which may be one of the major factors of this revival.” These cases illustrate that the revitalization of an endangered language cannot be accomplished solely by scholars and institutions. It demands the arduous participation of its language users, who comprise a community of their own.
Rediscovering Culture Through Language
Despite the considerable effort, there is still some uncertainty surrounding whether reviving a dead language that no longer fits into its communicative usage is worthwhile. The question seems natural, given that a research paper from The First Peoples’ Cultural Council has estimated that the cost of revitalizing an indigenous language in Canada could exceed 90 million dollars (CAD). Nevertheless, many countries indicate that it is not the language per se, but rather, rediscovering their cultural identity and heritage. Lance Twitchell, who teaches an indigenous language called “Lingit” mentioned, “When you take somebody’s language away, you disconnect people from the land and you disconnect people from their ancestors,” during an interview with The Christian Science Monitor. Professor Kim also adds, “Think of how the Joseon Dynasty struggled to preserve historical records in Korean. Reclamation empowers people who have lost their sense of pride and, at times, even gives them the reason to live by constructing their cultural autonomy.”
Karin Easton, President of the Federation of Cornwall Societies, explained that “there was a strong feeling to grasp Cornish culture before it disappeared entirely,” according to BBC. By reconnecting their historical roots, Easton mentions that they are distinguishing English and Cornish cultures, which have historically been subject to assimilation. One distinct example would be the culinary differences, where the Cornish serve their scones with cream first and then jam, in contrast to the English tradition of spreading jam first. In addition, historical sites during the Cornish rebellion of 1497 have been recognized, where suppressions of Kernewek and their culture rest. Along with their rediscoveries, BBC adds that the Cornwall Societies plan to promote their tourism by discovering unique histories, as well as marketing themselves as “the wild land to the west” and the mythical home of King Arthur.
No one would currently question the revival of the Kernewek language because it is represented in education, the media, and historical records. There is now a thriving community of Cornish pub singers, Cornish language classes, Cornish signs, and even native Cornish speakers thanks to the resurrection of efforts to revitalize the Cornish language. With a renewed emphasis on their language, Cornwall people as well as other nations have undoubtedly been able to distinguish themselves from the prevailing English culture, revisiting their past cultures and identities. As Kernewek thrives, it appears that its UNESCO-designated “critically endangered” status will soon change, heralding a promising future for the Kernewek Renaissance.
