Language policy in Nunavut

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Official Languages Act
Leg Building Iqaluit 2000-08-27.jpg
Legislative Assembly of Nunavut
CitationSNu 2008, c. 10, or CSNu, O-20
Assented toJune 4, 2008
Status: In force (amended)
Inuit Language Protection Act
Leg Building Iqaluit 2000-08-27.jpg
Legislative Assembly of Nunavut
Citation2008 c. 17
Assented toSeptember 17, 2008
Status: In force (amended)

Language policy in Nunavut is defined by two principal Acts of the Legislative Assembly: the Official Languages Act ( French : Loi sur les langues officielles) and the Inuit Language Protection Act (French : Loi sur la protection de la langue inuit), two laws enacted in 2008 which mean that Nunavut has three official languages. [1] The Acts establish that the official languages of Nunavut are: Inuit Language (Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut [2] ), English and French. [3] Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun are frequently grouped together as "Inuit Language" or "Inuktut". [4] [5]

Contents

History

French was made an official language in 1877 by the then-territorial government of the North-West Territories. After a lengthy and bitter debate resulting from a speech from the throne in 1888 by Lieutenant Governor Joseph Royal, the members of the time voted on more than one occasion to nullify this and make English the only language used in the assembly. After some conflict with the Confederation Government in Ottawa, and a decisive vote on January 19, 1892, the assembly members voted for an English-only territory.

Nunavut separated from the Northwest Territories and became its own territory on April 1, 1999. [6] According to Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, the federal government blocked language protections from being included in the formal land claim agreement in 1990 under which Nunavut was established. [7] Nunavut inherited the Official Languages Act of the Northwest Territories, which was enacted in 1984. [7]

Provisions

The Official Languages Act gives speakers to have the right to use any of the official languages. [1] [8]

The Inuit Language Protection Act requires that all private businesses and government offices across Nunavut must offer services and communication in either Inuktitut or Inuinnaqtun. [9]

The Acts establishes the Language Commissioner of Nunavut. [10]

Implementation

Parts of the Official Languages Act first came into force on April 1, 2013, and the Inuit Language Protection Act came into stages. [8] Both Acts came into full force on July 9, 2017. [9]

The Nunavut government published an implementation planned titled "Uqausivut 2.0" in 2018. [11]

In 2023, Nunavut reviewed the Act for the first time in 15 years - the legislation states a requirement to hold a review after 5 years. [12]

The federal government has been criticized by the Languages Commissioner of Nunavut for not for not following the rules. [13]

Criticism

In a 2019, a United Nations meeting on indigenous languages the president of Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, Aluki Kotierk described the situation as "cultural genocide" due to a lack of Inuit language provision in education at the time. [14] In 2020, the Inuit Language Protection Act was amended so that it fit together with the territory's Education Act. [15]

The Act has been criticized for Inuit languages being less accessible than other languages. [16]

References

  1. 1 2 "Official Languages Act, CSNu, c O-20". p. 4. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  2. ↑ "Inuit Language Protection Act, CSNu, c I-140". p. 4. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  3. ↑ Barr, Lisa (February 11, 2025). "What language is spoken in Nunavut?". Geographic FAQ Hub: Answers to Your Global Questions. Archived from the original on April 17, 2025. Retrieved August 4, 2025.
  4. ↑ Cahill, Griffin (2024). "Inuit language(s): Interpreting official language legislation in Nunavut" . Working Papers in Applied Linguistics and Linguistics at York. 4 (SI): 30–35. doi:10.25071/2564-2855.43. ISSN   2564-2855.
  5. ↑ "We Speak Inuktut" . Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Jigging, country food and music: Iqaluit celebrates a quarter-century of Nunavut". CBC News. April 2, 2024. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  7. 1 2 Bell, Jim (December 9, 2019). "Inuit org uses 30-year-old document to allege Ottawa "blocked" language rights". Nunatsiaq News. Archived from the original on June 4, 2023. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  8. 1 2 Varga, Peter (May 13, 2013). "Nunavut's languages commissioner explains language laws to Iqaluit city council". Nunatsiaq News. Archived from the original on November 2, 2018. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  9. 1 2 Strong, Walter (July 31, 2017). "Provisions of Inuit Language Protection Act now in force across Nunavut". CBC News. Archived from the original on March 22, 2018. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Karliin Aariak to be named Nunavut languages commissioner". Nunatsiaq News. February 3, 2020. Archived from the original on March 12, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  11. ↑ Dhir, TJ (February 26, 2025). "Revitalization of two Inuktut dialects discussed in Nunavut legislature". CBC News. Archived from the original on March 3, 2025. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  12. ↑ Tranter, Emma (October 1, 2023). "Nunavut reviewing its language laws for the 1st time". CBC News. Archived from the original on January 6, 2024. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  13. ↑ "Federal agencies in Nunavut not following the rules, says languages commissioner". CBC News. January 31, 2023. Archived from the original on February 2, 2023. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  14. ↑ Beattie, Samantha (April 24, 2019). "Inuit Enduring Cultural Genocide As Languages Disappear, UN Hears". HuffPost. Archived from the original on April 22, 2023. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  15. ↑ "'Cultural genocide:' Nunavut passes changes to education, language protection acts". CBC News. November 10, 2020. Archived from the original on April 28, 2022. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
  16. ↑ Dorward, Kira Wronska (April 8, 2024). "'We're constantly proud and aware,' says Nunavut languages commissioner Karliin Aariak". Nunavut News. Archived from the original on January 17, 2025. Retrieved April 16, 2025.

"YOUR LINGUISTIC RIGHTS". Office of the Language Commissioner of Nunavut. Retrieved April 16, 2025.

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