SOAS Research Online

Abstract

As more and more linguists are shifting towards recognising and documenting linguistic ecosystems, multilingual, and/or translanguaging practices (Di Carlo, Ojong Diba, & Good 2021), the question remains as to how these practices are navigated and represented at the policy level. The Young Historians of Sonsorol (YH) are a youth group focusing on the preservation of the Sonsorolese language and culture in the Republic of Palau. Sonsorolese is a language in the Republic of Palau, spoken in the Outer Islands of the Republic, Sonsorol, Fanna, Pulo Anna, and Merir, and only has official status within the State of Sonsorol. This paper aims to answer the following questions: How did speakers of the Sonsorolese assert their linguistic human rights at the policy level during the youth-led language documentation and maintenance initiative (Vita et al. 2023)? What was the role of the initiative? I answer these questions by discussing a) volunteer and general audience’s reactions to the activities and Sonsorolese languages, b) the impact of youth initiatives on the State Legislature within the timeframe of October 2022 to January 2023 and of the 11th Regular Session of the Sonsorol State Legislature in January 2023; and c) its potential implications concerning language variation within the State of Sonsorol. The process involves YH engaging in metadocumentation (Austin 2013), and in particular sociolinguistic documentation (Childs, Good & Mitchell 2014), as well as with policymakers and, finally, YH sharing results in various ways and environments following local norms and practices.