Performance and poetry, song composition and music, and other cultural activities are popular as strategic ways to revitalize minoritized languages. Language activists may both reclaim forsaken linguistic art forms, like traditional storytelling, song and oratory performances, and also experiment with new forms of artistic expression. When music, literary traditions and film are employed in innovative ways by language and cultural promoters, language is embodied and becomes present, not just in everyday life but in larger public spaces – e.g. in plays, performances and festivals, on TV and online. The chapter discusses examples, principles and guidelines, and challenges involved in working with arts, music and other cultural activities. The capsules give examples of language transmission through the arts: the fest-noz night festivals in Breton have become a significant revitalization tool; modern music genres are prominent in grassroots efforts in Latin America; and the Jersey Song Project facilitates collaborative songwriting between local musicians and Jèrriais speakers. Wymysiöeryś, Ainu and Mexican examples are also given.

This chapter explores ethical issues involved in language revitalization. Revitalization projects have different implications for different groups (including outside researchers, local activists, community members and sub-groups within the community) and should be planned in a way that is sensitive to the community’s needs, perspectives and knowledge systems. In cases where there is past or present oppression, discrimination or related traumas, only the community can decide whether and how they wish difficult topics to be brought up. Other issues discussed include the political positioning of researchers working with minority groups, legal issues, ownership, consent and the appropriate sharing of documentation resources. The capsule recounts ethical lessons learned through a collaboration with indigenous researchers in Friendship Centres in Ontario, Canada. The emphasis is on practical involvement in everyday activities so that research is grounded in long-term, reciprocal relationships with the knowledge keepers.

This chapter looks at various kinds of language revitalization communities, and explores issues affecting different community types and subgroups of speakers within communities. Types include ‘original’ or ancestral communities; exiled, forcibly dispersed or resettled communities; diaspora and migrant communities; and communities of practice and learning. The latter are groups which deliberately develop social revitalization networks focusing on efforts to reverse shift, enhance mutual learning and communication, and mobilize available resources. An example of such a project in Nahuatl, Mexico, is described. Various types of speakers of heritage languages are also described, although we emphasize that categorizing individual speakers and their language competence can be counterproductive for people struggling to speak or learn their heritage language. The case studies describe the younger generation’s interest in developing new Wymysiöeryś identities in the twenty-first century; the diverse language practices of diaspora Mixtec communities; and the creation of a community of practice for the revitalization of Greko, Italy.

What should be revitalized? This chapter considers possible targets for revitalization, taking into account factors such as available resources, whether the language is still spoken, in what domains and by whom. Different people in language revitalization movements have different aims and motivations, and choices must be made about what varieties should be prioritized (including elements of language such as topics, registers and vocabulary). The needs and desires of new and old speakers need to be balanced, with compromises between those who want to preserve a ‘pure’ variety of language and what people actually do - particularly new speakers, as the language expands into new domains and new terminology is needed. In the capsules, an activist describes his realisation that for revitalization purposes he needed to give up looking for ‘the pure Wymysiöeryś language’ and start listening to what people were actually saying. Purist attitudes to Spanish influence on Nahuatl are explored, showing how they had counter-productive effects on language survival. Some activists are now starting to encourage young people to create neologisms from within the heritage language.

Marketing language revitalization involves developing ideas aimed at increasing the economic value of an endangered language. This can be achieved by promoting the role of traditional knowledge and local languages in shaping sustainable relationships with the natural environment, as traditional Indigenous models of managing natural resources are known to indirectly support biological diversity and balanced economic activities. The linguistic-cultural revitalization programs run by the Sámi people in Norway and Finland are an example. The economic potential of linguistic-cultural heritage can also be oriented toward tourism, emphasizing uniqueness and authenticity, the history, culture and natural environment of less explored places and their inhabitants. This can generate income to support revitalization activities and improve economic wellbeing; the challenge, however, is to link tourist experiences to genuine language revitalization and marketing efforts, without reducing them to symbolic or folkloric dimensions. Revitalization initiatives in Wymysiöeryś are expected to create permanent jobs and lasting forms of social and community engagement.

Developing community writing systems in marginalized communities may have many benefits. These range from improved self-esteem and visibility of the language, for written communication and the production of materials. Writing is essential for education: both mother tongue-based multilingual education and immersion teaching for revitalization. This chapter reviews practical and ideological considerations in writing oral languages, exploring motivations behind spelling and script choices. It is essential that communities be in control of all activities that aim at establishing community orthographies for their languages – above all, community members must wish to have their languages written. Key factors in designing effective orthographies are considered, including examples of scripts adopted by minority languages and factors that have influenced their choices. One individual recounts his personal journey to writing and creating literature in his language, Wymysiöeryś. Examples are also given of how curriculum development and research are shaped by a focus on Nahuatl ways of thinking and organizing knowledge.

People’s attitudes towards a language are closely related to emotional factors, and the valorization of a language can have a powerful healing effect. In the case of Nawat, El Salvador, Viktor Frankl’s logotherapy approach to psychotherapy is applied to language revitalization. The capsules examine the importance of identity as a motivating factor in four revitalization scenarios. In Wymysiöeryś, changes in negative ideologies were strongly influenced by the interest of external institutions, which also changed the attitude of the municipal government. For Māori speakers, personal identity, community membership and spiritual well-being were far more important motivators for their use of the language than revitalization as a goal in itself. The emotional value of a language and the relationship between speakers and revitalizers is also emphasized for Greko. In Nahuatl, students were empowered by the creation of a monolingual Nahuatl space that enabled them to realise their ability to express themselves in their language. A further capsule explores the role of language activism in empowering a community and influencing policy.

This chapter considers motivations for engaging in language revitalization efforts. These encompass a range of physical, social and psychological factors, including connecting with ancestors, the past, and cultural heritage; healing from personal or historical trauma; building community; knowledge and culture; well-being; and the cognitive benefits of mother-tongue education and multilingualism. Case studies explore the impact of revitalization on physical health and well-being in Okinawa, Japan; the community benefits of a participatory action research project in the Black Tai (Lao Song) community in Thailand; language revitalization benefits in Wymysiöeryś (Wilamowice, Poland). In this case older people, who had been persecuted, were able to connect with young people through rehabilitation activities and community events, improving well-being and leading to positive language attitudes. Finally, Nahuatl identity and prestige have been strengthened through a series of workshops in which native speakers and new speakers could read and discuss colonial Nahuatl documents written by their ancestors.