Why aren native Americans learning their language?
Native Americans aren’t learning their languages because the languages are lost. There is no one to teach the younger members of the tribe how to speak them. In the 1800’s reservation schools would forbid the use of the native language and a lot of children didn’t learn their language. If a language isn’t used it dies. A few years ago I was doing research at U C Santa Barbara in the history department and was able to meet a lady who was the last Yokut to speak her tribes language. She was in her 70’s and was trying to teach younger Yokut members the language. If she doesn’t do this when she dies so will the language. This has happened to hundreds of tribes and languages so there are people who aren’t able to learn their native language because no one knows it. It is too bad.
