Hän Revitalization Project

The Hän language is extremely endangered, with only six remaining speakers.


Hän is a Dene language spoken in Alaska and the Yukon Territory. I have been working on Hän since 2016 with Alaska-based language consultants. My work involves documentation, revitalization, and theoretical research.


In 2021, the Hn Revitalization Project received a $2000 grant from Native Languages of the Americas.


Page Contents:

Me with Ruth Ridley, the youngest remaining speaker of Hän.

The Hän Revitalization Project

Since 2016, Blake Lehman (PhD Candidate, UCLA) and I have been documenting Hän, working with the few remaining speakers, to create a clear record of the language in order to preserve the culture for future generations.

I am now heading a team that is working with the Eagle tribe to create materials for those trying to learn the language, including:

  • a phrasebook

  • flashcards

  • a five chapter textbook for beginner language learners

  • language games

  • worksheets

  • traditional stories of various reading levels

  • audio files of stories

  • videos with bilingual subtitles describing cultural customs

We are partnering with the Eagle Village Tribal Council, Eagle Chief Karma Ulvi, the Doyon Foundation, and the Alaska Native Language Archive to design these materials and make them accessible to the public.

Material Prototypes

Enjoy pictures of our first printed materials (hover over pictures and click <> to scroll). Below the carousel are PDF copies of all of our current materials.

Download Your Own Copies

Phrasebook v8 quarter pages.pdf

Phrasebook

Small enough to fit in a coat pocket and be used everywhere!

EnglishHanMerged.pdf

Translation Flashcards

Hän on the front and English on the back

OnlyHanMerged.pdf

Immersion Flashcards

Hn on both sides

Merged Stories versions 3-3-3-3-6-3-3.pdf

Story Books

with morphological glosses

Meet The Team

Ruth Ridley
Primary Language Consultant

Maura O'Leary
UCLA PhD Candidate in Semantics

Blake Lehman
UCLA PhD Candidate in Phonology

Rebecca Zhu
Research Assistant

Aashna Unadkat
Research Assistant

McKenna Kading
Research Assistant

Slides: Revitalizing a Pronominal System

Click the "pop-out" button in the top right corner of the slides below to view in full screen, with the option to download.

Revitalizing a Pronominal System.pdf