Numa Speakers at McDermitt: Language Retention Video Project

 Collection
Identifier: NC1349

Scope and Contents

The Numa Speakers at McDermitt: Language Retention Video Project contains original tapes made as a part of the documentary video project between June 1995 and June 1996 for language preservation at the Fort McDermitt Paiute-Shoshone Reservation. The videos document storytelling by Northern Paiute elders including Nina Crutcher, Ivie Garfield, Theodore Brown, Birdie Smart, Florine McKee, and Art Cavanaugh. The recordings are primarily in digi-beta master format with some in digital format and additional VHS copies.

Dates

  • 1995-2013

Creator

Language of Materials

Indigenous languages represented in the collection: Numu

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research. Some materials may be inaccessible due to format. Materials must be used on-site; advance notice suggested. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Historical Note

The Nimi Storytelling: Tools for Language Preservation grant was a documentary video project that was part of an ongoing effort to preserve the Numu language at Fort McDermitt Paiute-Shoshone Reservation in northern Nevada. In 1995, a team comprised of Harold Abel (fluent Northern Paiute speaker), Judy Trejo (fluent Northern Paiute speaker), Molly Dufort (anthropologist), and JoAnne Peden (ethnographic filmmaker) applied for and received a Great Basin Studies grant from the Sven and Astrid Liljeblad Endowment Fund. The goal of the documentary video project was to produce a short video of storytellers from McDermitt telling legends and stories in the Northern Paiute language that could be used as a language preservation tool with children at McDermitt who were speakers or semi-speakers of Northern Paiute. The work for the project took place between August 1995 and June 1996, culminating in a presentation to the McDermitt tribal community in May 1997.

[Information on the grant adapted from the Nimi Storytelling Tools for Language Preservation Final Report, NC1349_75]

Extent

4.147 Linear Feet (6 boxes)

Additional Description

Abstract

The Nimi Storytelling: Tools for Language Preservation grant was a documentary video project that was part of an ongoing effort to preserve the Numu language at Fort McDermitt Paiute-Shoshone Reservation in northern Nevada. The collection contains original video tapes made for the documentary between 1995 and 1996.

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by JoAnne Peden and Kay Fowler in February 2015.

Subjects

Related Names

Creator

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Guide to the Numa Speakers at McDermitt: Language Retention Video Project
Status
Completed
Author
Jessica Maddox
Date
August 2021
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the University of Nevada, Reno. Special Collections Department Repository

https://library.unr.edu/SpeColl
Contact:
Mathewson-IGT Knowledge Center
1664 N. Virginia St.
Reno Nevada 89557-0322 USA
775-682-5665
775-682-5724 (Fax)