The Austin College Center for Southwestern and Mexican Studies presents Dr. Margaret Field, an authority on endangered languages of Native Americans, presenting a lecture titled, “Yuman Peoples of Baja California: Languages and Oral Traditions.”
The event on February 15, is free and open to the public beginning with a reception at 4:30 p.m. in Wright Campus Center, Johnson Gallery. The talk begins at 5 p.m. in Wright Campus Center, Room 231.
Field is a professor of American Indian studies at San Diego State University with research interests in language socialization, language ideology, language documentation, and the sociolinguistics and pragmatics of American Indian languages. Her current research focuses on documenting the various dialects of Kumeyaay spoken in Baja California as well as the Ko’alh language spoken in Santa Catarina, Barcelona.
“I am a linguist who studies American Indian languages and their uses,” Field says. “Many of them, including Kumeyaay, are now seriously endangered and have only a few speakers left. I am inspired by the fact that the clock is ticking, to document as much as possible of the Kumeyaay language while it is still being actively spoken.”
She received her master’s and doctorate’s degrees in linguistics from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She holds a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Alaska-Fairbanks. Her book, Native American Language Ideologies: Language Beliefs, Practices, and Struggles in Indian Country, was published in 2009.
Austin College, a private national liberal arts college located north of Dallas in Sherman, Texas, has earned reputation for excellence in academic preparation, international study, pre-professional foundations, leadership development, committed faculty, and hands-on, adventurous learning opportunities. One of 40 schools profiled in Loren Pope’s influential book Colleges That Change Lives, Austin College boasts a welcoming community that embraces diversity and individuality, with more than 36 percent of students representing ethnic minorities. A residential student body of 1,250 students and a faculty of more than 100 allow a 12:1 student-faculty ratio and personalized attention. The College is related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA) and cultivates and inclusive atmosphere that supports students’ faith journeys regardless of religious tradition. Founded in 1849, the College is the oldest institution of higher education in Texas operating under original name and charter.