Dr. Siri Tuttle appointed Interim Director of ANLA

Please join us in welcoming Dr. Siri Tuttle as Interim Director of the Alaska Native Language Archive. Siri is Associate Professor of Linguistics at the Alaska Native Language Center and has extensive experience in the documentation and conservation of Alaska Native languages. Dr. Tuttle will continue the important work of ANLA in preserving and archiving the Alaska Native Language collections and making them available to the public, both physically and electronically.

Files offline, June 19-21

Due to scheduled maintenance at the Arctic Region Supercomputing Center, ANLA digital files will be unavailable from 9:00 AM AST on June 19 through 9:00 PM AST on June 21. Our catalog will continue to accessible.

Digital files offline Aug 21

Due to scheduled maintenance, digital files will be unavailable on August 21, 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM AKDT. Access to catalog metadata will be unaffected.

Preserving the Past: A Basic Handbook for Archiving in Rural Alaska

I created this handbook after several conversations with Alaskans at the Alaska Library Association meeting in Fairbanks in February 2011. Many people asked me questions like “What do I do with my cassette tapes” or, “How can I start archiving some my communities' materials?” My intent is to provide a resource for rural Alaskans, and other people who are looking to start an archive, learn how to digitize tapes, or find a place to donate materials. This is a 15 page basic handbook that can be used by anyone; high-school students and Elders will be able to make use of it. While the resources are available, they are not truly accessible because they are often incredibly technical, and require a background knowledge in archiving. I do not expect all rural Alaskans to have these skills, so this handbook is a skeleton that can be used as a stepping stone for archiving. It is also not a static document; any input is welcomed, and I appreciate the input I have received thus far.  Click here for the handbook. For more information, contact Stacey Baldridge at smbaldridge@alaska.edu.

Tribal Archives meeting 2013

This week ANLA staff are participating in the annual meeting of the Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries, and Museums at Tamaya (Santa Ana Pueblo), New Mexico. The meeting brings together about 500 representatives of organizations ranging from small tribal libraries to national museums. This year there has been a strong emphasis on digital preservation and access--an issue which resonates strongly with ANLA.

ANLA developed its first electronic catalog in 1999 and since that time has worked closely with the digital archiving community to develop standards for digital language archiving, serving as a founding member of institutions such as OLAC and DELAMAN. It's exciting to see digital standards being further discussed and more broadly adopted across the tribal archives community. We at ANLA have already learned much from our colleagues at ATALM -- certainly one of the most productive and informative professional meetings I have attended.

Yesterday ANLA staff gave a workshop entitled No longer gather dust: The role of digital repatriation in supporting traditional language and culture. The goal of the presentation was to show some of the ways that Alaskan organizations are transforming ANLA materials to create online and mobile materials for language learning. You can download a pdf version of the presentation here.

Digital files back online!

Thanks to our great tech support staff, access to ANLA digital files is once again available.

Digital files offline

Unfortunately, due to a system-wide power outage yesterday at the university our digital files are currently offline. We are working to get everything up and running and will post a message as soon as the server comes back online. Thanks for you patience.

New Yup'ik Dictionary available digitally

Last Fall the second, revised edition of the Yup'ik Eskimo Dictionary appeared in print. Published by the Alaska Native Language Center, with support from the National Science Foundation, this massive volume represents a significant update to the original 1984 edition. With over 11,000 main entries it is a definitive reference for the language. The print volume can be ordered from the Alaska Native Language Center.

We're pleased to announce that the compiler, Steven Jacobson, has also agreed to make the dictionary available digitally. Searchable pdf file can be downloaded from the archive catalog at:

http://www.uaf.edu/anla/item.xml?id=CY972J2012

Scheduled maintenance Jan 9, 9:00 AM-4:00 PM AKST

Due to scheduled network maintenance on January 9, 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM AKST (18:00-01:00 GMT), connections to the ANLA digital archive may experience temporary interruptions in service. We apologize for this inconvenience. Our online catalog will remain available during this time.

Scheduled maintenance Dec 17, 12:00-5:00 PM AKST

Due to scheduled network maintenance on December 17, 12:00-5:00 PM AKST (21:00-02:00 GMT), connections to the ANLA digital archive may experience temporary interruptions in service. We apologize for this inconvenience. Our online catalog will remain available during this time.

Limited hours: November 28 - December 7

Due to staffing issues the Archive will have limited hours between Wednesday, November 28 and Friday, December 7. During this time the reading room in Brooks 401 will be staffed during the following times:

Nov 28	8:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Nov 29	8:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Nov 30	9:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Dec 3	8:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Dec 4	8:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Dec 5	8:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Dec 6	8:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Dec 7	9:00 AM - 12:30 PM

Our new office in Rasmuson 232 will be closed during these days. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by the reduced hours. The online catalog will remain accessible during schedule closures.

Archive closed November 22 and 23

Due to university holiday the Archive will be closed November 22 and 23. The online catalog will remain accessible during this time.

Tone Isogloss Maps

A set of tone isogloss maps for the languages of the Alaska-Canada border region have been added to the archive as item CA976R2012. Compiled by John Ritter as part of the International Polar Year project Documenting Alaskan and Neighboring Languages, this set of eleven maps documents the extend of various prosodic features in the Athabaskan languages of the border region.

Wales Sea-Ice Dictionary

Just received two copies of the Wales Inupiaq Sea-Ice Dictionary (Kiŋikmi Sigum Qanuq Ilitaavut), compiled by Winton Weyapuk, Jr. and Igor Krupnik. The book contains beautiful color photographs of sea ice formations in the Wales region. Check it out at:

IN000K2012

We're moving!

ANLA is moving to the Rasmuson Library. Over the next year the Archive will be transitioning from its current home in the Brooks Building to new space in the Rasmuson Library. We have already begun transferring archival documents and recordings to secure storage on the first floor of Rasmuson, and we have opened a new office on the second floor, adjacent to the Oral History Program and the Alaska and Polar Regions Archive. Over the next few months we'll be creating a public space next to the Alaska Collection on the second floor. This space will provide easy access to Alaska Native Language reference materials.

During the transition period our offline materials will be distributed between Rasmuson and Brooks, so be sure to check with ANLA staff if you have any questions or need assistance locating materials. Thanks for your patience during our move. Stay tuned for more information about our Grand Opening Celebration, scheduled for February 22, 2013.

Digital files offline October 13-14

Our archive file server will be offline for scheduled maintenance for a period of 36 hours during the weekend of October 13-14.

Start Time:   Saturday October 13, 2012 09:00 AKDT

End Time:     Sunday October 14, 2012 21:00 AKDT

During this time users will still be able to search and browse our online catalog, but digital files will not be available for download.

New digital version of Petitot's 1876 Gwich'in dictionary available

Thanks to the efforts of Chris Cannon a new scan of Emile Petitot's 1876 comparative Gwich'in - Hare - Dene Sųłine dictionary is now available. While this manuscript has been available digitally from other sources, the low resolution of those scans can make it difficult to read. This version is sufficiently high-resolution to make the material more legible.

Download ANLA item KU863P1876

New version of Iñupiaq Dictionary available

The latest version of the North Slope Iñupiaq Dictionary, compiled by Edna Maclean, can be downloaded from the Archive as item IN(N)971M2011. This update includes a complete finderlist and also resolves font issues with previous versions.

New ANLA Logo

We are pleased to announce our new logo, created by UAF student Emily Kurpjuweit as part of a digital design class. The logo alludes to the well-known story of Raven stealing the sun. Recounted widely across many different Alaska Native languages, this story tells how Raven brought light to the world by stealing the sun in its beak.

Emily graduates from UAF this year. Congratulations!

Sealaska Heritage Insitute provides digital access to dictionaries

A while back I mentioned the publication of several new dictionaries by Sealaska Heritage Institute. I'm now happy to report that SHI is making digital versions in PDF format available for free download.

• Dictionary of Alaskan Haida (item HAA004L2010)
• Dictionary of Tlingit (item TL005E2009)