Paper short abstract:

This paper will consider crises of environmental damage and Gàidhlig language decline in parallel with each other, asking what we can learn about environmental loss from linguistic and cultural loss, and vice versa.

Paper long abstract:

This paper on recently completed fieldwork undertaken in the Outer Hebrides to compare and contrast discourses of endangerment in relation to the natural environment of the islands and those relating to Gàidhlig, a minority language whose densest concentration of speakers is to be found in the islands. Rich in both natural and linguistic heritage, the islands find themselves continually inscribed in discourses centring around the endangerment and fragility of these resources. Gàidhlig is itself frequently understood as having an intrinsic relationship with the landscape of the islands and the traditional practices that make use of that landscape (e.g. crofting). The islands are threatened by a variety of environmental factors, and the language is threatened by various social, economic and political factors. Thus the loss of environmental lifeworlds comes alongside the loss of linguistic lifeworlds. The two discourses of endangerment are closely connected and difficult to disentangle from each other. The twin crises facing Gàidhlig and the natural environment of the islands come with a variety of affective and political responses ranging from apathy to activism. This paper will consider both crises and their responses in parallel with each other, asking what we can learn about environmental loss from linguistic and cultural loss, and vice versa.