Documenting the Mandaeans' rituals
The Endangered Language Documentation Programme (ELDP) provides grants worldwide to for the linguistic documentation of endangered language and knowledge. Grantees create multimedia collection of endangered languages. These collections are preserved and made freely available through the Endangered Languages Archive (ELAR) housed at the library of SOAS University of London.
To record transcribe and translate speech and rituals of the Mandaeans with the aim of preserving these for future generations and to enable young members of the Mandaean community to learn the language. After 2000 years of continued and flourishing existence in both Iraq and Iran, this community is threatened with annihilation in that region, especially in Iraq, because of religious radicalism which is sweeping the country at this time. The community has dispersed to Australia, the US, Canada and many European countries and almost no one of the youngest generation speaks the language. It will be dead within a decade or two.
Primary investigator: Sabah Aldihisi
Project Details
Location: Iraq, Middle East, Asia
Organiser(s):
Endangered Languages Documentation Programme
Project partner(s): SOAS, University of London
Funder(s):
Arcadia
Funding received: £8,910.00
Commencement Date: 01/2004
Project Status: Active
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