A/PIA Language Project
March 2007

Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association’s Cultural Heritage Department is working to keep
Unangam Tunuu (Aleut Language) alive.
The Cultural Heritage Department (CHD) at A/PIA came into existence in April 1998. Over the past eight years the CHD has developed and administered several programs involving various cultural heritage activities. The most important program currently being administered by the CHD is a three-year Administration for Native Americans (ANA) Unangam Tunuu (Aleut Language) Preservation grant.

Unangam Tunuu projects currently being administered through the ANA language grant are:

Language material development for Head Start classrooms:
Recordings have been conducted with speakers from Atka, Belkofski/ King Cove, Nikolski, St. George, St. Paul, and Unalaska and are being used for the development of language material. Language materials that have been completed and implemented in the classrooms are:

Qasida (Go Fish): a card game in Unangam Tunuu with accompanying CD that is sold through A/PIA for $25. Unangam Tunungin Kaartakuchangin/ Kaartakuchangis: a flash card and CD set in the Eastern and Atkan dialects and is also sold through A/PIA for $20. Picture Dictionary with accompanying CD.

Audio Cards and Card Reader: Head Start classrooms are provided a card reader and audio cards that contain 500 words and phrases divided into 16 categories (i.e., People and Family, Numbers, Colors, Greetings, Table Talk and so on). The teacher or student runs the card through the card reader to hear the Aleut word or phrase and can also record and then hear their own pronunciation of each word to see if they are saying the word correctly. The cards have colorful illustrations with words/phrases spelled out using the Unangam Tunuu alphabet.

Alphabet cards, number cards and many other laminated signs and labels have been produced for teachers to post on classroom walls and objects within the classroom. We are also currently working to produce a book of songs and rhymes with an accompanying CD, an instructional Unangax ^ dance video, games and fun activities with an accompanying CD, and the translation of common pre-school books.

Mentor-Apprenticeship Program:
A one-year five-credit Alaska Native Language course through the University of Alaska Sitka. The course is offered for two consecutive years. Instructor and registration are funded through the ANA language grant. Mentors are paid an hourly wage for their time working with apprentices which is also funded through the grant. We are currently in the second year of the course. In year one of the program there were four apprentices. This year there are seven apprentices who work up to 10 hours weekly with fluent speakers to increase their ability to speak Unangam Tunuu.

Unangam Tunuu classes:
One-credit courses are conducted each semester for three years of the project. We are currently in the second year; the first semester will begin in March. This is also an Alaska Native Language course offered through UAF Aleutians Campus and is taught by Moses Dirks. Participants meet telephonically twice a week for six weeks. All ten slots are reserved for Head Start teachers, teacher’s aides and apprentices. The registration and instructor fees are funded through the ANA language grant. Slots not filled are offered to community members or others who express interest.

Unangam Tunuu Word of the Week:
In addition to recordings obtained for Head Start language material, CHD staff record phrases that are used for the Unangam Tunuu Word of the Week. Each week the Unangam Tunuu Word of the Week is sent via email to over 200 recipients across Alaska and the Lower 48, even as far as New York! The email message contains two attachments; an MP3 sound file and a printable PDF file. The Unangam Tunuu Word of the Week is also aired through KSDP in Sand Point which broadcasts to King Cove, Nelson Lagoon and False Pass; KIAL in Unalaska which also broadcasts to Akutan; and KUHB in St. Paul which also broadcasts in St. George. To get on the distribution list, email Millie McKeown at milliem@apiai.org and request to be added to the email list.

In addition to the projects administered through the ANA language grant, A/PIA also coordinates language classes for the Sand Point Culture Camp, provides translations upon request, acts as a liaison between linguists, anthropologists and/or historians studying the Aleut culture and repatriation, and manages the Aleut Heritage Library and Archive.

Millie McKeown, the Cultural Heritage Director is a director on The Aleut Foundation board and also sits on the Alaska Association of Bilingual Education board as a representative of the Aleutian region. If you have any questions or want more information on the Aleut Language programs, please feel free to contact her at:

Millie McKeown
Cultural Heritage Director
Aleutian/Pribilof Islands Association
201 E. 3rd Ave.
Anchorage, AK 99501

Phone (907) 276-2700
Email milliem@apiai.org