Jonty Yamisha
Jonty Yamisha (Circassian: Емыш Жантий) (born 2 September 1977) is an ethnic Circassian of the Kabardian tribe. Born in the United States, his parents fled the Golan Heights of Syria where many ethnic Circassians were relocated following the Russo-Circassian War. Jonty is considered a pioneer in the modern Circassian language revitalization movement and is the author or contributor of the largest collection of Circassian language-learning materials.[1]
Early life
Jonty Yamisha was born in San Jose, California. When the ethnic Circassian community of Northern New Jersey announced plans to build a dedicated campus for the Circassian Benevolent Association (CBA), Jonty and his family relocated to Haledon, New Jersey to be part of the effort. Although active in his community, Jonty was never taught how to speak the Circassian language[2].
Language-revitalization
Following Jonty’s first visit to his ethnic homeland, he felt a calling to help promote the Circassian language – first by teaching himself how to speak, and later by helping others to learn. Jonty has documented his journey extensively.
He began his efforts by launching the Nassip Foundation, and later partnering with the Endangered Language Alliance (ELA). Through his work with the ELA, Jonty was able to combine his practical field experience with the rigors and support of academic grounding. In time, Jonty was invited to speak at a number of symposiums on language preservation.
Current work
Jonty has developed the largest body of content dedicated to learning the Circassian language. The majority of Jonty’s Circassian language learning materials are freely available. Jonty has also developed several Circassian Memrise courses, and through the Nassip Foundation, is responsible for the Little Aslan Circassian language learning cartoons.
Additional notes
Interestingly enough, Jonty is not a linguist or an academic. He describes himself as an entrepreneur and self-learner who is interested in helping others to learn. At the same time, through a combination of academic grounding and entrepreneurial zeal, Jonty has commercialized the method he pioneered to teach Circassian. Referred to as Guided Immersion, the language learning method is the core of OptiLingo’s language learning products[3].
References
- ↑ Shetty, Rohit (June 2018). "Stump Blog". How One Man Helped to Revitalize a Dying Language and Unlocked the Secret to Learning Any Language.
- ↑ "The Pioneer". WHAT CAN AN ANCIENT LANGUAGE TEACH US ABOUT THE FUTURE OF LANGUAGE LEARNING?.
- ↑ "Hometown Station KHTS FM 98.1 & AM 1220". What Happens When A Language Activist Designs A Next-Generation Language Learning Course?.
External links
https://www.youtube.com/user/jyamisha
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_bKeZtdJAA&feature=youtu.be
https://www.memrise.com/courses/english/circassian/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR-LZvjiobBiL2qKjCk08xg
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