Bodies that speak: Languages of differentiation and becoming in Amazonia

Casey High*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract / Description of output

In this article I consider the metaphysical underpinnings of a specific language ideology in Amazonian Ecuador by comparing Waorani ideas about the agency of speech in shamanism and funerary practices to their engagements in language documentation. I relate the notion of language as a force inseparable from the bodies of speakers to concepts of language as “culture” in research to document their language. By considering how Waorani consultants have come to see certain features of their language in video recordings, such as sound symbolism, I examine the differences and interconnections between Waorani language ideology and multiculturalist understandings. These interactions suggest divergent ontologies at the same time as they demonstrate how indigenous people operate simultaneously within contrasting imaginings of differentiation.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)65-75
Number of pages11
JournalLanguage and Communication
Volume63
Early online date28 Mar 2018
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Nov 2018

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

  • language ideology
  • ontology
  • language documentation
  • ideophones
  • Waorani
  • Ecuador

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