Portland State University is honored to host the Oregon Tribal Language Speaker Series. Our tribal partners will present their language program’s history, revitalization efforts, and future projects.
Warm Springs Tribe
Radine "Deanie" Johnson: Itukdi kadux, my Indian name is Tasana, my English name is Radine Johnson but I prefer to be called Deanie. I began working in the Warm Springs Culture and Heritage Language Program in the year 2000 as a Kiksht Language Teacher. At that time my maternal grandmother Gladys Thompson and her close relative Madeline McInturf were the consultants teaching the language every day. We had two elder men from Yakima that we met with and documented them also. I spent my time going to the elementary school to teach and then returning to the language trailer to learn the words I was going to teach at the school the following day. Due to the ages of the grandmother’s, it was a race against time for me to document all that I could while the grandma’s were still with us. I became a workaholic during the first ten years of working at Kiksht language so I could get the meanings of the words while I still had speakers. Today we have many recordings, dictionary work, transcription work, translating work and still a lifetime of teaching to do. We have no more fluent speakers of the Kiksht Language but we are continuing to build on this language with what we have and it is my hopes that younger people will take on an interest and become carriers of this language as it was constantly told to us, “Don’t let our language die, teach it to our children here in Warm Springs.”
Lorraine Suppah, T’isatlmai, is a Tribal Member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Oregon, works for the Culture and Heritage Department, and teaches at the Warm Springs K8 Academy. Lorraine is a dedicated Language Teacher with seven years of professional teaching experience and a lifelong connection to her culture and traditions. She is known for her commitment to teaching the Ichishkin language, as well as sharing the rich culture and history of the Warm Springs community with Native children. Lorraine is a strong advocate for the revitalization and preservation of Tribal languages, and she works passionately to ensure that future generations remain connected to their linguistic and cultural heritage.