Native to Ecuador Native speakers 35,000 (2007) ISO 639-3 jiv | Ethnicity Shuar Language family Jivaroan
Shuar Glottolog shua1257 | |
Shuar, which literally means "People", also known by such (now derogatory) terms as Chiwaro, Jibaro, Jivaro, or Xivaro, is an indigenous language spoken in the Southeastern jungle of the Morona-Santiago Province and Pastaza Province in Ecuador.
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History
Twelve Indigenous languages of Ecuador are spoken today, one of which is Shuar. For the past four decades, the Shuar language has been noted for its link with several political groups.
Radio schools
The geographical remoteness within the Ecuadorian rainforest isolates the Shuar and has widely scattered the people from one another. As a result, in the late 1960s, radio schools were formed to promote communication and education in both Spanish and Shuar. This inadvertently transformed into a language revitalization initiative for the Shuar people. Radio schools were shut down in 2001 and replaced with formal bilingual in-class teaching.
The Role of the Church
The radio schools were not funded by the national government. Instead, they were financially supported by Catholic missionaries who were welcomed into Shuar-speaking areas during the 1920s. Before this, they were widely resisted. However, because of the increase in trade, loss of land, and the vitality and perceived modernity of Spanish, the Shuar leaned on the church for comfort.