In my personal experience, I have been observing the different attempts for revitalizing certain dialects of Kichwa which are spoken in Ecuador. The first attempt to revitalize the Kichwa languages was the creation of what is called Kichwa Unificado [Unified Kichwa], a standardized version of this language, and which was thought to be the cornerstone for the development of Kichwa written literature, and the means of instruction of the bilingual education system. For the Kichwa peoples having this version of Kichwa as a means of instruction is problematic. In a personal communication with one Kichwa speaker, she refers to Kichwa Unificado as artificial; she said to me: “ it is not as beautiful as the Kichwa Autentico [Authentic Kichwa]”, term given to the Kichwa dialect spoken at home. This Kichwa speaker explained to me that it is difficult for her to use Kichwa Unificado at home, she said: “my grandpa just speaks in Kichwa Autentico, when I speak in Kichwa Unificado, he does not understand me, so I speak in Spanish, so we can communicate better”. In this example, it is important to notice the reactions towards a standardized version of a language. Far from being a revitalization tool, the use of a standard language deems to create a bigger gap between generations, and to be forced to use a second language to communicate with each
In my personal experience, I have been observing the different attempts for revitalizing certain dialects of Kichwa which are spoken in Ecuador. The first attempt to revitalize the Kichwa languages was the creation of what is called Kichwa Unificado [Unified Kichwa], a standardized version of this language, and which was thought to be the cornerstone for the development of Kichwa written literature, and the means of instruction of the bilingual education system. For the Kichwa peoples having this version of Kichwa as a means of instruction is problematic. In a personal communication with one Kichwa speaker, she refers to Kichwa Unificado as artificial; she said to me: “ it is not as beautiful as the Kichwa Autentico [Authentic Kichwa]”, term given to the Kichwa dialect spoken at home. This Kichwa speaker explained to me that it is difficult for her to use Kichwa Unificado at home, she said: “my grandpa just speaks in Kichwa Autentico, when I speak in Kichwa Unificado, he does not understand me, so I speak in Spanish, so we can communicate better”. In this example, it is important to notice the reactions towards a standardized version of a language. Far from being a revitalization tool, the use of a standard language deems to create a bigger gap between generations, and to be forced to use a second language to communicate with each