Wampanoag Powwow in Bermuda

In 1675-1676, during and after King Philip's War (that link goes to Jill Lepore's book The Name of War, which is an excellent read), victorious colonists sold members of the defeated Wampanoag tribe into slavery in Barbados. (Slave owners and traders tended to prefer slaves who were not native to any given area, as it decreased the likelihood of successful escapes.) Centuries later, the descendants of those Wampanoag people still celebrate their Native American heritage.

Bringing a Language Back to Life

Reviving a language that's no longer spoken? It's possible - one child is even being raised with it as her first language!

According to literature from the project, “Recognizing that the colonists preferred” written documents, the native people of Cape Cod “became the first American Indians in the English-speaking New World to develop and use an alphabetic writing system…to record personal letters, wills, deeds, and land transfers amongst each other and between communities.”

Ironically, the very method that the settlers used against the natives has become a tool for the reclamation. Court documents use written Wampanoag language, and those records allow scholars of the language to deduce rules of grammar and vocabulary.

Sounds like a fascinating project on a lot of levels.