informal interview schedule questions, Rajarani and Devitar consistently reported a high interest in language development. In both of these places, the identity as
“Yamphu” people was strong. Khoktak consistently had lower interest in language development, possibly because people there did not place a
large degree of importance on being “Yamphu.” Participatory methods carried out in Hedangna revealed
a high degree of interest in producing Yamphu materials. Teachers and headmasters in many villages expressed interest in increasing the use of Yamphu in schools and in incorporating Yamphu language
curriculum. Language use in school is seen as a vehicle for Yamphu language maintenance and development.
8.1.2 Implications
The motivation for many Yamphu speakers for language-based development is linked to the Yamphu ethnic identity that revolves around their culture, religion, and language. Support for Yamphu language-
based development should consider including the Yamphu Kirat Samaj as one of the partner organizations, given their relatively high profile within the language community.
In nearly every village we visited, language use in school is seen as a primary vehicle for development. Yamphu people and teachers have a strong desire to use Yamphu in schools and any
multilingual education MLE program would be widely supported. In the majority of the Yamphu villages we visited, people speak their mother tongue every day. Some people don’t use Yamphu all that
often, especially young people, and people in Khoktak. Even for those people who don’t speak Yamphu too often, Yamphu still plays a role in forming their identity. Many Yamphu people expressed a desire to
learn to read and write in their own language. If people don’t speak their mother tongue very well, it will be difficult to learn to read and write in it. In Khoktak, for example, activities would first need to
focus on speaking Yamphu more often. Speaking Yamphu regularly is necessary for literacy efforts to last long-term. Therefore, communities such as Hedangna, Devitar, or Rajarani might be able to carry out
literacy programs that are sustainable, such as an MLE project. Therefore, local organizations should be supported in carrying out MLE and literacy programs in communities such as these.
8.2 Yamphu language use and vitality
8.2.1 Summary of findings
While Nepali use is high in many domains, Yamphu use remains high in the important domain of family gatherings in all the villages we visited, except for Khoktak. Yamphu use is also high in the domain of
pujaprayer and joking. The highest levels of Nepali use occur in the domains of singing, shopping, and counting. Hedangna overwhelmingly had the strongest patterns of Yamphu language use and vitality.
Khoktak is quickly shifting to Nepali as the primary language used in the home. The other three villages differ in their use and vitality, but Devitar may have the next strongest language vitality overall after
Hedangna. In general, old people use Yamphu more frequently than the young, and in more domains of life. The language is being passed on to children, though at varying levels dependent on the village. In
Hedangna and Devitar, all the respondents reported that their children know and use Yamphu. In Khoktak, the use and vitality among children is weak, as they are shifting to Nepali.
Table 8 displays a summary of each village in this study along with the EGIDS Expanded Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale level for that speech community. The EGIDS was developed by Paul
Lewis and Gary Simons 2010. It is based on Joshua Fishman’s GIDS Graded Intergenerational Disruption S
cale, a measurement of language vitality 1991. The EGIDS scale provides different numbered levels which describe the vitality of a particular language community. See Appendix F for a
full description of each EGIDS level and how to arrive at a specific EGIDS level.
Table 8. EGIDS levels of the speech communities Village
EGIDS Level Hedangna 6a-Vigorous
Devitar 6b-Threatened
Seduwa 6b-Threatened
Rajarani 6b-Threatened
Khoktak 7-Shifting
Language vitality in Hedangna is described as “vigorous” level 6a. “Vigorous” means that a
language is being used orally by all generations and is being transmitted to children in the home domain Lewis and Simons 2010. In Hedangna, Yamphu is used by all generations at home; additionally, all
children are learning and using Yamphu at home. Though not all language use patterns are the same, Devitar, Seduwa, and Rajarani are described as
“threatened” level 6b. “Threatened” means that the language may continue to shift toward use of a more dominate language. The mother tongue may cease
to exist at a sustainable level orally unless efforts are made to increase use in different domains. The Yamphu speech community in Khoktak exists at an EGIDS level 7
“Shifting”. “Shifting” means that the language is no longer being transmitted to all the children, though the parents still know the language.
8.2.2 Implications
