Culture And Memory

Island Voices Multilingual Archive

The multilingual Island Voices/Guthan nan Eilean community project captures and curates “Slices of Life in and beyond the 21st Century Hebrides” in Gaelic, English and many other heritage languages. Leading up to its 21st anniversary, the University of the Highlands and Islands will permanently secure this digital heritage of 500+ videos, co-created with the active participation of community members and groups within the Western Isles, across Scotland, and internationally, using state of the art archiving technology. This collected linguistic heritage will thus be safeguarded against digital loss or damage, and made freely available for access by the general public. The Island Voices project offers a model of community-based action in the maintenance of linguistic diversity and heritage in a world in which minoritised languages are under unprecedented threat. The archive will stand out through its platforming of the voices of the people in the sharing of their unique cultural heritage.