Marie Wilcox is the last fluent speaker of Wukchumni, one of 130 different endangered Native American languages in the United States that dont have any kind of digital—or analog—legacy.

Over the course of seven years in Californias San Joaquin Valley, she worked with her daughter and grandson to catalog everything she knows about the language. First, she hand-scrawled memories on scraps of paper; then, she hunt-and-pecked on an old keyboard to complete a dictionary and type out legends like “How We Got Our Hands.” Next, she recorded the whole thing on audio for pronunciation—its very specific!—and posterity.

via How An Octogenarian Preserved An Endangered Native American Language | Gizmodo

Definitely recommend watching the video. I am in awe of Marie’s dedication to preserving the Wukchumni language. Amazing, inspiring story!