Online Manx language database to be expanded

Improved access to recordings boosts "linguistic and cultural preservation", says CV

A "significant volume" of Manx language audio recordings will be transcribed and translated and made available online after the project was awarded new funding.

Culture Vannin's grant to the Manx Language Research Group pay for the first ever language specialist contracted to work on the Manx Corpus website.

Previously the online repository, which contains over two million words and hundreds of texts and recordings, was supported entirely by volunteers.

Vice chairman Chris Williamson said the £3,000 grant would "benefit speakers, students, teachers, and researchers of Manx".

The new timestamped transcriptions would allow website users to search for a word or phrase in either Manx or English and instantly hear a native speaker using it in context.

'Important archival material'

Culture Vannin said that continuing to add to the resource would "ensure that this rich repository continues to grow and evolve, reflecting the dynamic nature of the Manx language".

Mr Williamson said the ability to search collected transcriptions in English would also provide benefit beyond just Manx speakers.

The translations would "make this important archival material open to the wider public in and beyond the island, who may be interested in the language from the point of view of social history, folklore, and family history," he said.

"Even a small grant can make a significant difference when combined with the expertise and commitment of groups like the Manx Language Research Group," Mr Williamson added.

Among the first audio recordings added to the Manx Corpus by the project this year was an interview the last native speaker Ned Maddrell, reminiscing about life in the village of Cregneash.