The 2025 Language Lodge, which took place online in June and July 2025, was an incredible journey, filled with creativity, collaboration, and diversity. The 2025 Language Lodge was hosted by the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage’s Language Vitality Initiative, the Endangered Languages Project, and Rising Voices.

This year, participants focused on (e)book publishing, social media, and connecting through minoritized languages. We’re excited to share the fruits of this hard work with two galleries: a collection of (e)books and zines and a showcase of social media posts. Explore, get inspired, and join the movement!

Minoritized Language Books: A Collection to Inspire Your Creativity
 

Check out these books created by our talented participants, each showcasing a unique voice in a minoritized language. From short illustrated stories to vocabulary books, these works serve as a celebration of linguistic diversity and preservation.
Most books exist in two versions: a printable zine version and an online Ebook version. The Ebook is available to read publicly and immediately, while the printable zine is meant to be printed, folded and assembled following these instructions so you have your own physical copy of the book at home.

Without further ado, we are happy to present to you the Language Lodge 2025 Book Collection:

1. Yupasun Hukmanta Chunkakama (Let’s Count From One to Ten) – Watuchi Siminchik Wasi
   In Southern Quechua from Peru (ISO code: que)
    

   Summary: This ebook will walk you through the numbers from 1 to 10 in Southern Quechua through the illustrations of cacti with pads ranging from 1 to 10. The last page will recap all the numbers to facilitate memorisation. Yupasun! (Let’s count!)
    

   Print zine here | Read Ebook online here | License: CC-BY-SA

    

2. Ang Kabibe nga naga Handum (The Shell that Dreams) – Felicity Anne Aretha A. Dorado 
   In Hiligaynon from the Visayas Island in the Philippines (ISO code: hil)

   Summary: This zine features a Visayan fable about a humble sea shell with a big dream—to become something extraordinary. The story highlights the beauty and cultural significance of the Capiz shell, an iconic treasure of the Visayan region in the Philippines. 

   Print zine here | Read Ebook online here | License: All rights reserved

    

3. Inona avy ny zon-tsika rankizy (What are our children's rights?) – Mamisoa Isabelle
   In Malagasy from Madagascar (ISO code: mlg)

   Summary: I have the right to health and care. I have the right to have fun and play. I have the right to learn. I have the right to be protected. I have the right to adequate food and clean drinking water. I have the right to express my opinion.

   Print zine here | License: CC-0

    

   Manisa iray hatramin'ny folo (Counting from one to ten) – Mamisoa Isabelle
   In Malagasy from Madagascar (ISO code: mlg)

   Summary: Learning to count one to ten in Malagasy language.
   Read Ebook online here | License: CC-0

    

4. Türk evinde bayram (Bayram at a Turkish household) – Seda Karakaya
   In Turkish (ISO code: tur)

   Summary: This zine captures the warmth and joy of Bayram in a Turkish household, with kids running around, sharing laughter, and enjoying candies, chocolates, and traditional desserts. It’s a cute, heartwarming glimpse into family gatherings, lively conversations, and the rich flavors of Turkish cuisine.

   Print zine here | Read Ebook online here | License: CC-BY-SA

    

5. Sauj (To count) – Fernando David Márquez Duarte
   In Cucapáh from Baja California (ISO code: coc)

   Summary: This ebook will walk you through the numbers from 1 to 10 in Cucapáh/Cocopa language through the illustrations of cacti with pads ranging from 1 to 10. Sauj! (Count!)

   Print zine here | Read Ebook online here | License: CC-BY-NC-ND
    

6. Min n'ok mëtyo'ntë (Let's count) – Serpiente
   In Mixe from Oaxaca, Mexico

   Summary: This zine is a simple way to present numbers in ayuuk language (mixe) from 1 to 10.

   Print zine here | Read Ebook online here | License: CC-BY-NC-ND

    

7. Pamatyag Mo, Pamatyag Ko (Your Feelings, My Feelings) – Leowens L. Ventura
   In llonggo from Iloilo City, Philippines (ISO code: hil)

   Summary: This zine is about the many feelings we go through each day—like joy, anger, nervousness, and hope. It shows how everyone feels differently, and that it’s okay to not feel okay sometimes. Through simple art and words, it reminds us that feelings connect us all.

   Print zine here | License: CC-BY-NC-ND
    

   Pag-abyanan nga Wala Ginahandum (Unexpected Friendship) – Leowens L. Ventura
   In llonggo from Iloilo City, Philippines (ISO code: hil)

   
   Summary: In this heartwarming tale, a boy and a wandering dog find each other when they least expect it. Through moments of joy, curiosity, and gentle trust, they build a friendship that grows stronger with each shared experience. Together, they show that friendship can bloom in the most unexpected places, creating a connection that lasts a lifetime.

   Read Ebook online here | License: CC-BY-NC-ND
    

8. Ñanniyta rikurichispa (Making my path appear) – Elena Musetti
   In Southern Quechua from Puno, Perú (ISO code: qxp)

   Summary: This e-book tells the story of a girl who wants to escape her ordinary routine. By travelling within her own mind, she eventually realises that no matter which path she takes, she will always end up back where she started and that she has always been in the right place.

   Print zine here | Read Ebook online here | License: CC-BY-SA

    

9. Briathra neamhrialta do lánúin neamhrialta (Irregular verbs for an irregular couple) – Alexandra Philbin
   In Irish from Ireland (ISO code: gle)
   
   Summary: Alexandra prepared this zine for her partner, Miguel, who is learning her language - Irish. It focuses on the story of how they met using the 11 irregular verbs in Irish in the past tense.

   Print zine here | Read Ebook online here | License: CC-BY-NC-ND

    

10. Nwiiyaw (My body) – Jordan Tabobondung
    In Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe) from the Great Lakes (ISO code: oji)

    Summary: My body. My head. My hair(s). My face, My ear(s). My mouth, my teeth, My Tongue. My eye(s) my nose. The sole of my foot. My foot(feet), My Hand(s). That's it! Thank you.

    Print zine here | License: CC-BY-SA
     

11. Let’s speak Poorꞌíŋ beléꞌŋ  (Let’s Speak Fur Language) – Esraa Elrasheed 
    In Fur language from Sudan (ISO code: fvr)

    Summary: This zine demonstrates how to introduce oneself in the Fur language, including talking about one’s job, age, education, and hobbies. It has been translated into English and was created as part of the documentation process during the elicitation phase for assignments on syntax, morphology, and semantics in linguistic fieldwork.

    Print zine here | Read Ebook online here | License: CC-BY-NC-ND

     

    Fur Language Tenses You Can Use – Esraa Elrasheed 
    In Fur language from Sudan (ISO code: fvr)

    Summary: This e-book explains the tenses in the Fur language. It includes example sentences showing how verbs change in the present simple, past simple, and future simple tenses, including their negative forms. In the e-book, readers will notice that to form the past tense, the verb takes an -i at the end. To express the future tense, niŋ is added before the verb. For negation, the present and past simple tenses use the pattern a-verb-ba, while the future simple tense uses aŋ-verb-ba.
    
    Read Ebook online here | License: CC-BY-NC-ND

     

Social Media Challenge Gallery: Showcasing Language Diversity Online

Participants also took part in a social media challenge, sharing creative posts that highlight the beauty of minoritized languages. These social media challenges inspired many and offered a dynamic platform for language activism.

Here’s a selection from the Social Media Challenge Gallery:

1. Yupaychay.Quechua – Quechua (ISO code: qxp)
   greetings | useful phrases | charade | tongue-twister | quote | proverbs | song | poem

    

2. Baoga Evariste – Tupuri (ISO code: tui)
   Greetings and useful phrases | Proverb and riddle | Tongue-twister and song | Quote and poem

    

3. Onyekachi Ogbu – Nsụka (ISO code: ibo)
   Greeting | Phrase | Song | Quote

    

4. Hugo René Ballado Poot – Yucatec Mayan (ISO code: yua)
   Greeting | Phrase | Thinking | Poem

    

5. lifebeyondmywheels ~ Seda Karakaya – Turkish (ISO code: tur)
   Tongue-twister | Song

    

6. ros.m024 ~ facebook ~ whatsapp – Itón (ISO code: eto)
   Greetings part 1, part 2, part 3 & part 4 | proverb | poem

    

7. René – (Mixe from Oaxaca)
   greeting part 1 & part 2 | useful phrases | poem 01 & poem 02 | song 01 & song 02 | tongue-twister

    

8. Cheruto – Ogiek (ISO code: oki)
   greeting | tongue-twister | saying

    

9. Imrana Baloch – Baluchi (ISO code: bal)
   phrase 01 & phrase 02 | poem | song

    

10. Alexandra Philbin – Irish (ISO code: gle)
    greeting | proverb | song | poem

     

11. Esraa Elrasheed  – Fur (ISO code: fvr)
    phrases | proverb | folktales | poem

     

12. Felicity Anne ~ teach_city – Hiligaynon (ISO code: hil)
    greetings and useful phrases | proverb and riddle | tongue-twister and song | quote and poem