Documenting Lhokpu and Black Mountain Monpa languages in Bhutan and their endangered yarn production practices

This innovative project aims to document the highly endangered North-Eastern Black Mountain M?npa (approx. 275 speakers) and Lhokpu (approx. 800 speakers) languages of Bhutan, coupling the linguistic documentation with that of the equally endangered practices of natural fibre yarn production. We will document the process of making yarn from locally grown cotton and nettle fibres – from managing the plants to production of the final product. All the language associated with these processes will be collected along the way, together with language in other contexts (e.g. conversation, narrations, procedural texts, elicitation, but not only as these pertain to the yarn production). Wulff as Chief Investigator is responsible for the overall conduct of the project in Bhutan.