Create Your Daruma: Heritage Language and Identity Workshop

Explore the linguistic and cultural importance of maintaining heritage languages, drawing on research-informed examples and practical strategies for sustaining and reconnecting with heritage language.

At the heart of the session is the Japanese concept of daruma, a cultural symbol of perseverance and goal-setting.

Rooted in the philosophy of 七転び八起き (nana korobi yaoki — “fall down seven times, get up eight”), daruma invites reflection on the non-linear, ongoing journey of heritage language learning and reclamation.

Participants will take part in a hands-on daruma-making activity, using it as a creative and reflective tool to set personal intentions and reconnect with their linguistic and cultural identities.

We all hold connections to heritage languages—through family, community, relationships, or place.

Presented from the perspective of a Japanese heritage language learner and speaker, this workshop invites participants to explore their familial, emotional, and sociolinguistic ties to language.

Open to all, this session creates a space to reflect, create, and find joy in retracing and reimagining one’s linguistic and cultural journey.

This initiative is free and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Please make sure to register.

Download the event flyer.

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This event is part of EmpowerGrad events organized by the CSLP in collaboration with Concordia Japanese Language and Culture Community (JLCC). It is also funded by the Concordia Council on Student Life (CCSL).