By now, everyone should be familiar with the famous children’s song that went viral in 2016.
Even though Baby Shark originated many years before 2016, with various versions stemming from different countries and cultures, the silly and adorable English one that we all know has been sung millions of times; and if you have children or work with children, it’s probably stuck in your head forever.
Even though Baby Shark has been sung in various languages, there had been no Native song until just recently. In December, the Navajo Nation created their own version, Łóó’ Hashkéii Awéé’, which launched on the children’s YouTube channel Pinkfong, which currently has 28.2 million subscribers!
The Navajo Nation Museum, located in Windowrock, AZ, has partnered with Pinkfong to create the Navajo Baby Shark video.
The director of the museum, Manuelito Wheeler said, “We reached out to Pinkfong in South Korea and they came back right away to help raise awareness for language preservation.”
Navajo children came from all over, excited to audition for the role of Baby Shark, Mama Shark, Daddy Shark, Grandma Shark, and Grandpa Shark. Below is cutie-pie Drew Wilson who auditioned for both Baby Shark and Mama Shark.
This wasn’t the first project for Navajo Nation and it won’t be the last. They have already dubbed Star Wars and Finding Nemo in the Navajo language, among others.
Regarding this, Wheeler stated: “All of these projects have been strategically chosen for the demographics we’re trying to address in the Navajo Nation,” he said. “Language preservation is talking Navajo in the home and having more formal programs and schools that teach Navajo language.”
The Navajo communities are taking great pride in the work that is going into preserving their vulnerable language. People are getting creative and finding new ways in order to do so. It is a much easier task than it was in the past, with social media, YouTube, and modern technological advancements.
Read The Guardian’s article, Baby Shark Creators to Release Navajo Version of Wildly Popular Song
