Newberry Library Receives $4M Grant to Expand Access to Indigenous Language Collections

The research library will digitize materials related to over 300 Indigenous languages to aid tribal language revitalization efforts.

Published on Feb. 28, 2026

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The Newberry Library in Chicago has received a $4 million grant from the Mellon Foundation to expand access to its vast collection of materials related to over 300 Indigenous languages. The library holds roughly 2,400 items, including manuscripts, photographs, and maps, that are crucial for tribal nations working to revitalize their endangered languages. The grant will fund the digitization of these language-related materials, making them more accessible to tribal communities.

Why it matters

The loss of Indigenous languages has been called a state of emergency, as many were nearly eradicated through the U.S. government's forced assimilation policies, including Native American boarding schools. As tribal nations focus on reviving these languages, the materials in the Newberry's collection can play a critical role, especially for nations with no living speakers.

The details

The Newberry's Indigenous collection includes Bibles, religious texts, and boarding school materials that were translated into Indigenous languages by missionaries and educators attempting to assimilate tribal members. These materials provide an important connection to the past and ancestors for tribal communities. The grant will also fund the hiring of additional staff, fellowships for tribal members, and compensation for tribal experts to review the collection.

  • The Newberry received the $4 million grant from the Mellon Foundation in February 2026.
  • The grant work is now underway and will continue through December 2030.

The players

Newberry Library

A research library in Chicago that holds a vast collection of materials related to over 300 Indigenous languages.

Mellon Foundation

A philanthropic organization that provided the $4 million grant to the Newberry Library.

Rose Miron

The vice president for research and education at the Newberry Library.

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What they’re saying

“Those are often of major interest to tribal nations who are working on language revitalization activities. And so this grant includes the full digitization of that Indigenous languages collection.”

— Rose Miron, Vice President for Research and Education, Newberry Library (wbez.org)

“One of the biggest losses of those schools was the damage that was done to Indigenous languages because children were literally being punished for speaking their own languages and being forced to speak English instead.”

— Rose Miron, Vice President for Research and Education, Newberry Library (wbez.org)

“The documents that were created that have information about these languages are crucial for linguists who can then go in and help recover what these languages sounded like and start reteaching them.”

— Rose Miron, Vice President for Research and Education, Newberry Library (wbez.org)

“I have seen people in the collection weep upon seeing something that is related to their family, or is related to their community that they've never seen before.”

— Rose Miron, Vice President for Research and Education, Newberry Library (wbez.org)

“We fundamentally believe that tribal nations are the best representatives of their own history.”

— Rose Miron, Vice President for Research and Education, Newberry Library (wbez.org)

What’s next

The Newberry Library will continue the digitization work and collaboration with tribal nations throughout the duration of the grant, which runs through December 2030.

The takeaway

This grant represents an important step in preserving and revitalizing Indigenous languages, which were nearly eradicated through harmful assimilation policies. By providing tribal nations with greater access to crucial linguistic materials, the Newberry Library is helping to undo some of the damage inflicted on these communities and empowering them to reclaim their cultural heritage.