Rosario Cooper
Rosario Cooper | |
|---|---|
Rosario Cooper, sitting outside her home near Arroyo Grande during her linguistic work with John P. Harrington; left to right: Mauro Soto (Rosario's husband), J. P. Harrington, Frank Olivas Jr. (Rosario's grandson), and Rosario Cooper | |
| Born | October 5, 1845 |
| Died | June 15, 1917 (aged 71) |
| Known for | Last known speaker of the tiłhini language |
| Children | Francisco Olivas |
| Parent(s) | Ana Maria Higuera and Valentin "Frank" Cooper |
Rosario Cooper (1845–1917) was a yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini (Northern Chumash) woman who was the last known speaker of tiłhini (also known as Obispeño Chumash), though she had rarely spoken or heard it since her early childhood. During the last years of her life, Rosario worked with the linguist J.P. Harrington to recover what she could recall of her native language, and the pair were able to document some grammatical structure, place names, songs, and cultural knowledge before she died in 1917. Cooper is considered to be the last known speaker of Obispeño, though there has been some recent revitalization.