Vi Hilbert

Vi Hilbert (Lushootseed: taqʷšəblu; née Anderson; July 24, 1918 – December 19, 2008)^[1] was an Upper Skagit elder and conservationist of her traditional culture and of the Lushootseed language, of which she was the last fully fluent heritage speaker. She taught Lushootseed at the University of Washington for 17 years (1971–1988),^[2] where she also transcribed and translated Lushootseed recordings from the 1950s. This work is preserved in the university's audio library.^[2]

Hilbert was an enrolled member of the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe, a tribe located in Skagit County, Washington. She was named a Washington Living Treasure in 1989,^[2] and received a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts,^[3] presented by President Bill Clinton, in 1994. She co-wrote Lushootseed grammars and dictionaries, partially with linguist Thom Hess, and published books of stories, teachings, and place names related to her native region, the Puget Sound (Lushootseed: x̌ʷəlč).