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Cultural Heritage

People and Place Names: 5 Highlights from Presenter Gerald Neufeld 

March 19, 2025

For years, Gerald Neufeld (Kaahkaapish) has been researching original names of people and places in the Pimachiowin Aki area and sharing his discoveries.  

He quoted George Orwell while presenting a slide show at the recent Pimachiowin Aki AGM in Winnipeg. “The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.” 

Gerald grew up in Pauingassi First Nation and has been working with his father Henry (Ochichaahkons), Elders, and community members in Pimachiowin Aki to restore “histories that have been erased through time.”

He described his research as a slow process, but one that is essential to reclaiming cultural identity and heritage. “Sometimes, it’s like molasses in January to figure this out,” he said. 

Gerald with his father Henry (Ochichaahkons) at the Pimachiowin Aki AGM. © Bruce Bremner

He said his discoveries are made possible by the earlier work of anthropologist A. Irving Hallowell, who visited the Berens River Ojibwe in the 1930s and Gary Butikofer, who taught at Poplar Hill Development School in the 1970s.    

Here’s what we learned from his presentation:

1. Lakes near Little Grand Rapids were named after aircraft 
 

Ingenium Archives, Ken Molson Fonds, KM-08049, http://collection.ingeniumcanada.org/en/id/KM-08049/

Vickers Viking amphibian aircraft first arrived in Canada in 1922 and in the years following, “planes were active in the [Pimachiowin Aki] area,” said Gerald. “We can see that lakes near Little Grand Rapids were named after them,” he said while pointing out four lakes on a map:

  • Viking Lake
  • Vickers Lake
  • Amphibian Lake
  • Hangar Lake
Photo: map custom made for Gerald by Province of Manitoba 

More Lake Names 

If you click this link and scroll down to page 17, you’ll find a long list of Manitoba lakes in alphabetical order with details on who or what they were named after. The list includes English and Indigenous names. Examples:

Abraham Lake (64 A/9) North of Split Lake. CPCGN records (1975) indicated this to have been named after Abraham Wavey who trapped in this area years ago.

Ameekwanis Lake (64 K/13) Northeast of Reindeer Lake. A Cree name meaning small spoon.

Amphibian Lake (52 M/13) West of Family Lake. Named in 1926 after the type of aircraft used in photographing the area (Douglas 1933).

Kosapachekaywinasinne (64 C/7) Locality southeast of Lynn Lake. CPCGN records (1979) indicated that this name was Cree meaning looking inside rock. Apparently old people used to go to this place to see into the future.

Kokasanakaw River (53 M/8) Flows northeast into Swampy Lake. A local Cree name meaning lots of fish.

Makataysip Lake (53 D/14) Southeast of Gunisao Lake. A local Saulteaux name meaning black duck.

 Makatiko Lake (62 P/9) North of the Bloodvein River. CPCGN records (1978) indicated it to be a local Native name meaning crippled deer.

Vickers Lake (52 M/13) On Pigeon River west of Family Lake. GBC records (1926) indicated that the name was adopted over the common local name Goose Lake. It was the name of the company that manufactured the aircraft used to photograph the area. Goose Lake had been recorded on maps from possibly A. Graham (post 1771; HBC) onwards, although often in the wrong position. GBC correspondence (1929; from the Hudson’s Bay Company) listed the local name Big Goose Lake.

2. Aircraft Changed How Maps Were Made

Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3643612

“This is Amphibian Lake. There’s the airplane, there’s the flying boat, and there’s the camera. They would take photograph after photograph—boom, boom, boom, as they flew along—and they would give that to the mapmakers.”

By using photos taken from the sky, mapmakers were able to create maps that were more accurate and detailed. Gerald described a photo from a 1924 aerial survey, showing the Bloodvein River.

“It is hard to see much here but I circled an area that shows some white spots. You have to look closely, but I think these spots may be dwellings.”


Bloodvein Aerial Photo, Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada, marked up by Gerald

“That’s what people lived in back in the day. These white tents are dwellings.”


Little Grand Rapids, 1925, J.W. Pierce, DLS  

3. Maps changed how people traveled

The ability to map the area from the sky was a significant technological leap, but the shift also led to a disconnect from the traditional ways that people identified and traveled the land.

“In earlier years, people from the area travelled east-west along the Berens and Bloodvein rivers,” said Gerald. “The rivers were the primary passageways.” Gerald explained that several factors disrupted this over time.

The slow growth of change began with the assignment of the Manitoba-Ontario boundary in 1912. This was followed by the introduction of aircraft. Also, Manitoba and Ontario no longer shared responsibilities for communities. “Eventually, Education and Health services expanded according to provincial jurisdiction,” said Gerald.  

“Over time, commercial airplane operations and transportation routes were established, and these ran north-south. Travel increased immensely since then, but east-west travel is almost non-existent. Also, we have transitioned from light-weight, birch bark canoes to heavier alumunium boats with larger motors. These boats are heavy and much more difficult to portage, making the use of traditional travel routes difficult.”

4. Pikangikum residents named the first-ever plane to land there Big Duck  

Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada

“This photo was taken on July 31, 1922. The G-CYBT made a trip to Kenora and got lost along the way and landed in Pikangikum. There were no maps. Whenever they’d see somebody on the water, pilots would land and ask them to draw a map. Can you imagine flying a big airplane like this and just working off a hastily drawn sketch that has no landmarks? Well, they’d get lost again and they would land again…”

The momentous event of seeing a plane land for the first time is still remembered in the oral histories of Pikangikum residents, said Gerald. “They talk about how afraid they were when this huge gichi zhiishiib, meaning Big Duck, landed. The aircraft was a monstrosity, and it nearly sunk when it struck the only rock near the surface of the lake. They managed to get it to shore, which you see in the photo.”

T.S.10122, Library and Archives Canada

What are these women looking at?

CI [illegible]-1925, Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada

“These women are all looking to the right,” noted Gerald. “The big question is, what were they looking at?” Gerald solved the mystery by looking at photo archive numbers. 

T.S.10127, Library and Archives Canada

He explained that pilots and surveyors sent photos to different archives, so their photos were numbered differently. “The first photo was taken by a pilot. The number is illegible, but it ends in 1925. The second photo of the women was taken by a surveyor and labeled T.S.10127.”

By putting surveyor photos T.S.10122 and T.S.10127 in sequence, Gerald noted there were only four pictures in between. “It was that same day,” he concluded. “That’s what these women were looking at. They were probably seeing Big Duck, the very first airplane to land in their area.”

Gerald credits a small group of researchers for helping him “figure this out.” He says, “Their guidance has advanced my understanding of all the activity around airplanes, surveying, etc.” 

5. A special treaty list reveals who was standing in line together

Gerald presented Treaty Lists and colonial practices that shaped how local Anishinaabe names were documented and changed. 

Blood Vein River Treaty List

Source: Government of Canada Library and Archives

Here, by 1876, they call it Blood Vein River,” said Gerald, as he pointed to the top left of the pay sheet. “Until around 1820, it was named Blood River, and now it’s Blood Vein River. So something happened in there. I don’t know what it is.”

Gerald turned his attention to the 18 names listed on the sheet. “These are Anishinaabe names. At the top of this list is a prominent name, Sagachiwayas, who was the chief,” said Gerald. “He was also known as Peter Stoney. We know that from a different document.”

Sagachiwayas had also collected treaty in 1875 when Treaty 5 was signed at Berens River, said Gerald. “The names with red dots beside them had collected treaty elsewhere, so they weren’t allowed to negotiate this treaty. Only six people on this list, the ones with green dots, were permitted to negotiate the treaty.”

The other ones had already all collected at either Berens River or at Lac Seul (Lac). 

Lac Seul Treaty List

The names on the treaty pay list for Lac Seul in 1874 (below) are familiar, said Gerald.

Source: Government of Canada Library and Archives

“These are Upper Berens people for the most part, along with [Kisikakishik (#46 in L.S. list and #6 In B.V. list] who’s from Bloodvein. [Oshkineegee #44 In L.S. and #22 in Sandy Narrows list] is from Little Grand. [Kackeekaiwayweetung #36 In L.S. list and #20 on Sandy Narrows list] is from Pauingassi. And the rest are all from Pikangikum and Poplar Hill.”

Sandy Narrows of the Berens River Treaty List

Gerald emphasized the importance of the Sandy Narrows of the Berens River list. 

Source: Government of Canada Library and Archives

“This was the first time these names got recorded formally,” he explained. Gerald said the list is unique in its accuracy. It is based on Anishinaabe clan names.

“What happened here is that people acted as we do today. When you’re with friends or family that you’re close to, these are the people that you cluster up with in line. They were together in line for the treaty money.”

Gerald pointed out the names of people who were standing together. “Ayasa #5 (also known as Naamiwan, or Fairwind fm Pauingassi)was the son of Shenawakoshkank #6. Newepeenoukumwekwape #4 was another one. He is the brother-in-law to Ayaasa #5 and son-in-law to Shenawakoshkank #6. They’re all very close together. When you get down further, these are all the Pikangikum and Poplar Hill people. So that’s how they clustered up. And that’s just human nature.”

But the traditional Anishinaabe system of lining up based on the strength of kinship ties was soon lost.  

“The British were a very regimented people,” noted Gerald. “They were very orderly. They liked things done in a certain way. After that year, people were lined up alphabetically according to the sound of their last name. And after 1891, they were lined up alphabetically according to the English, Scottish, and French names imposed on them.” 

The impact of this erasure (loss of the knowledge of clans) continues to affect families, communities, and their connection to the land.

“People have forgotten their history. They’ve forgotten their relationships because it all changed from the traditional Anishinaabe names in the clan system.” 

With traditional names having “disappeared off the map,” Gerald now uses “forensic strategies” to track the lineage of community members in Pimachiowin Aki. 

His message is clear: remembering the past is crucial to understanding the present, and preserving ancestral connections is vital for future generations.

Filed Under: Cultural Heritage, Geneaology, Named Places, Uncategorised Tagged With: Gerald Neufeld

Place Name Changes on Early Maps  

March 19, 2025

“This is one of the first maps that Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) made,” said Gerald Neufeld, referring to the map below. “It was likely based on the first journey inland from the Hudson Bay and James Bay posts to look for opportunities to expand the fur trade. Tomison, the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) employee from the Severn River post, had not yet found the Berens River and Poplar River.”

Neither Poplar River nor Berens River appear on this 1769 A. Graham map, marked up by Gerald.

“As the years advanced, HBC became more aware of the east side of Lake Winnipeg, and so did their competition, the NorthWest Company out of Montreal.”

Lakes and Rivers Renamed

The 1802 Arrowsmith map (below) shows that familiarity with the region had advanced quickly, said Gerald. 

Today’s Fishing Lake, Viking Lake, and Moar Lake appear as Goose, Moose, and Eagle Lakes on this Arrowsmith map, 1802, marked up by Gerald.. 

From 1923-1926 the region’s lakes and rivers, once bearing Ojibwe names that carried stories and meanings, were renamed. “The Royal Canadian Air Force decided that if they were going to fly their airplanes in this region, they would need proper maps,” said Gerald.  

 No regard was given to traditional place names of lakes and rivers.

“The problem with their effort from today’s vantage point is that no permissions from Indigenous Peoples were obtained,” Gerald said. “They just went ahead and put names on the lakes and rivers. Some are Indigenous names, others are interpreted names that emulate the Indigenous names and many are names of fallen soldiers, aviators, and land surveyors. They got away with making the changes back in the 1920s, because most people in the region were unable to read or speak English.” 

Today’s Bloodvein River appears as Blood River in a section of thisHudson’s Bay Company map (Peter Pond, 1785); marked up by Gerald.

Reclaiming Place Names

Land Guardian Melba Green of Bloodvein River First Nation explains the importance of named places. “Our Elders tell stories about places that were named after the plants and animals who live there, or ancestors who traveled across the land. Some names are based on the rocks or the water that flows there. Water gives life, and the land gives gifts and tools to use and to survive.  These names are in our language and remind us to be respectful. They give us important information, like what to expect, or what to watch out for when we’re there.” 

That’s why Gerald Neufeld’s work is important and why our communities are creating traditional place names maps that preserve our cultural heritage.

Little Grand Rapids First Nation and Pauingassi First Nation are in the process of creating place names maps to preserve the language, cultural identity, and knowledge of place and travel routes.

12 Named Places to Discover in Poplar River First Nation

 

Filed Under: Cultural Heritage, Indigenous Traditional Knowledge, Named Places

Oral History Recordings – Drum Dance Ceremony and Interview with Little Grand Rapids First Nation Medicine Man William Bones Leveque

June 20, 2024

A Pimachiowin Aki Director learned years ago that an interview with Little Grand Rapids First Nation medicine man William Bones Leveque was recorded in the 1960s.

 “I read about the interview in the Hudson Bay Company (HBC) records when we did a history project at school for the community,” says the Director for Little Grand Rapids First Nation.

He has wanted to hear the recordings ever since. It was his idea to find the recordings and share them with the people of Pimachiowin Aki.  

The recordings (below) are part of a collection of film and sound recordings that were either created or acquired by HBC.

Learn more about the Hudson’s Bay Company film, video and sound collection

Feature Photo: William Bones Leveque answering questions for tape recorder operated by Don Ferguson 
Photographer: Don Ferguson, 2 July 1963
Don Ferguson fonds, Hudson’s Bay Company Archives, Archives of Manitoba

HBCA-T7-1

Little Grand Rapids [drum dance ceremony and interviews with medicine man William Bones Levesque, interpreter David Duck and HBC employee Walter Moar], [Moccasin Telegraph, Fall/Winter 1963]


HBCA-T7-2

Part two of an oral interview with HBC employee Walter Moar. See transcript below.


HBCA-T7-2 Transcript

Transcribed to the best of our ability.

[Speaker 1] Interviewer Don Ferguson (HBC employee)
[Speaker 2] Interpreter Walter Moar (HBC employee)
[Speaker 3] Unknown
[Speaker 4] Unknown

Relocation after the store burned down

[Speaker 1] (0:00) When did they move over to the other location?

Inaudible

[Speaker 1] Why did they move over there?

[Speaker 2] Well, they figured, they see, when the store burned out here, because they had hard time to come across here, see, with the water, because the water’s always open

Click here for full transcript

[Speaker 1]  I see.

[Speaker 2] (0:27) They have to go around. When they put the store out there, see, they can go in right there.

[Speaker 1] Right

[Speaker 2] Even the airplane couldn’t land here, they have to go around before they can get a mail.

[Speaker 1] I see, and that’s why they moved across.

[Speaker 2] I think that’s what they had to do.

[Speaker 1] I see. And then, um, uh, they just let these buildings go after that, didn’t they?

[Speaker 2] Yeah, yeah.

[Speaker 1] But they burned out, the store burned down, eh?

[Speaker 2] Yeah, yeah. The store burned down and then they built the other one across.

[Speaker 1] I see.

[Speaker 2] This one was… I’ve got this one. They tear it down, they leave boards.

[Speaker 1] Yeah, yeah.

[Speaker 3] Inaudible

[Speaker 2] 01:15 No, no. I think it’s the first one was used by my grandfather, Tony Moar.

[Speaker 1] This is the one that’s still left.

[Speaker 2] Yes. Tony Moar, yeah. 

[Speakers] Inaudible  

[Speaker 1] 01:28 But, uh, Walter says that they first established at Moar Lake. I didn’t know that. Uh, the first store, and then they came here, and then over to the present site.

[Speaker 3] Inaudible

Moving goods by canoe

[Speaker 2] 1:58 This would be after the Berens River. Well, I guess that’s what they said. They got energy from the Berens River to Moar Lake, and they hauled it in by canoe.

[Speaker 1] 2:20 Can you come from Berens River to here now without a portage?

[Speaker 2] No, no, not a portage. Without a portage is…

[Speaker 1] Fifty-two. Fifty-two…

[Speaker 2] Yeah, we used to haul it straight.

[Speaker 1] You were a boy back then.

[Speaker 2] Yeah, when I was a young boy, yeah. I used to haul it straight to the Berens River.

[Speaker 1] Oh, yeah.

[Speaker 2] 2:47 Well, before they moved, they had a tractor over here. They’d bring the stuff by the tractor to here, see?

[Speaker 3] Oh, yes.

[Speaker 2] And after that, they moved across.

[Speaker 1] I see.

[Speaker 2] That was before we used to haul it by canoe. About 1,500 pounds in each canoe.

[Speaker 1] I see.

[Speaker 2] Too many.

[Speaker 3] And you carried 90-pound packs like they used to carry all day?

[Speaker 2] 3:16 Oh, yeah. Some of them carried 400 pounds in a bag.

[Speaker 1] That’s bags of flour.

[Speaker 2] Yeah.

Inaudible

[Speaker 2] Get a few lynx, too. Beavers, birds.

Then and now

[Speaker 1] 3:42 Are the people better off now, would you say, than they were, say, 15 years, 20 years ago?

[Speaker 2] Well, first, I think they have a little bit of family allowance, but before they never had family allowance, not in 20 years ago.

[Speaker 1] They’re getting more income and everything now…

Inaudible

[Speaker 1] … and they’re better health-wise, would you say?

[Speaker 2] I think so. I think so.

[Speaker 1] 4:10 Like, with the nursing station being here?

[Speaker 2] It was a long time ago, nobody ever got sick. I never knew. And I never knew (inaudible) long time ago.

[Speaker 1] Mm-hmm. Well, that’s unusual, because there used to be a lot of people go out every Treaty time, didn’t there?

[Speaker 2] Yeah, yeah. But now…

[Speaker 3] The people they have to learn (inaudible).

Trading with Pauingassi

[Speaker 1] 4:43 What about the Pauingassi crowd? What’s happened there?

[Speaker 2] Well, you see, they belong to this Indian reserve. They belong to this reserve.

[Speaker 1] Yeah.

[Speaker 1]  They stay out there, see, because they got the better fishing out there. They eat fish, see. (inaudible)

[Speaker 1] 4:54 I see. I understand they don’t like the people here.

[Speaker 2] I don’t think so. Well, I don’t know much about that… (laughs)

[Speaker 1] Well, what do they do as far as trading, Walter, is concerned?

[Speaker 2] Well, they come down here to…

[Speaker 1] Oh, I see. They would come down once a week, or once every two weeks, you tell me.

Inaudible

Commercial Fishing

[Speaker 1] Oh, I see. I see. Well, Pete Lazarenko was in here commercial fishing, wasn’t he?

[Speaker 2] Yeah, he was, he was, he was… well, in the fall; every fall, October.

[Speaker 1] Oh, I see. Late fall, eh?

[Speaker 2] Yeah, late in the fall.

[Speaker 1] 5:44 And does he take fish right in the, in Berens River, or…

[Speaker 2] Oh, yeah, they take fish in this lake, and they take fish in this fishing lake.

[Speaker 1] I see.

[Speaker 2] In this lake.

[Speaker 1] Tracy’s up there now, is he?

[Speaker 2] 5:54 Yeah, Tracy’s out there. He’s got lots of… (inaudible)

[Speaker 1] Is he getting any business, any customers up there yet?

[Speaker 2] Yeah, he’s got a few now.

[Speaker 1] He has, eh?

[Speaker 2] Yeah.

[Speaker 1] I see.

[Speaker 3] It’s quite early, too. They only opened… (inaudible)

[Speaker 2] Oh, yeah. Oh, yes.

Inaudible

[Speaker 2] Sometimes rain, cloud. They never got wet.

Agriculture

[Speaker 1] 6:28 Oh, I see. So they, that’s another reason why they kept, moved across, eh?

[Speaker 2] Yeah. Yeah (inaudible). Another one way out there. Gardens.That was my grandfather’s here. Potatoes. He had lots of rhubarb.

[Speaker 1] Rhubarb.

[Speaker 2] Oh, yeah. Everything, they had here.

[Speaker 1] Oh, yeah.

[Speaker 2] They had two horses here.

Inaudible

[Speaker 3] 7:04 Well, they usually have many horses in this part of the country, right?

[Speaker 2] And since when we went out to Berens River, no more horses.

[Speaker 1] No.

Inaudible

Waste Disposal Practices

[Speaker 1] This is still the, the path, like, that they used to come up on, eh? And they hump the flour on their back coming up here. Walter, do you know where the garbage dump was, where they threw the garbage and that?

[Speaker 2] Oh, it was way up in the bank there.

[Speaker 1] I see. Doctor, uh, Walter was saying that their refuse disposal was way behind the house there. That might have been an interesting spot to look into.

[Speaker 2] Oh, yeah. Well, everything, they must have… they bury everything. See, they dig down the hole and they throw everything in there.

[Speaker 1] Is that, that was how they used it, eh? They buried all the garbage?

[Speaker 2] They buried out all that stuff in their cans and all that stuff.

Trading a Double Barrel for a Single Barrel

[Speaker 4] 08:13 Warden Crone, the manager, was at Pukatawagan.

[Speaker 1] Oh, yeah.

[Speaker 4] And he got it from, eh, in Dillon… Dillon, Saskatchewan.

[Speaker 1] 08:20 Oh, yeah.

[Speaker 4] 08:13 And I had, I got a double barrel. See, I got a double barrel in Pukatawagan and I traded him plus ten dollars for this single barrel.

[Speaker 1]  Oh, I see.

[Speaker 4]  But the double barrel, they sawed it off, you see. It was a sawed-off shotgun, just like it. So I wouldn’t, you know, this was in bad condition. I’ve got it at the post office.

[Speaker 1] Yeah, I’d like to have a look at it when we get back.

[Speaker 3] (inaudible)

Gallery

Photo Galleries

Photographer: Ōtake Hidehiro, May 2024
Keeper of the William Bones Leveque drum: Carlisle (Car Leslie) Bushie

Don Ferguson fonds (1987/273). Photographer: Don Ferguson, 2 July 1963
Hudson’s Bay Company Archives, Archives of Manitoba 




William Bones Leveque with pipe
William Bones Leveque, medicine man, singing. Full name, according to Nurse Lowry: Flatstone Jackfish Whiskyjack Joseph William Bones Leveque, known as ‘William Bones’



William Bones Leveque (with pipe) and Chief Sam Bushie






Observers. David Duck holding baby on left 
Women dancing anticlockwise circling drum in small step and dip: 1. Louise Leveque; 2. Sarah Leveque; 3. Frances Bascombe; 4. Marion Eaglestick 



Extreme left David Duck with 4 men dancing. At drum L to R: Bones, Bascombe, Bushie, Keeper. 4 women dancing: Louise Leveque, Sarah Leveque, Frances Bascombe, Marion Eaglestick



David Duck (interpreter on the left) and Robertson (photographer in back)
Observers



HBC post buildings 



Bill Mayer Oakes 



Remains of old HBC post across river from present post 
This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is HBCA-1987-273-022-1-1020x1024.jpg



Cemetery at Little Grand Rapids 



In stern of boat Eric Dranthee, post manager Little Grand Rapids, clerk (only stayed 10 months with Company) Barry Tuckett 

Hudson’s Bay House Photo Collection
Hudson’s Bay Company Archives, Archives of Manitoba 

Little Grand Rapids HBC post, July 1963
William Bones Leveque (left), Little Grand Rapids, July 1963
William Bones Leveque (left), Little Grand Rapids, July 1963
William Bones Leveque (centre), Little Grand Rapids, July 1963
Little Grand Rapids HBC post buildings, 1967. Photographer: George Hunter
Little Grand Rapids HBC post, 1967. Photographer: George Hunter

Thank you to the Pimachiowin Aki Director for Little Grand Rapids First Nation for your efforts to connect people of Pimachiowin Aki with our cultural heritage. Thank you also to drum keeper Carlisle Bushie and photographer Ōtake Hidehiro for making it possible for us to share images of the William Bones Leveque drum today, and to the staff of the Archives of Manitoba for providing Pimachiowin Aki with digitized copies of the audio recordings and photographs donated to the Archives.

Filed Under: Cultural Heritage, First Nation Communities, Knowledge Keepers, Uncategorised Tagged With: Hudson Bay Company, Little Grand Rapids First Nation, Manitoba Archives, Medicine Man, Pauingassi First Nation

Lessons in Ojibwe – Tips and Fast Facts

March 11, 2024


This is part two of a two-part interview with educator Jason Jones. Read more from Jason in our past newsletter.

1. Let’s get straight to a few fast facts about Ojibwe. There’s no F in the Ojibwe alphabet?

There’s also no Q, R, U, V or X. The alphabet has 17 consonants and seven vowels, including double vowels:

  • b, ch, d, g, h, j, k, m, n, p, s, sh, t, w, y, z, zh
  • a, aa, e, i, ii, o, oo

2.  Also, what is the ‘ called and how is it used in Ojibwe?

This is called glottal stop, a sudden stop in speech. I don’t think English language has this sound.


Omagakee’ominitik or omakakii’ominiti
(a reef where there are frogs)
Wawezhi’onan (dance capes)

Examples of the glottal stop in use

3. Ojibwe words have special categories, like animate/living and inanimate/nonliving. What is animate, what is inanimate, and how do you tell?

If you don’t understand, ask someone to pluralize the word – if it ends in G/K, it’s animate. If it ends in N, it’s inanimate after you pluralize it. Sometimes we may look too far into this concept and ask why something is considered alive or not alive. It simply has to be one or the other.

Mazina’igan (book) is inanimate. I see it. If I see a mashkikiwinini (person) or Animosh (pet), I see him or her.

When talking about mitigoog (trees), it’s him or her, not it. We see trees as animate and alive. There are spirits inside there. Asiniig (rocks) are animate. Mishoomisaabikwag (Grandfather rocks) are alive and need to be respected.

4. What about fruits and vegetables? Are they animate or inanimate?

It gets a little complicated when you talk about fruits and vegetables. Some are alive and some are not – miskominag (raspberries) are animate and miinan (blueberries) are inanimate.

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

5. Do you know the reason for this?

The closest I can get is that raspberries have seeds. Another interesting one is that mikwam (ice) is animate, nibi (water) is inanimate.

In Manitoba and Ontario, odaabaanan (vehicles) are inanimate. But if you go down south to Minnesota, they’re animate, odaabaanag.

It leads me down this tunnel wondering why. But Elders have told me that it’s just the way it is. It has to be one or the other. Some things have culture built into them, as to why they are animate, like when we mentioned rocks and trees.

6. How is respect is built into the language?

When we’re in a crowd, or we have the microphone, we usually have a humbling statement. I hear this often with Elders. They’ll even acknowledge everyone by saying, “Hello my relatives” because were all related; we all have the same mother – mother earth.


Boozhoo nindinawemaaganag

Mother earth

Another example is that Katakosign giizis is a month that teaches how to be respectful. In our area it’s spelled Gaa-dakoozid giizis and means February. Its literal translation is “the one that is being short, month,” in reference to the number of days in the month. But to take it one step further, we know that other cultures have this as the shortest month – our speakers named it after that because they wanted to show respect to other cultures. When we see these names of the months, we can see our speakers/ancestors recognizing other cultures, which is through respect. This is what I mean when I say “respect is built into the language.”

Also, there are no swear words in Ojibwe/Anishinaabemowin, so right off the bat there’s respect that’s built in there.

7. How do people express themselves in place of swear words?

People call each other bad words by using body part words. They’re not swear words, but probably the closest you can get to swearing. There are other words one can use as well, most of them are visual words though. Most of the time, when one says bad words to someone, it ends in laughter.  

8. Today, many people use miigwech to say thank you. But the word meant something different before. What’s the story behind this?

It’s actually two different words coming together:

  • mii – thus/that
  • gwech – sufficient

A long time ago, Anishinaabeg changed with the times. When we traded with the French, the going rate was a bundle of muskets for a pile of pelts. They were stacked up equally. However high the muskets were was how high the pelts were. When asked, “Mii,mii…gwech, gwech (Is that sufficient)?” the French people thought we said thank you, thank you …. Over time it got figured out. It’s how we came to understand each other, and it stuck.

9. You explained in Part I of our interview that culture is built into the language. They’re inseparable. Can you give us examples of what the language reflects?

a) How natural and dream worlds are perceived
The Creator is constantly trying to communicate with us. We usually put tobacco out and ask for help or guidance, then we pay attention and watch. There was this constellation my grandma told me about called “aatawaamoog.” I could see it in my head, but I couldn’t think of its English name, so I asked out loud, “What is this word in English, I forget?” The next day, I’m standing in line at Safeway and two ladies in front of me started talking about stars. I took my headphones off to listen. Then they said, “Orien’s Belt” and the lightbulb went off in my head and I got my answer. I’d recommend people to try this out – just say things out loud, then wait to see what happens. 

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

b) How animals and plants are understood
These are our teachers. We can learn a lot from animals and plants if we pay attention to them. They have so much love for us. When we see a shrew/mole it’s usually a bad sign that someone is going to pass away. But I see it as a good sign, like that animal knows what’s coming and is giving us the heads up, so we can say our last goodbyes to our loved ones. It also reminds us to love one another while we’re here.

Sage plant has things as well, we just have to look more closely. When it gets stepped on or bent, it stays that way until you see it the next day; it’s back to its normal erect state. It’s showing us it can repair itself, and we too have that ability. It could be as easy as telling your body soul spirit to help fix your knee or back problems and it will do its best to help. It’s the same thing with mental health – if we create that way of resetting our minds and giving things a day or two, then we can reset ourselves, much like the sage plant does when it gets stepped on. That’s what it’s trying to show us.

c) How hunting and other practices are expressed  
We see hunting a bit different than Western views. For me, I see the spirit of the deer guiding the bullet to hit the deer and not me, the hunter, shooting him. He’s giving his life so we can live and be healthy. We have to do our part and not waste the meat or talk bad about the animal. His spirit is watching us while we cut him up and he can hear us. That’s why we hear Elders constantly saying thank you or talking highly of him while skinning. 

10. In Anishinaabemowin there no words for ownership and no words for goodbye. How is this a reflection of Anishinaabe values and beliefs?

I guess there are some ownership words. Mostly with family members we see this, like father or mother – they have to belong to someone, so it’s either nindede or nimaamaa for my father or mother. The word parts are dede and maamaa but we won’t see them on their own, they have to have ownership on them. 

Some might say “giga-waabamin” or “baamaa” for goodbye but all it means is, “I will see you (in the future)” or “later.” We truly can’t say goodbye to someone because that would mean we won’t see them any longer, and this gets into death, which can’t happen in our culture. We believe that we are spirits, having a physical experience right now, but we’ll go back to spirit at some time. 

11. Anishinaabeg need language to understand the land. As a language expert for IISD, you translate research on climate change into Anishinaabemowin. What significant lesson has Anishinaabemowin taught you about the land?

The language taught me that much of what we see around us is very much alive.  Also, our language is alive and has the ability to create new words. It is growing and has room for the future, and future words/terms. It comes back to that idea of everything is energy in motion. Our language is moving forward.

12. Eighty percent of people in Pimachiowin Aki speak Anishinaabemowin. What does this mean to you at a time when Indigenous languages around the world are at risk of disappearing? 

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

It gives us hope. Most places aren’t as lucky as here. Some communities have lost all their language speakers. I think we’re starting to turn things around – more and more people are talking about the language now and realizing the importance of it. 

13. Here are more words used in Pimachiowin Aki. What can you tell us about them?

a) Gaagige bimosemagan (It exists and travels through eternity)

  • gaagige means for every
  • bim – goes along
  • ose – walks
  • magan turns it into intransitive verb. The thing walks along forever. 

The thing with Ojibwe is, it opens up the meaning of words to mean more than one thing, whereas English tries to narrow things down to one or two meanings. That’s why the translation means “it exists and travels through eternity.” It’s trying to get us to visualize the language and see it. That’s what those smaller word parts do. 

b) Geeminizahgeegink (the land to grow beautifully)
I see “creating an image” that looks nice when I say this word out loud. 

c) Akiiwigikendamowining (Anishinaabe land-based knowledge) 

  • akii- land/earth
  • wi – turns noun to verb
  • gikendamaw (or gikendamow) – is to know  
  • win – turns verb back into noun
  • ing- in/at/ by something

In English, it sounds simple, like knowing the animate land. But the word parts allow us to see this in action, and what we see is where a better translation comes in – we see the land being known. 

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

14. Where can people find your lessons to learn Ojibwe and connect to their cultural heritage?

Sayitfirst.ca has much of our books, wakingupojibwe.ca is where I’ve been putting resources. Both of these will help with language. 

Lessons in Ojibwe – Language That Comes From the Land (Part I)
Read Part I of our interview with Jason.

Filed Under: Cultural Heritage, Indigenous Language, Uncategorised Tagged With: Anishinaabemowin, Ojibwe

How to Harvest Manoomin (Wild Rice) 

March 11, 2024


The late Joe Owen of Pauingassi First Nation often reminisced about harvesting, traveling and listening to stories from his dad. Below, Joe describes the process of harvesting manoomin (wild rice).

Identify Harvest Time

The wild rice plant needs to be above the surface of the water, with the branch extended, and pockets for the kernels formed. Once this occurs, it takes about 10 days for the heads to fill out. At that point, the kernels are ripe and need to be harvested. If this narrow time window is missed, rain or wind will cause the kernels to fall back into the lake.

Pankissinon
(Better pick them quickly before they fall)

Kwiipit (Joe’s Dad) often used this word
Manoomin looks like floating grass before it grows up and out of the water.
Photos: Ōtake Hidehiro


Drying Manoomin (Wild Rice)

Once the kernels are harvested, they are placed in a tall metal pail angled against the heat of the fire to heat and dry them. It is imperative that they be thoroughly dried for two reasons. First, the husking process follows the drying period and the husks won’t detach from the kernel if the kernels aren’t entirely dry. The heat needs to remove moisture and result in temperatures that cause the husk to burn, but not the rice. The second reason for needing high levels of dryness is to preserve the wild rice.  Heating of the kernel is needed to prepare for storage.

In the pot, a paddle is used to continuously stir the rice for 10-15 minutes if the quantity of wild rice is 3-4 pounds. This process is repeated over and over again during the initial drying/stirring process if greater volumes are being dried.

Ahkihkan okii apichii’an (They used a pail)
Piiwapihk ahkihk (A metal pail)
Oki wanaweyaanan ima ahkihkwonk
(It was stirred in the pail)
Apwi oki aapachii’an (A paddle was used)

Separating Husks and Kernels

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

Once the drying is done, the rice is placed on a canvas in a shallow pit in the ground. Joe’s Dad would step into the pit wearing moccasins. He would stand on the rice and stir it in an agitator fashion, with his feet moving side to side, while holding a branch or stick to maintain his balance. The agitating action would separate the dry/burned husks from the rice kernels.   

Once the husks and kernels were separated, Joe’s dad would lift out the canvas and throw the kernels up and down, allowing the wind to blow away the husks.

Ahkihkwaabpihk  kii siikinaan oteshpiwepinaanan, wepash ikiweniwak (husks)
Kii pahkwachihsewak (they fall off)

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

Pimachiowin Aki is grateful to Joe for sharing his knowledge and Gerald Neufeld for recording Joe’s words.

Filed Under: Cultural Heritage, Food, Harvesting, Indigenous Traditional Knowledge, Knowledge Keepers, Plants, Uncategorised, Wild Rice Tagged With: harvesting, Joe Owen, Pauingassi First Nation, Wild Rice

Why Award-Winning Nature Photographer Ōtake Hidehiro Keeps Coming Back to Pimachiowin Aki

December 18, 2023

Growing up in the busy city of Tokyo, Japan, Ōtake Hidehiro (Hide) had never truly experienced being deep in nature. However, an eye-opening camping trip during his university days sparked his profound connection to the natural world and ultimately led him to the people and land of Pimachiowin Aki.

We recently sat down with Hide in Winnipeg to talk about his journey.

Your camping trip as a member of a mountaineering club was pivotal. You said it was the first time you realized that the environment you grew up in was human-built.

It opened my eyes to the natural world far away from cities. That’s the first moment I really loved it. Because I’m not a factory-made robot; I was born as  part of nature. We set up a tent and slept under a sky full of stars. We lit a fire and fished stream trout. There was no running water or electricity. So I really loved the simple camping life and began to notice how beautiful this planet is.

The camping experience steered you away from your initial career choice and guided you toward nature photography.

Yes. At that time, I wanted to be a journalist, but I thought, oh, I really care about nature instead of the economy and politics. I have skills to explore the woods and mountains, so I really want to tell the story of spiritual nature, which probably won’t be in the newspaper. But it’s very important.

I became a photographer because I wanted to be in nature.

Ōtake Hidehiro

So how did you get your start as a nature photographer?

I bought my first SLR camera at the end of my third year of university, but I was struggling to find my first theme. Then, I had a dream. I was in a small cabin and snow was falling. A creature came in and we looked at each other. It was like a big dog. Whoa! But it’s too severe. When I woke up, I thought, oh, a wolf came; I saw the wolf walking in my dream.  

Until that dream, I had never even considered wolves as a topic. Wild wolves had vanished from Japan over 100 years before. 

Nippon.com, Photographer Ōtake Hidehiro: Following the Dream Wolf

I wanted to learn more about the wolf. I went to the library the next morning and found a beautiful portfolio taken by world-famous National Geographic photographer Jim Brandenburg. There’s a wolf. And it’s beautiful. And it’s in the woods. It looks like my dream. So I thought, I really want to go where this photo was taken, and meet Jim to learn photography under him as an assistant.

[Jim] answered my request with gentle refusal, saying that he did not need an assistant. However, he saw my sincerity, and offered a compromise. He told me, “It’s important to face the natural world alone. Good work takes time, so you should start shooting now.”

Nippon.com, Photographer Ōtake Hidehiro Finds His Path Forward

Your decision to travel to Ely, Minnesota to meet Jim in 1999 marked the beginning of your decades-long exploration of the Northwoods wilderness of North America. You recently published a photo book celebrating 20 years of work, including photos taken near and in Pimachiowin Aki.

When my publisher agreed to produce a photo book, I wanted to show four things: the northern landscapes, various wildlife including the elusive wolf, the joy and adventure of canoeing and snowshoeing, and the First Nation way of life on the land. The book has about 180 photos. Three photos of wolves were used – a lone wolf watching me from the distance, an aerial shot of wolves walking on a frozen lake, and a wolf pack feeding on a deer, which shows their behaviour and interaction.

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

What sets your work apart is not just the visual beauty but your deep engagement with Anishinaabeg who steward this land. A turning point in your career came in 2010 when you were invited to a Healing Camp on the shores of Weaver Lake at Poplar River First Nation.  

Yes. Before then, I heard a little bit about the World Heritage project because I lived in Red Lake, Ontario for over a year between 2005-2007. I wanted to go to the Healing Camp to take pictures and learn. I met lots of people from Poplar River and other communities. After the Healing Camp, I took a flight to Little Grand Rapids and Pauingassi and people showed me around. It was just a short visit. I really wanted to spend more time there.

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro, Healing Camp ( Weaver Lake)

Getting to know the First Nations people who still maintain tradition as hunters and gatherers in this land finally gave me a new perspective on the trips I was taking.

Nippon.com, Photographer Ōtake Hidehiro Is Guided by the Blaze

You have traveled to this region numerous times since. What keeps bringing you back to Pimachiowin Aki?

Culture is a very interesting thing for me. Before, I thought this place is wilderness; there are not many people. But I realized after my experience of learning from Elders and archaeologists, oh, this is a place where people have lived for thousands of years. Pictographs and a piece of pottery or stone tools can be found in places. I really want to tell the story about how they are connected to the land.

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

You are drawn to the stories embedded in the landscape…

Yes, now I look at the landscape and understand that it’s not just forest or water. I can feel the history of the land. When I was traveling by canoe in Pimachiowin Aki, I found many pieces of pottery around my campsite. When I showed a photo of it, an archaeologist told me that the site has been used for at least for more than two thousand years. I remembered there’s a waterfall nearby. It’s a good place to get fish. There’s a nice sandbar, so maybe it’s a good landing spot for canoes for hunting. You can walk through a nice hill, which has lots of blueberries or medicines. 

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

I want to take photos to show it’s the wildlife’s homeland too. To get a good photo of wildlife, you have to know their behavior and lifestyle. Like that squirrel. That’s his house and he has probably never seen people before, so he was kind of getting nervous. He’s busy collecting the pinecones to survive the winter. I should be quiet and respect his space because I am just a visitor to his homeland.

So that’s a very important part of this place. I really love that Pimachiowin Aki gives me a lot of opportunities – not just wildlife and landscape and camping, you know, there’s always people there to teach me and so many things I can do, and so many places I haven’t seen. I’m not just coming here to take pictures and sightsee. I want to actually learn and experience the processes of living with nature. Most people living in cities have lost that connection and wisdom.  

Photos : Ōtake Hidehiro, harvesting manoomin (wild rice) and moose

It seems only natural that I would be even more drawn to the lifestyles and culture of the Indigenous Peoples who had coexisted with this natural environment for so long.

Nippon.com, Ōtake Hidehiro Learns More Lessons of the Life Giving Earth

Your work reflects on our connection to nature, appreciates its fragility, and recognizes the responsibility we all hold to preserve it. But for many people, life is far removed from nature. What does it mean for you to connect with the natural world?

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro
Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

When you’re camping or traveling by canoe or snowshoe, you can feel a very deep connection to nature because you can feel wind, water and snow closely. And you can even get a fish! That’s local food. And it’s a gift from nature. So you can appreciate it more.  

If you hold a paddle you can feel it grab the water. You feel the connection. And once you get on the shore, it’s nice. It makes me very happy, right? It’s like a welcoming.   Just to stand on and touch it and say thank you very much for this nice landing. 

And when I drink water, it connects me to nature. Sixty per cent of my body is water, so more than half of my body is from this lake. I don’t want to pollute it. So those connections—the connection with a tree—you start feeling like the tree is a friend. And even dead trees can become a good friend when you’re cutting up firewood. They make you warm. I appreciate that very much.  

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro

Cultural experiences, like learning from Elders and participating in net fishing and collecting medicine plants, have deepened your appreciation for Pimachiowin Aki. You were here this fall and spent time with Pauingassi First Nation Guardian Colin Owens and his wife Cora. 

It has been great to see their lifestyle of living off the land!

What’s next for you in Pimachiowin Aki?

I would like to learn about seasonal activities and am interested in photographing life on the land throughout the year. So, spring duck or geese hunting, winter trapping for beaver and snowshoe hare would be interesting subjects.

Colin is interested in showing me how to snare snowshoe hare and catch fish by net under ice, and I would love to photograph it. 

Your commitment to promoting awareness of Pimachiowin Aki extends beyond photography. You give speeches and presentations in Japan and North America and have even led tourist groups from Japan to parts of the boreal forest that touch Pimachiowin Aki.

In 2013, I took a school group to Red Lake, and in 2018 and 2019, I took two groups of people from their 20s-70s. They said it was one of the best trips ever. Just seeing a wolf track on sand or mud was a very special experience because it is now impossible in Japan! They could see the natural beauty but also experience the lifestyle connected to the land.  

Is there anything more you’d like to share with the people of Pimachiowin Aki?

Photo: Ōtake Hidehiro, jackpine forest 10 years after a fire

Before, I didn’t pay much attention to my own culture. But when I’m experiencing the different culture, I am learning my own culture. Being proud of my own roots makes me stronger. Everything has a spirit in nature – I’ve grown up with that in my culture, too. And I feel the connection. I’m not born here. I’m not living here. But I really want to learn about this area. So I hope people look at their culture, the precious lifestyle and traditions you have, and are proud. It’s really wonderful. And it’s very important for all of us.

Main Photo (top): Ōtake Hidehiro

Filed Under: Cultural Heritage, Uncategorised, UNESCO World Heritage, Wildlife Tagged With: nature photography, Ōtake Hidehiro

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