Brentwood's Indigenous Language Club

Brentwood’s Indigenous Language Club

Greetings & Introductions 2018-20

Brentwood Park Indigenous Language Club: Introductions & Greetings 2018-19

This book is dedicated to the students, staff & community members of Brentwood Park Elementary

Researched & Designed by Brandi Price & Brentwood Park Indigenous Students. Photo Credits: Brandi Price Picture Credits: Pixabay.com Audio Recording: Brentwood Park Indigenous students Edited by Burnaby Indigenous Resource Team © 2018-2020

Table of Contents

1. What is Indigenous Language Club? Page 2 2. Acknowledgements Page 2 3. Kwak’wala Page 3 4. Nēhiyawēwin-Y Dialect Page 4 5. Michif Page 5 6. Kwak’wala Page 6 7. Michif Page 7 8. Gitsenimx Page 8 9. Michif Page 9 10. Secwepemctsín Page 10 11. Sḵwx̱ wú7mesh Page 11 12. Kwak’wala Page 12 13. Indigenous Language Map of Canada Page 13 14. Map of the World Page 14 15. UNESCO status of Indigenous Languages in Canada Page 15-16

16. Resources Page 17

What is Indigenous Language Club? The Brentwood Park language club is a safe place for students to increase their awareness of the Indigenous languages in Canada and is inclusive to all languages. All Indigenous languages in Canada are at a high risk of becoming endangered or extinct due to the impacts of colonization and residential schools. Indigenous communities are currently engaged in a variety of efforts to maintain and revitalize their languages. Using the Truth And Reconciliation (TRC), section 13 and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous peoples (UNDRIP), article 13 as a guide, I wanted to create an opportunity for urban indigenous students who come from various cultural backgrounds to explore, learn, research and play with their ancestral language through firstvoices.com, learnmichif.com, youtube and other online platforms. This year, our focus is to build knowledge on their identity, boost self-esteem, confidence and instill pride. We acknowledge that Indigenous languages rely heavily on oral speaking, therefore, the written and oral aspects within this book will vary from community to community. This book is considered a working document therefore there may be errors in both the written and oral component. Mistakes are a natural part of language learning. The words and phrases represent survival level only.

Acknowledgements

We respectfully thank the three host nations of Sḵwx̱ wú7mesh (Squamish), xʷməθkʷəy̓ əm (Musqueam) and səl̓ ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations for allowing us to learn our languages in their traditional unceded territory. Also, we would like to thank and acknowledge the Indigenous Education Team, Burnaby School District administration, parents and community members for supporting our students on this life-long journey. Finally, a special thank you to our Indigenous elders and their respective communities for your strength, love and knowledge for allowing your voices to be recorded to ensure it is passed down to the next generation of learners.

Gila Kasla, Ms. Brandi Price, We Wai Kai Nation Indigenous Resource Teacher Brentwood Zone (Elementary)

2 Gila Kasla! Bonjour! Stellatɫan. Je m'appelle Stella.

3 Tansi! Hello, how are you? Max nit'sîyihkâson.

My name is Max.

4 Tawsnshi Hello! Lexi Dishinikawson. My name is Lexi

Kamusta!! Bonjour! Ang pangalan ko ay Lexi. Ja’m’appelle Lexi.

5 Gila Kasla Welcome Mikeytɫan I’m Mikey

6 Tawsnshi Hello! Luke Dishinikawson. My name is Luke

Kamusta!! Bonjour! Ang pangalan ko ay Luke. Ja’m’appelle Luke

7 8 Tawsnshi Bonjour! Dylan Dishinikawson. Je m'appelle Dylan.

9 Weyt-kp Hello Kayden ren skwekwst My name is Kayden

Nú Hello (To close friends) Dominick kwi en sna.

11 Gila Kasla! Welcome! Ms. Branditɫan I am Ms. Brandi

Michif

Nēhiyawēwin Nēhiyawēwin

Secwepemctsin

Indigenous Language Map of of Map Canada Language Indigenous

xʷmə

wala

Gitsenim

’

ḵ

Kwak S

language from? from? language

Where is your ancestral ancestral your is Where

Map of the World World the of Map

14 UNESCO status of Indigenous Languages in Canada UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) states that there are approximately 70 distinct Indigenous languages within 12 language families (a set of languages that currently spoken across Canada today. A majority of those languages are in the province of British Colombia. There are also notable dialect differences within the language groups. In addition, Statistics Canada shows that the overall number of speakers has grown by 3.1% in the last 10 years. UNESCO defines four levels of endangerment ranging from safe (not endangered) to extinct (no living speakers). The levels of endangerment are: 1) Vulnerable (not spoken by children outside their home) 2) Definitely endangered (children not speaking) 3) Severely endangered (spoken by the oldest generation) 4) Critically endangered (spoken by few of the oldest generations). Gitsenimx Language: Gitsenimx is an Indigenous language spoken by the Gitsen peoples in the Skeena region of British Columbia. It is considered to belong to the Tsimshianic linguistic language family. According to the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization), the status of the Gitsenimx language is severely endangered, which means, there are few speakers, therefore at high risk of becoming extinct. Hən̓ q̓ əmin̓ əm̓ Language: Hən̓ q̓ əmin̓ əm̓ is a Indigenous language spoken by the xʷməθkʷəy̓ əm (Musqueam) and səl̓ ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples. It is one of the three dialects of Halkomelem within the Salishan language family in Southwest of British Columbia and Washington State. According to UNESCO, hən̓ q̓ əmin̓ əm̓ is severely endangered, which means there are few speakers and is at high risk of becoming extinct. Currently, the University of British Columbia offers courses on UBC campus. Kwak’wala Language: Kwak’wala is an Indigenous language spoken by the Kwakwaka’wakw peoples in BC. It belongs to the Wakashan linguistic language family. It is one of five dialect in the North eastern Vancouver Island and adjacent mainland region. According the UNESCO, the status of the Kwak’wala language is critically endangered, which means there are very few speakers, therefore at high risk of becoming extinct. Michif Language: Michif is an Indigenous language spoken by the Metis people that developed around the Red River settlement in Manitoba. Michif is mainly a combination of Cree and French and also borrows from English and other Indigenous languages including Ojibwe. According to UNESCO Atlas of the World’s Languages, the Michif language is critically endangered therefore is a high risk of becoming extinct. Nēhiyawēwin Language: Nēhiyawēwin (Plains Cree-Y) is an Indigenous language spoken by the Plains Cree peoples in the region of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Montana (USA). It belongs to the Algonquian linguistic family. Nēhiyawēwin language is one of eight dialects. According the UNESCO, the status of the Plains Cree language is considered vulnerable, which means although there are many speakers of this language, it is still at risk of becoming definitely endangered.

15 UNESCO status of indigenous Languages of Canada Con’t

Secwepemctsín Language: Secwepemctsín is an Indigenous language spoken by the Shuswap people in the central and southern interior region of British Columbia. It is one of three dialects within the Interior Salish language family. According to UNESCO, the status of the Secwepemctsín is severely endangered, which means it is at high risk of becoming critically endangered or extinct. Sḵwx̱ wú7mesh Language: Sḵwx̱ wú7mesh is an Indigenous language spoken by the Squamish peoples in the Lower mainland area of British Columbia, Canada. It is one of many dialects within the Salishan linguistic language family in Southwest of British Columbia and Washington State. According to UNESCO, the status of the Sḵwx̱ wú7mesh language is severely endangered, which means its at high risk to becoming extinct. Currently, Simon Fraser University offers a full time immersion program at the downtown campus in Vancouver.

16 Resources

First Peoples’ Heritage Language & Culture. 2005. First Peoples’ Languge Map of British Columbia. First Peo- ples’s Heritage. Language & Culture Council. Online version: http://mapsfphlcc.ca/

"Greetings in Sḵwx̱ wú7mesh |." Kwi Awt Stelmexw. January 12, 2017. Accessed April 26, 2019. https:// www.kwiawtstelmexw.com/language_resources/greetings-in-skwxwu7mesh/.

Fpcc. "Gitsenimx." FirstVoices. 2000-2019. Accessed April 26, 2019. https://www.firstvoices.com/explore/FV/ sections/Data/Sim'algaxm - Gitksen/Gitsenimx̱ /Gitsenimx̱ .

Fpcc. "Kwak'wala." FirstVoices. 2000-2019. Accessed April 26, 2019. https://www.firstvoices.com/explore/FV/ sections/Data/Kwak'wala/Kwak̓ wala/Kwak̓ wala.

Fpcc. "Secwepecmc." FirstVoices. 2000-2019 Accessed April 26, 2019. https://www.firstvoices.com/explore/FV/ sections/Data/Secwepemc/Secwepemctsin/Secwepemc.

"Start Speaking Michif." Greetings | LearnMichif.com. 2006. Accessed April 26, 2019. http:// www.learnmichif.com/language/greetings.

Ratt, Solomon. "Chapter One Making Introductions – Two Dialogues and Vocabulary from Solomon Ratt." Cree Literacy Network. October 02, 2017. Accessed April 26, 2019. https://creeliteracy.org/2014/09/12/making- introductions-two-dialogues-and-vocabulary-from-solomon-ratt/.

Thank You Plains Cree, Cathy Wheton Bird, 24 Oct. 2009, www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKFPywVu05o.

"Virtual Museum Citation Guide." The Virtual Museum of Metis History and Culture. September 15, 2009. Ac- cessed April 26, 2019. http://www.metismuseum.ca/michif_dictionary.php.

Nēhiyawēwin

wala ’

Kwak Nēhiyawēwin

Michif

Thank You

Merci

x Salamat

Gitsenim

Secwepemcts

ín

Hən̓ q̓ əmin̓ əm̓ Sḵwx̱ wú7mesh