Canadian Assembly of Narcotics Anonymous ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Assemblée Canadienne de Narcotiques Anonymes Inuktitut Translation Project November 2010 Report In 2008, as part of our efforts to reach out to addicts in the far north, CANA initiated a project to translate IP#1 (Who, What, How and Why?) into the Inuktitut language. This was in accord with NAWS translation protocol which indicates that IP #1 is the logical first piece of literature to be translated for any language group, as it contains the 12 Steps and 12 Traditions etc. It thus provides an effective resource for any further translation work within that language group. Ideally, to ensure conceptual fidelity, translation work is performed by a committee of local NA members who are both fluent in the language and familiar with the NA program. Our efforts to organise such a committee were unsuccessful, so after consultation with NAWS it was decided to commission a professional translator to perform the work. This was done in 2009. Unfortunately, although it looked amazing, in the absence of anyone who could actually read the finished product we had no way of evaluating the work as, despite our best efforts, we were unable to find Inuktitut speaking NA members to participate and so again we turned to the services of a professional. Having consulted with NAHO (National Aboriginal Health Organisation) we were referred to a translator in Yellowknife. She was commissioned to perform a blind reverse translation of the previous work. Our hope was that we would then be able to fine tune it a bit and move on. However, what we got back was quite disappointing. The professional evaluation read as follows: “I have completed the English back translation for you as requested.The Inuktitut translation was not good. …. It is not written in proper form …I would strongly suggest you get the original redone professionally. Although I have been able to decipher it, keep in mind, I am a translator of thirty some years and I have translated it back professionally in every way it should appear as the Inuktitut. The formatting and the many typos make it very hard to read. The Inuktitut writing is such that each letter represents about three letters with a vowel in each, (ie: ᕕ = vi) thus if there are two mistakes in the same spelling of the word, you have pretty much lost what the word is supposed to say”. Following this recommendation, a new translation was commissioned and produced, as well as a reverse translation to English. This new document was then evaluated and revised, with the invaluable participation and support of NAWS Translations. CANA/ACNA 1 PO BOX 25073 RPO West Kildonan Winnipeg, MB. R2V 4C7 www.canaacna.org So, after all this, it is with great pleasure that I am able to announce the arrival the first Draft Version of IP#1 in Inuktitut. This can be used in our FDC efforts (mailouts to treatment centres etc.). This represents a huge step in our efforts to fulfill the Vision of CANA and Narcotics Anonymous as a whole. I am also pleased to announce NAHO has already requested copies of the printed version! This particular written form (Inuktitut syllabics) is the one used in Nunavut and Nunavik. Elsewhere the language is spoken much the same way but is written using the roman alphabet. There are 2 notices which have been added to the Draft Pamphlet. 1) Front Cover: Draft Translation – distribution only within Narcotics Anonymous This is for copyright protection. It does not restrict our use of the pamphlet for Fellowship Development purposes. It is meant to restrict unauthorized external reproduction of the pamphlet. Narcotics Anonymous groups and committees are free to reproduce and include this Draft pamphlet in mailouts to health professionals and treatment centres. We would be wise to request those distributing it to let us know where it goes in order for us to effectively evaluate its impact. 2) Back Panel: English version In order to help us finalize this pamphlet (IP#1) we encourage all Inuktitut speaking NA members to join our translations working group. Please contact the Canadian Assembly of Narcotics Anonymous through our website at: http://www.canaacna.org/ Version français Afin de compléter la rédaction de cette brochure (IP#1) nous invitons tous les membres de langue Inuktikut affiliés à l'ONSA à se joindre à notre groupe de travail sur les traductions. Vous pouvez contacter l'Assemblée par l'entremise de notre site Web au : http://www.canaacna.org/ CANA/ACNA 2 PO BOX 25073 RPO West Kildonan Winnipeg, MB. R2V 4C7 www.canaacna.org This notice has a dual function – To let non-Inuktitut speakers know what it is, AND to help us move to the final phase of this project in which IP#1 in Inuktitut becomes a piece of approved NA literature. In order to complete the process, we still require a committee of NA members who are both fluent in the Inuktitut language and familiar with the NA program, to work with CANA and NAWS Translations staff. This notice invites interested members to contact us through the CANA website. It is very important that any responses to this notice are channelled to a single point of accountability as established by this Assembly. There was not enough room for English AND French on the back panel so the versions have been printed separately. Also the following note was sent to NAWS (Translations with a cc to Anthony): “This is to express my personal gratitude as well that of the Canadian Assembly for all your hard work and support with this project. The typeset version of the IK pamphlet looks absolutely amazing!! The native communities in Canada’s far north have long possessed horrendous and heart-breaking addiction rate statistics. Thanks to this project we now have the ability to offer our message to those communities in their own language. We will certainly keep you informed as to our progress with this initiative.” Finally, just a reminder that we only have one opportunity to create a good first impression and we need to be mindful of PR best practices in the way we distribute this new tool. I have read every single newsletter of the National Native Addictions Partnership Foundation newsletter and 12 Step Recovery not mentioned even once. We have a new opportunity here. Lets do it right. Many thanks for all your support. With gratitude in service, Ross Mackay – CANA Translations CANA/ACNA 3 PO BOX 25073 RPO West Kildonan Winnipeg, MB. R2V 4C7 www.canaacna.org Cree Stuff November 2010 Report Addendum A Cree syllabary (ᓀᐦᐃᔭᐍᐏᐣ) Origin James Evans, a Wesleyan missionary working at Norway House in Hudson's Bay, invented a syllabary for the Ojibwe language in about 1840. He had tried to produce a Latin-based orthography for Ojibwe, but eventually gave up and came up with a syllabary, based partly on shorthand. Evans' syllabary for Ojibwe consisted of just nine symbols, each of which could be written in four different orientations to indicate different vowels. This was sufficient to write Ojibwe, but Evans' superiors were not keen on his invention and would not allow him to use it. About 20 years later, Evans learnt to speak Cree and set about the task of devising a way of writing that language. After encountering difficulties with using the Latin alphabet, he dug out his Ojibwe syllabary and adapted it to the Cree language. Thanks to its simplicity and the ease with which it could be learnt, the Cree syllabary was hugely successful with the Cree people. Within a short space of time, virtually the whole community was literate in the syllabary and James Evans became known as "the man who made birchbark talk." Source: www.nlc-bnc.ca/north/index-e.html According to Cree tradition, Evans adapted an existing script which was invented at an earlier date, possibly by a member of the Blackfoot nation. Notable Features: • Most dialects of Cree can be written with just 12 basic signs • Each sign can be written facing four different directions which indicate the vowel attached to it. As there are up to 7 vowels in some dialects of Cree, diacritics are used to indicate the extra vowels • The finals are used to write stand-alone consonants • There are various different versions of the Cree syllabary, which are used to write different dialects of the Cree language CANA/ACNA 4 PO BOX 25073 RPO West Kildonan Winnipeg, MB. R2V 4C7 www.canaacna.org Used to write Cree, (Nēhiyawēwin / Ininīmōwin / Ililīmōwin / Īyiyō Ayāmōn) a group of closely related Algonquian languages spoken by about 60,000 people in Canada, especially in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Major varieties include: • Central Cree (York Cree, West Shore Cree, West Main Cree) with 4,500 speakers. Dialects include: Moose Cree, which is spoken in the southern tip of James Bay in Moosonee, Ontario, and Swampy Cree, which is spoken northwestward across Ontario into north-eastern Manitoba. • Coastal Eastern Cree (Coastal Cree, Eastern Coastal Cree) is spoken by about 5,000 people in Quebec on the east coast of James Bay. • Inland Eastern Cree (Inland Cree, Eastern Inland Cree) has about 2,200 speakers in Quebec. • Western Cree with about 53,000 speakers in the USA and in north central Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada. Dialects include: Woods Cree, Plains Cree and Western Swampy Cree. Modified versions of this syllabary are used to write: Blackfoot, Ojibwe, Carrier, Slavey, Naskapi and Inuktitut. CANA/ACNA 5 PO BOX 25073 RPO West Kildonan Winnipeg, MB. R2V 4C7 www.canaacna.org Cree syllabary (Plains/Swampy Cree) Cree syllabary (Woodland Cree) CANA/ACNA 6 PO BOX 25073 RPO West Kildonan Winnipeg, MB.