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tansi cuzzins!
Welcome to week twenty-nine of our journey into studying the Y dialect of the Cree language together!
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You can find past lessons on the website here.
Each week, readers follow along with me as I
learn more about my language using a sacred type of alphabet called Spirit Markers (some folks call them syllabics). The Spirit Marker chart we're using is called a Star Chart, and it is below. It's oriented opposite of how "western" maps are – North goes on the bottom for us, and South is at the top.
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This week we're continuing along the northern limb at the bottom of the Star Chart and looking at the Spirit Marker ᐯ, which is written 'pê' in SRO and is pronounced 'peh.'
I have a personal affinity for this direction because I have been taught a little about the Spirit that lives in this direction and the gifts this Grandfather, kîwêtinohk, has given us. This Grandfather is one of the entities that I pray to the most.
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Sponsored by: BC First Nations Justice Council
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Elders, community members, justice workers and anyone interested in justice issues for Indigenous people. There are 5 new IJCs opening this year in a community near you and we want you to tell us how they can best serve your community! Register for either or both days here
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The Spirit Marker ᐯ, below, represents the sound pê and is a preverb – a particle of speech which must be attached to a verb in order to function within a sentence.
When put in front of a verb, ᐯ connotes the meaning "come" "towards" "hither" or "thence."
Which reminds me – Cree is an incredibly elegant language. Since I reconnected with my family as a 14 year-old, I've been struck by the beautiful elocution displayed by my cousins, aunties, uncles and other relatives from my community. They formulate beautiful sentences, even in English, even when speaking to me casually.
In translations of old interviews of Elders from Sweetgrass, from the turn of the 19th century, for example, words like "hither" and "whence" are common occurences. We are a beautifully-speaking people.
In fact, some Elders have told me that nehiyawak, which is our name for ourselves, means "Exact-speaking Peoples." The more I learn about our language, the more I understand why this might be our name for ourselves.
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I've also been told that nehiyawak means, "Four-bodied Peoples," in reference to the four directions. I'm not sure if the meaning has changed over time or if both are true.
The 'p' sound in Cree is not like the 'p' sound in English. It is more like a cross between a 'p' and a 'b'. For an excellent example of this, listen to it pronounced here.
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Our word for the week is ᐊᐦᒑᐦᑭᐯᑲᓇ (ahcâhkipêkana).
According to my Elder, this is the word for Spirit Markers!
Itwewina, my favourite Cree dictionary, uses a slightly different word – ᒐᐦᑭᐯᐦᐃᑲᐣ (cahkipêhikan).
If you compare these two words, you'll notice that they're almost identical, except for the first Spirit Marker, ᐊᐦ, representing the 'ah' sound that begins the first example above.
ᐊᐦᒑᐦᑭᐯᑲᓇ ahcâhkipêkana
ᒐᐦᑭᐯᐦᐃᑲᐣ cahkipêhikan
The top word, the one taught to me by my elder, contains the word ᐊᐦᒑᕽ (ahcâhk) in it, which means Spirit. This is why he teaches us that the sacred alphabet I'm sharing with you here today is referred to as Spirit Markers.
The Itwewina version likely represents how a specific community in Alberta pronounces the word. In many communities, sub-dialects have evolved over time, which can lead to some syllables being dropped.
That concludes our Cree lesson of the week! hiy hiy to all of you for walking along this path with me as I reclaim my birthright – my language.
Thank you also to the folks who have donated to our reciprocal fundraising campaign that we're running this month. We couldn't do this work without you.
Aunty Eden
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Eden Fineday is a nehiyaw iskwew and the publisher of IndigiNews. She is a also a mom, writer and student of nehiyawewin. She lives with gratitude as an uninvited guest on the unceded territories of the xwməθkwəy̓ əm (Musqueam), səl̓ ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), and Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) Peoples.
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