The Liǧʷiłdax̌ʷ [pronounced Lee-gwilth-daxw] Nations (We Wai Kai, Wei Wai Kum and Kwiakah) are asking the province to change several geographic names in the Campbell River area.
They wish to change the name of the Discovery Passage to Liǧʷiłdax̌ʷ Passage, the Quinsam River to Kʷənsəm River and the Tyee Spit to ʔuxstalis [pronounced Oox-sta-lease]
Continue reading Liǧʷiłdax̌ʷ Name Changes For Campbell River AreaEditor’s note: At one time in their remote prehistory, all the Salish peoples are believed to have spoken a single proto-Salish language. There are now 23 Salishan languages. The Northern Coast Salish nations (Homalco, Klahoose, K’omoks and Tla’amin) speak Ayajuthem (Éy7á7juuthem), while the Tsleil-Waututh and other Coast Salish Nations from Lower Mainland speak Halkomelen (hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓).
By Mina Kerr-Lazenby, North Shore News, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Crafted from a food source that was abundant, varied and rich in nutrition, the diet that the səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation) had prior to the arrival of settlers was worlds away from what it is now.
New research between the Tsleil-Waututh Nation and the University of British Columbia uses archeological records and Indigenous oral histories to piece together what was on the menu between 1000 CE and European contact in approximately 1792 CE.
Continue reading What did the Tsleil-Waututh people eat 500 years ago?Windspeaker, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Sara Child, Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw, wants to “unlock” the power of the Kwak̓wala language and, if she and her team are successful, it could mean that other Indigenous peoples will have the keys to revitalize their endangered languages as well.
Child is a professor in Indigenous education at North Island College. The not-for-profit society she established in 2017, the Sanyakola Foundation, has received several years funding (May 2021 to May 2024) through the Mitacs Indigenous Pathways program.
Continue reading Project growing Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw souls through language, land, culture and technologyBy Melissa Renwick, Ha-Shilth-Sa, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Tofino, BC – During art class at the Wickaninnish Community School in Tofino, Dominic Hansen eagerly volunteered to introduce himself to his class.
Despite having already been in school together for nearly three months, Hansen’s classmates listened to him attentively, as if they were hearing him for the first time. In Nuu-chah-nulth, he shared his name, his parent’s names and where he comes from.
Continue reading Interweaving Nuu-chah-nulth culture into a school curriculumWindspeaker, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
What do Inuit throat singing, playing spoons and jigging have in common? They are examples of the rich cultural connections early childhood educators are making with children attending Aboriginal Head Start programs.
Continue reading Program builds strength in the young by making connections to culture
