"Denali versus McKinley: a brief history of the debate over a mountain’s name"
This article highlighted something I'd never had pointed out before: that Denali had multiple names from different indigenous people.
At 20,310 feet tall, Denali is visible for hundreds of miles around. For thousands of years, it has been called not just Denali but a variety of names by Alaska Native people living around the Alaska Range, according to language experts.
Athabascans to the north and west of the range referred to "the high one" with varying names, including Deenalee in the Koyukon language, Denaze in Upper Kuskokwim and Denadhe in Tanana, wrote University of Alaska linguist and professor emeritus James Kari in "Shem Pete's Alaska," a guide to Dena'ina place names.
Groups living to the south of the Alaska Range identified it as "the big mountain," or Dghelay Ka'a in Upper Inlet Dena'ina, Dghili Ka'a in Lower Inlet Dena'ina and Dghelaay Ce'e in Ahtna, Kari wrote.
The name "Denali" is derived from the Koyukon name — which doesn't actually mean "the great one," as widely believed, Kari wrote. Instead, the word represents something nearer to "high" or "tall."
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The Chairwoman of the Duwamish is Cecile Hansen since 1975
Cecile, aside from her serving nearly 50 years in leadership for the Duwamish people, is that she is the great-great-grandniece of Chief Si 'ahl. It is very sad to me that the Duwamish are not recognized as an official tribe by the US government and thus not being granted their tribal fishing rights. It seems unlikely to ever happen now, without sizable changing for how the Bureau of Indian Affairs makes these decisions.
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The Chairwoman of the Duwamish is Cecile Hansen since 1975
Cecile, aside from her serving nearly 50 years in leadership for the Duwamish people, is that she is the great-great-grandniece of Chief Si 'ahl. It is very sad to me that the Duwamish are not recognized as an official tribe by the US government and thus not being granted their tribal fishing rights. It seems unlikely to ever happen now, without sizable changing for how the Bureau of Indian Affairs makes these decisions.
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Rez Ball (2024) - 3 of 5 Free Throws
The Chuska Warriors, a Native American high school basketball team from New Mexico, must band together after losing their star player if they want to keep their quest for a state championship alive.
Katie and I watched this the other day. It was enjoyable. I wouldn't call it a "must-see" but it was good and it was a positive portrayal and racism faced living on a reservation.
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"The Untold Story of Japan's First People"
A great article (published in 2017) that introduced me to the Ainu people, the indigenous people on the island of Hokkaido who were largely erased from Japan by the government.
For much of the 20th century, Japanese government officials and academics tried to hide the Ainu. They were an inconvenient culture at a time when the government was steadfastly creating a national myth of homogeneity. So officials tucked the Ainu into files marked "human migration mysteries," or "aberrant hunter-gatherers of the modern age," or "lost Caucasoid race," or "enigma," or "dying race," or even "extinct." But in 2006, under international pressure, the government finally recognized the Ainu as an Indigenous population. And today, the Japanese appear to be all in.
I won't bother pulling excerpts as I'd be pulling most of the article. Lots of fascinating stuff in it.
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The Coast Salish People Kept Wooly Dogs
Fascinating stuff! Love learning about this unique species native to my adopted home. Definitely read the full entry to know more. Here are two excerpts:
For thousands of years, Coast Salish people kept woolly dogs for their splendid coats, the wool of which could be woven into blankets and other items. Unfortunately, the dogs went extinct in the late 1800s and only one pelt, that of a dog named Mutton, exists. Today, an international team has released their cultural and genetic study of Mutton via a paper published in Science. (“The History of Coast Salish ‘Woolly Dogs’ Revealed by Ancient Genomics and Indigenous Knowledge” was embargoed until 2pm EST, which is why I had to wait to send out my newsletter.)
Teaming up with a diverse group of researchers, including First Nations and Tribal members whose ancestors had long kept woolly dogs, Lin began a genetic and cultural study of Mutton. Genetically similar to pre-contact dogs from Newfoundland and British Columbia, woolly dogs diverged from other breeds as long as 4,776 years ago, about the time they appear in the archeological record. Researchers also found 28 genes associated with hair growth and follicle regeneration. The various mutations are linked to “curly hair phenotypes in other dogs, rats, and mice [and] woolly hair and hereditary hair loss in humans.”
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Blackbird sung in the Mi'kmaq language
The International Year of Indigenous Languages is a United Nations observance in 2019 that aims to raise awareness of the consequences of the endangerment of Indigenous languages across the world, with an aim to establish a link between language, development, peace, and reconciliation.
To bring awareness to this important cause students at Allison Bernard Memorial High School in Eskasoni, Cape Breton recorded Paul McCartney's Blackbird in their native Mi'kmaq language.
Found via OpenCulture
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Blackfeet First Nation release 30 buffalo back into wild
I highly recommend clicking through as there is a video of them leaving their enclosure and running off into the plain.
As he watched the half-ton buffalo jump in the waist-high grass at Chief Mountain, Blackfeet Councilman Lauren Monroe Jr. said he thought of his ancestors.
"I thought of the demise they went through," he said. "If they were to understand that our language, our culture, our buffalo would come back one day … it was absolutely momentous as a Blackfeet to be on our land within our sovereignty and do this. We're the leaders. We're choosing our future as we see it."
On Monday, the Blackfeet Nation transferred 30 wild buffalo (iinnii in the Blackfoot language) to tribal lands near Chief Mountain, an area steeped in Blackfeet cultural significance in the northwest corner of the reservation bordering Glacier National Park. The buffalo were brought to the Blackfeet from Alberta in 2016 after testing negative for diseases. In the seven years since, the tribe has been growing the captive herd in preparation for the release.
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"Kim Teehee would be the first Cherokee delegate in Congress"
Cherokee people and their tribal government, Teehee believes, should have always had a seat at the table where these decisions were made: The very treaty that saw her ancestors forced off their lands almost 200 years ago also promised Cherokee people a non-voting delegate seat in the US House. Now, the Cherokee Nation and Teehee — who was appointed to the job by the tribe's leaders — are mounting an aggressive campaign to see that promise fulfilled.
The Cherokee Nation's efforts to sit Teehee in the House have bipartisan support, but it's not immediately clear when or how congressional leaders will take up the issue in earnest. If she gets this seat, with spots on key panels and the power to speak on the House floor, Teehee hopes to help shape the next chapter of federal policy to benefit tribal governments and the people they serve. That includes addressing the epidemic of violence against Native women, saving the Cherokee language from extinction, and protecting funding for health care and housing.
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"'Aunty Edith' is the first Hawaiian woman on a U.S. quarter"
"Through hula and chanting, Edith Kanaka?ole preserved the history, knowledge and heritage of the Native Hawaiian people," said Kristie McNally, U.S. Mint deputy director, speaking at the celebration of the quarter's release in Hilo, Hawaii on May 6. "Her tireless efforts teaching environmental conservation to future generations ... has made her a role model for all Americans."
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Hand Talk - A look at the sign languages of the First Nations
Found via kottke.org, thanks Jason!
I love learning about this, for example - the Plains Indian Sign Language condenses What, When, Where, Why, and How, into just the gesture for 'Question.' Absolutely fascinating to see!
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Puget Sound War
I've lived here for 11 years but never heard this discussed. Not surprising, but it drives home for me that we only educate children (presumably) in this sort of history. I ended up looking it up because I saw a questionable map of "all battles in the last 4500 years" which included dots in the Pacific Northwest, and I decided to go look it up.
The Puget Sound War was an armed conflict that took place in the Puget Sound area of the state of Washington in 1855–56, between the United States military, local militias and members of the Native American tribes of the Nisqually, Muckleshoot, Puyallup, and Klickitat. Another component of the war, however, were raiders from the Haida and Tlingit who came into conflict with the United States Navy during contemporaneous raids on the native peoples of Puget Sound.
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"First Native American woman in space steps out on spacewalk"
The first Native American woman in space ventured out on a spacewalk Friday to prep the International Space Station for more solar panels.
NASA astronaut Nicole Mann emerged alongside Japan's Koichi Wakata, lugging an equipment bag. Their job was to install support struts and brackets for new solar panels launching this summer, part of a continuing effort by NASA to expand the space station's power grid.
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Hawaiian Electric was inspired by a King
I saw this post on Mastodon and went to do my own research (as we all should do.) Specifically it was around the electrification of Hawaii prior to the US taking it over:
I found a number of partial articles via IEEE, but this linked one is more of a PR piece about the Hawaiian Electrical company.
Hawaiian Electric may be the only electric utility in the United States - perhaps in the world - inspired to go into business by the vision and enthusiasm of a king.
That king was David Kalakaua, a monarch with a technical and scientific bent and an insatiable curiosity for modern devices. In an era of gas lamps, Kalakaua was shrewd enough to recognize the potential of "electricity," and helped pioneer its introduction in the Hawaiian kingdom. His vision led to the formation of Hawaiian Electric and the services it has since provided for over a century have paralleled the economic growth and modernization of the State of Hawaii.
It was the late 1870s, and "electricity" was the talk of society. The king had heard and read about this revolutionary new form of energy, but he needed further evidence of its practical application. Who better to get this information from than Thomas Edison, inventor of the incandescent lamp? Kalakaua arranged to meet Edison in New York in 1881 during the course of a world tour.
It's important to realize that non-indigenous history doesn't always properly reflect the reality of the conquered people. And, more directly, that often it benefits the narrative to belittle and talk-down the technology and civilization of those people.
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ProPublica reporting on repatriation of Native peoples remains and artifacts
The Repatriation Project by ProPublica has been excellent reporting, with the most recent piece looking at the museums and quantity of items being held by non-Indigenous museums.
The above link looks at what has gone into this investigation and how they have worked with native peoples.
Repatriation can be a sensitive topic. Museums, universities and agencies in the United States hold the remains of more than 100,000 people and several hundred thousand funerary objects, a legacy of looting and the displacement of Native Americans during North America’s violent colonization.
“In life, they were not respected. They were forced to march. Removed,” said Danelle Gutierrez, the tribal historic preservation officer for the Big Pine Paiute Tribe of the Owens Valley. “Even in death, they aren’t respected.”
We heard similar sentiments from many Indigenous people. In May, we published a post inviting people to share what they knew, and sent it to hundreds of tribal leaders and historic preservation officers, as well as museum workers. We also showed tribal representatives an early version of our interactive tool and collected their feedback.
In it, they later refer to HR 5237, "Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act", passed during the Clinton era, as a reason for this reporting - to see how that act has been fulfilled.
Important stuff and simply excellent reporting by ProPublica, well worth supporting them for future reporting.
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A look at Seattle Duwamish Indigenous Place Names and Settlements
The graphics aren't large, but it has some very interesting maps showing historic settlement locations of where the various groups of Duwamish people lived.
26. SWAH-tsoo-gweel ('portage'). Duwamish. Around the top margins of Union Bay. Five longhouses were located on the N edge of the bay, which--pre-1916--lay nearly a mile further N. One longhouse was near the present UW steam plant, and one near the former Battelle Institute campus. This was the principal village of an influential group known as hloo-weelh-AHBSH who took their name from the s’hloo-WEELH (literally, "a tiny hole drilled to measure the thickness of a canoe"), the narrow passage through the resource-rich Union Bay marsh. All the people living around Lake Washington were collectively known as hah-choo-AHBSH, that is, people of HAH-choo, meaning 'a large lake' and referring to present-day Lake Washington. (2, 8)
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Peltola holds her Dem. seat in Alaska, first Alaskan native elected to Congress
And, also important, she kept Sarah Palin out.
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Given my recent delving into Chinuk Wawa, it seems notable to highlight that the Chinook people are not an officially recognized tribe by the US government, and they recently protested for recognition
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"Brazil’s ‘man of the hole’ dies, and an Amazonian tribe is no more"
The passing of "the man in the hole" as he was called is very sad. Another independent person, rejecting modernity and striving to live the life they wanted, despite living for 30 years without companions is very sad. As the articles around the internet dive into, he was the last surviving member of his tribe, and he refused any contact with those outside his tribe.
Here is a video which captured him chopping down a tree:
[{embed}]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWECoG4zx30{/embed}]
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Squamish Elder speaks Chinuk Wawa
The Chinuk Wawa word for messenger is 'koolie' from the French 'courier' - I just find this language fascinating.
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Chinuk Wawa - A PNW trade pidgin language
I fell down a Wikipedia hole for a bit this afternoon between calls and while resting my brain from Excel work. I had gone looking for some history about Seattle which led me to began to wonder where the local area "Alki Beach" got its name. As it turns out "alki" is from this Chinuk Wawa pidgin. As with pidgins and creoles, definitions are loose and contextual - here are the definitions for 'alki':
- eventually
- someday
- in the future
- times to come
- presently
- directly
- later
- in a little while
- after a while
- shortly
- will
- shall
Now, before I dive further into the topic, I was stop and acknowledge that this creole language is closely intertwined with the settlement and imperialism in the PNW region. I do not want to gloss over that that imperialism and cultural erasure is a big reason why this pidgin language both came to exist but also eventually died out. The video I embedded below does a good job discussing this and highlighting it.
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First Native American Woman is slated to go to space - Nicole Aunapu Mann
Nicole Aunapu Mann was selected by NASA in June 2013. She is currently training for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission, the fifth rotational mission to the International Space Station aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.
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There are interesting and exciting opportunities for how AI/Machine Learning can help Indigenous people protect their homes
This is not anything unusual or unbelievable, but it is an interesting confluence of technology and those people who most care about protecting their corner of the environment. One example in the article:
One of the first AI-based Indigenous conservation projects, undertaken by Cornell University, was co-developed with the Coral Gardeners, from Mo’orea, French Polynesia. Founded in 2017, this Indigenous group cultivates heat-resistant super corals and transplants them onto damaged parts of the reef. Cornell provides the software to track the sounds of the many organisms making their home here and, working also with the University of Hawaii, integrates them into a recording platform, ReefOS, a network of sensors and cameras collecting visual and acoustic data 24 hours a day. The AI-mediated soundscape tells the on-site respondents whether the reefs are starting to sound like healthy and stable reef systems, or whether additional restoration efforts are needed.
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