Ota Nda Yanaan

Taanishi - it is my goal this year - the UN year of Indigenous Languages - to add more content to the Ota Nda Yanaan website - there is so much wonderful Michif language material and stories filmed with the dear late Rita Flamand, Grace Zoldy, Kayla Flamand and others. Will check back soon! gran maarsii

Taanshi! It's been a long time! An older film of mine: Buried Traces/Traces souterraines, about Métis identity and the colonial legacy, is part of this commemorative selection of GIV by curator Cheryl Sim. It's the last in the film reel. https://vimeo.com/286409223

"Nda yanaan comes from the verb ayaaw, s/he is there. So this becomes ni-t-ayaanaan, then ndayaanaan, and in some areas, dayaanaan. I suspect that the retention of the n in Camperville may have to do with the fact that Ojibwe is also spoken there, and Ojibwe quite frequently retains the n in front of verbs this way." Our project is referenced in the blog The Michif Internet Resource Center https://michif.wordpress.com/2012//11/more-on-michif-verbs/ Thank you Kai!

Our beloved Rita Flamand passed away two days ago. A mother, grandmother, language keeper, elder, Metis women's rights activist, writer, mentor, performer, friend. You will be so missed Rita. Your teachings and stories will be cherished always.

Happy New Year! To kick off 2016: It's time for real reconcilation... http://nationtalk.ca//reconciliation-with-the-metis-the-ti