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Anishinaabe - Part IV. A Bad Deal
Posted Sat, May 2, 2009 - 9:28 PM
nativeamerica, language, minnesota
Placard at Sandy Lake.
Along Highway 169 on the west side of Big Sandy Lake in north central Minnesota, there's a small road leading off to a rest area - administered, oddly, by the Army Corps of Engineers because of the dam at the edge of the lake protecting a short channel to the Mississippi River. A few years ago I put my kayak in the channel just below the dam and paddled fifteen miles into the Mississippi and down to the town of Palisade - a trip I will post about at some point.
But the rest area itself, beyond the small visitor center and omnipresent pavement, held a surprise - a moderately sized, conical grassy hill surmounted by a circular monument erected by several local Ojibwe bands, together with a bilingual display describing its significance.
It turns out to be one sad story that typifies the attitude of 19th century (European) Americans. An important part of the treaties signed by the local natives in the middle of 19th century included a payment of annuities in exchange for the ceded land, in both money and goods. However, the payments would only be made at a central location - mostly of the whites' choosing - which was often a long ways from the normal neighborhoods of the natives thus affected. And as time progressed from the original treaty signing, these payments became more and more reluctant, and weren't always scheduled for the most opportune times.
As I mentioned before, winter was a difficult season to survive in the northern woods. The best plan was to avoid risk, to dig in early and have a good, warm, comfortable place to stay and plenty of stored food. The increasingly empty promises made by the local Indian agencies means that in order to collect these annuities that were becoming an increasing part of their livelihood, many Ojibwe ended up far from home in temporary encampments, without this buffer - and to use a modern phrase, were hung out to dry (or perhaps, freeze.)
The placard has the following English translation, which describes things better than I could:
The Memorial on this glacial mound remembers about 400 Ojibwe Indians who died and thousand of others who suffered during what is known as the Sandy Lake Tragedy. Constructed by Ojibwe Tribes from Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan, the Memorial was completed in 2001. It is a sacred remembrance of the many sufferings endured to preserve the Ojibwe's homelands and way of life. Mikwendaagoziwag means "we remember them" in the Ojibwe language. At least 400 grandfather stones are embedded in the Memorial to represent those who died.
The tragedy unfolded when U.S. government officials attempted to illegally relocate a number of Ojibwe Bands from their homes in Wisconsin and Upper Michigan to northern Minnesota. In late autumn of 1850, thousands of Ojibwes had assembled at Sandy Lake for their annual treaty annuity payments. As the Ojibwe waited nearly six weeks for the payments, they suffered from illness, hunger and exposure. Many died from dysentery and measles. The promised annuities were never fully paid and, after the last of the meager provisions were distributed on December 2, the Ojibwes began an arduous journey home. Harsh winter conditions had already set in, and many more died along the way.
The outer circles of plaques on the Memorial commemorates the 19 Ojibwe Bands whose treaty annuities were to be paid at Sandy Lake in 1850. Today, these 19 Bands are succeeded by the 12 federally-recognized Ojibwe Tribes who built this Memorial and are commemorated by the inner circle of plaques.
However, the part I think is interesting is that there is a more detailed explanation in Anishinaabemowin on the placard, with a great difference in word count. In my experience, Ojibwe is a little more verbose than English, but only by 20-40%. Following is the full text:
Mikawaajichigan o'ow wenji-ayaamagak omaa bikwadinaansiwang ji-mikwendaagoziwaad ingiw Noosinaabaniig gaa-tapinejig, gaa-tazhi-gagwaadagitoojig omaa Gaa-mitaawangaagamaag miinawaa go gaye gaa-tazhi-gichi-gagwaanisagendaagwadinig.
Ingiw Ojibwe-anishinaabeg wendakaanezijig, mii sa Minnesotaang, Wiishkoonsing, Mishigamiing igaye, maamawi gii-ozhitoowaad o'ow mikawaajichigan 2001 gii-izhiseg, Baanimaapii dash 2004 gii-ani-bimiseg i'iw gikinoonowin, aanind ingiw ogii-ojibwewisidoonaawaa o'ow eginjigaademagak.
Geget isa gichi-manidoowendaagwad o'ow gedani-izhi-minjimeniminidwaa ingiw Noosinaabaniig gaa-kagwaadagitoojig gegoo ezhi-gagwe-ganawendamowaapan odakiimiwaa gaye odizhitwaawiniwaan. Awashime dash igo niiwaak asiniig ebijig omaa ji-naabishkawaawaad iniw gaa-tapinenijin.
Bagami ayaamagadoban iniw giizhigadoon ingiw Gichimookomaani-ogimaag gii-izhi-inaakonigdogenag ji-wii-wayezhimaawaad iniw Ojibwebaniin wendaabang akeyaa gaa-ondakaanezinijin iwidi inagakeyaa bangishimong ji-bi-dazhi-aandakiinid omaa Minnesotaang.
Megwaa dash igo ani-bimisegiban i'iw gikinoonowin 1850, o'ow isa giimooj igo inaakonigegwaaban waa-aanjishimaawaapan bekish igo gaa-pi-dazhi-diba'amaading. Mii sa i'iw anishaa ji-bitaashkoshkawaawaad onji imaa gabe-biboon ji-aadaagonenid iniw anishinababen ezhi-onji-bwaanawi'onid ji-wii-kiiwekiinid.
Imaa dash gii-tazhi-diba'amaading iko iwidi Mooningwanekaaning ezhinakaadeg i'iw minis, naana'idaa go naa ogi-wiikwazomaawaan iniw Anishinaaben wendabaand gaa-onjibaanijin da-bi-izhaanid waa-tiba'amaadigoowinagadinig ji-bi-onji-minjimishkawaawaad omaa sa go. Mii iidog ingoji go awashime niizhwaak daso-diba'igan ji-izhaawaapan iwidi waasa akeyaa epangishimonig gii-pi-izhaawaad ingiw Ojibwe-anishinaabeg omaa sa Gaa-mitaawangaagamaag.
Mii go apane ko endaso-biboonagak naabingin iko a'aw Manoominikegiizis egoojin, imaa dash igo meshkwad madwe-ikidowaaban Gichi-mookomaani-ogimaag iwidi waa-pi-diba'amaagewaapan omaa Gaa-mitaawangaagamaag eni-naagozinijin Binaakwegiizisoon.
Ingiw dash bayaataashimindibaniig, mii gaawiin igo ogii-te-gashkitoosiinaawaa ji-dazhiikamowaapan bebakaan gegoo omaneziwiniwaan ji-biboonishwaapan omaa Gaa-mitaawangaagamaag miinawaa go gaye gaa-isjkiwwinijin iniw owiijayaawaaganiwaan ji-bami'idizonid imaa dazhi-wawikoge'idiwaad.
Gii-ani-wayekwaaseg i'iw gikinoonowin 1850 edaming maa sa gii-ani-agoojing Gashkadinogiizis, neniibowa gii-taswaakoziwag ingiw Ojibweg gii-pi-maawanji'idiwaad omaa Gaa-mitaawangaagamaag. Geget igo gii-shigajibiitoowaad i'iw isa gomaa go minik waa-tiba'amaagowaapan miinawaa go gaye gii-pi-ikidong gabe-ayi'ii ningodwaaso-anama'e-giizhigadinig gaa-ani-izhi-maazhi-ayaawaagobanen, aabidekamig igo imaa sa gawanaandamo'indwaa miinawaa go ezhi-gawajiwaapan. Niibowa gii-pi-onjinewag gii-miskwazhewaad gemaa gaye gii-shaabokaawiziwaad.
Gaawiin idash igo gakina awiiya Anishinaabeg gii-tiba'amawaasiiwag i'iw isa waawiindamawindwaaban. Igo gaye gaawwin gwech minik gii-tebiseinoon i'iw ashandiwin. Anooj igo iidog banaadisingiban. Imaa dash Manidoogiizisoons mayaadagoojing, niizhogon gaa-kabesemagadinig gegapii gaa-ishkwaa-maamaada'oonamawindwaaban ani-maamaajaagwaaban ezhi-gaagiiwewaapan. Megwaa dash ani-maajaawaapan izhi-wiisagisinaamagadinig. Aapiji iidog ani-zanagadogoban. Mii go i'iw niibowa gaa-pi-onji-nibowaad ani-izhaawaad imaa endaawaad igo.
Miish yo'omaa agwajayi'ii inagakeyaa wayaakaagokejig mezinisingin onow mikawaajichiganan midaaswaabik ashi-zhaangaching wenji-ayaamagakin ji-naabishkawindwaa danaasag ji-minjimendaagoziwaad ingiw Ojibwe-anishiaabeg gaa-pi-tiba'amawindwaaban mewinzha iiban omaa sa Gaa-mitaawnagaagamaag 1850 gii-izhisenig.
Gegetigo apiitendaagwad ji-gikendaming — imaa dash gayt nitam Ojibweg dibinawe maamawi midaaswi ashi zhaangaswewaangizibaniig. Noongom idash ingiw ayaanikeshkaagoojig gii-pi-izhi-midaaswi asji niizhwewaanagiziwag. Mii sa ongow gaa-ozhittojig o'ow isa mikawaajichigan ji-onji-minjimendaagozinid biinjayi'ii omaa gaaginig apane go gaaginig.
Shke naa iwapii wayeshkad ingiw dibinawe niizhwaaswewaanagizibaniig imaa wiijii'iwegwaaban, mii sa noongom ongow ba-izhi-gikenimindwaa wewinabijig medaaswewaangizijig ashi niizh ge-ni-ayaanikeshkaagewaad niigaan akeyaa.
That's a lot more than 40% larger! And there are definitely some phrases in the original that don't appear in the English translation. Notice, for example, "Baanimaapii dash 2004..." in the second paragraph (meaning: "Finally, by 2004") but no occurrence of "2004" in the English translation. And there are a couple of sentences in the English that are parenthetical and don't appear in the original. I'll be posting again while I try to puzzle out these differences - it'll be a interesting, and most likely enlightening, task, to take the effort to understand (with my limited ability), what is really being said here.