"Language and Meaning' Online Interview with David Treuer

I would like you to listen to a show about Ojibwe Language on Minnesota Public Radio called 'Language and Meaning' with David Treuer (52 min).

"Language is a carrier of human identity. It is a vehicle by which we understand and express our very sense of self. Novelist and translator David Treuer is helping to compile the first practical grammar of the Ojibwe language. He describes an unfolding experience of how language forms what makes us human. Some memories and realities, he has found, can only be carried forward in time by Ojibwe." -- MPR

Ojibwe Audio

Hearing Ojibwemowin spoken is very important. I encourage you to check out Ojibwe audio from different sources daily.

There are some interesting projects on Youtube by some amazing individuals who dedicate some of their time to providing words each day.

These individuals should be applauded for their efforts.

Anishinaabemowin does a word almost every day.



ndninla is informative and hilarious. :)

Patricia M. Ningewance

Here's an important lesson from an elder.

Patricia Ningewance wrote in 'Talking Gookom's Language,' "There are also words in the language that refer to how Anishinaabe people should behave towards each other and outsiders. There's the notion of leaving each person their personal space. In the old days, people had to live in close quarters. It was thought that as long as there was enough space on the floor (inside the wigwam or tepee) to fit sleeping figures, there was sufficient room in one's home. A home, after all, was precious shelter from the hostile weather. So in living closely together, it was considered rude or strange to look too frequently or too long at someone. The expression was, "Ginibaazaab!" Keep your eyes to yourself. Another was to not talk to someone too long or too often. "Gego nibaazomaaken!" you were told. "Don't bother him/her with your talking." These rules of behaviour gave us some social insulation."