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Canku Ota

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(Many Paths)
An Online Newsletter Celebrating Native America
 
April 1, 2011 - Volume 9 Number 4
 
 
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"Aang"
 
 
The Aleut Greeting
 
 
Means "Greetings"
 
 


Northern Collared Lemming (Dicrostonyx groenlandicus)

 
 
"nvda atsilusgi"
 
 
Flower Moon
(when plants come to life and bloom again and the Earth is renewed)
 
 
Eastern Cherokee
 
 
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"Behold, my friends, the spring is come; the earth has gladly received the embraces of the sun, and we shall soon see the results of their love!" --- Tatanka Iyotaka (Sitting Bull )

 
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We Salute
James Ramos

James Ramos is a busy man these days.

He is in his second two-year term as chairman of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, leading the tribe as it works to expand its businesses and develop its reservation.

He is chairman of the California Native American Heritage Commission and owns two restaurants in San Bernardino and Highland.

In November, voters elected him to his second term on the San Bernardino Community College District board.

This year, Gov. Jerry Brown named Ramos to the state Board of Education, the first American Indian to hold a seat on the panel.

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Our Featured Artist: Honoring Students

Catawba Potter in Documentary on "Uncommon" Artists

There are billions of people in the world. Only a few thousand of those people are members of the Catawba Indian tribe. Of those, just a couple of handfuls are Catawba potters.

Of those handful, maybe the most recognized master potter still alive is the one and only Margaret Robbins, who lives in the last house on the last road on the Catawba reservation in a house that has cats and engine blocks outside the front porch

 
Gallup High Opens Solar Setup

The installation of a state-of-the art solar electric project at Gallup High School was cause for celebration Feb. 24.

"We're really looking at alternative energy sources," said Bruce Tempest, president of the Gallup-McKinley County Schools Board of Education.

Besides the potential savings in fuel costs, the project is an opportunity to teach students at the high school and at the University of New Mexico-Gallup about alternative energy systems, Tempest said.

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Our Featured Story: Northwestern Wisconsin First Person History:
Indians, Dogs were Companions in Life and Death Centuries Ago

 

 
History of the Ottawa and Chippewa Indians of Michigan
Chapter Five
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News and Views Banner
Education News Education News
Creek Nation Adds Language Round to Challenge Bowl

The rooms at Trinity Baptist Church were filled with students Thursday testing their knowledge of Muscogee (Creek) Nation history, culture, current events and language at the 11th annual tribe-sponsored Challenge Bowl.

Similar to traditional academic bowl competitions, teams answer toss-up questions by ringing in on a buzzer system.

But this year, the Creek Nation's office that oversees kindergarten through 12th-grade tribal programing added a language round in which questions are asked in English and teams must answer in Creek to receive the points.

 
Chinle Students First From Rez to Receive FBLA Ranking

Navajos are not exactly known as businesspeople. And yet, when you think about it, there are plenty of business folk on the rez: the jewelry crafters, the burrito vendors, the haymongers and, sadly, the bootleggers.

Some people think bigger, and the next generation may be booming with savvy young entrepreneurs.

Chinle High School juniors Tiffany Teller, Tex Carroll Jr. and Sharonna Yazzie recently became the first Diné students from a reservation school to be awarded the Future Pin by the Future Business Leaders of America.

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Education News Education News
Chess Helps Sequoyah Students with Critical Thinking

Knight to H3. Pawn to E3. Check mate!

It's believed by some people that to master chess, you must master geometry, strategy and patience. For members of the Sequoyah High School chess club, it's all about critical thinking.

"They are thinking critically…where what kind of move they make results in either your pieces being taken or maybe you move in a place where you might be captured or you have to move and make another decision," chess club sponsor Elvina Thompson said.

 
San Pasqual Warriors, Princesses Step Forward as Role Models

Warrior: a person who accepts challenges, who shows or has shown great vigor, courage and strength, respect for themselves and for their culture.

Angelito Alvarez and Draco Geronimo fit the description of “Iipaa kwanamii” — a warrior.

The boys recently accepted the challenge of representing their schools, community and families as warriors, committing themselves to being good role models to their peers in the San Pasqual Valley Unified School District.

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Honoring Students Honoring Students
32 Inducted into Navajo Tech Honor Society

When Jefferson Yazzie stood after hearing his name, a big smile spread across his face.

Yazzie's smile was one of many that filled the room during the induction ceremony for the Navajo Technical College chapter of the National Technical Honor Society, which as the name says, is a techie's version of the National Honor Society.

"Awesome. I never thought I would be a member of this club," Yazzie said.

 
Diné Teen Stands by Obama at Press Conference

Most people go their whole lives without meeting a head of state. At the tender age of 17, Troy Uentillie has been introduced to the national press corps by one.

 

Uentillie, a student at Sherman Indian High School in Riverside, Calif., had participated in listening sessions for President Barack Obama's America's Great Outdoors Initiative.

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Language Preservation Language Preservation
Cherokee Language Added To Google

As of Friday, Google added the Cherokee Syllabary, the written language, to its searchable languages, according to a Cherokee Nation news release and Google's official blog.

The language becomes one of the search engine's 146 interface languages.

The effort was a collaborative one between tribal translators and Google employees, the news release states.

 
Use It or Lose It: Inuit Language Week in Full Swing

Inuit and other indigenous people have long fought for the right to speak and be spoken to in their own languages. But the best way to ensure that that continues is by regular usage, Nunavut officials say.

"The Inuit Language is our own unique way of expressing ourselves and a wonderful reason to celebrate every day," said James Arreak, Minister of Languages, in a statement.

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Living Traditions Living Traditions
Following the Lemming

We can breathe easy for now about lemming populations in the Canadian Arctic, the Nunatsiaq News assures us. But this "mighty keystone species" as the newspaper dubbed them recently, could be compromised elsewhere in the world, if winters shorten and get wetter as climate change plays out.

 
Cherokee Nation Revives Metalsmith Tradition

Thanks to the Cherokee Nation's metalsmithing class, a nearly lost ancient art form is making a comeback. Southeastern Native jewelry has a look largely unfamiliar to most people due to the popularity of the Southwestern style of Native American jewelry with its familiar turquoise and silver look.

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Preserving Language Living Traditions
Language Preservation Vision Shared for all Tribes

“If the Wampanoag could bring back their language without a single Native speaker, then anything is possible,” Anne Makepeace, the creator of a documentary about the revitalization of the Wôpanâak language said. “I think this film can serve as a cautionary tale for Native people whose languages are endangered and a model of inspiration for those working to preserve and revitalize their languages.” The Wampanoag people greeted and helped the Pilgrims but ultimately lost most of their land; their language had not been spoken in a century.

 
Pauma Band of Luiseño Indians Support Project to Preserve Luiseño Language

Focused on revitalizing its indigenous language, the Pauma Band of Luiseño Indians awarded $40,000 to the California State University San Marcos (CSUSM) California Indian Culture and Sovereignty Center (CICSC).

The gift is meant to create technology-based language learning devices that will preserve and teach the Luiseño language to tribal members.

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Art and Culture   Art and Culture
Indigenous Music Extends Well Beyond Pop and Rock

Winnipeg's Juno-nominated Eagle & Hawk showed off their alternative rock sound Thursday night at a First Nations showcase of music in Toronto.

The band fronted by Jay Bodner says its foundation is "good old Canadian rock music," but its competition for a Juno Award on Sunday ranges from hip hop to roots music. Bodner says the showcase was a chance to show the wide range of indigenous music being created in Canada

 
Tears, Poem Flow After Temecula Writer Meets Dancing Woman

Rebecca Farnbach says she wrote her prize-winning poem in about 10 minutes. Sometimes inspiration works that way.

She was at a Pechanga Powwow in July 2008 when she and her husband, Darell, came across an elderly woman resting between dances. They started talking and, for about 15 minutes, the woman told how she had to abandon her American Indian heritage as a child.

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In Every Issue Banner
About This Issue's Greeting - "Aang"
 

Aleut is the only language of the Aleut branch of Eskaleut language family.

Aleut is spoken both in Russia (the Commodore Isles) and in the USA (the Aleutian Isles and the Pribilov Isles). There are about 700 Aleuts in Russia (190 of them can speak Aleut), and about 2100 — 5000 Aleuts in the USA, according to different researchers. Only 525 Aleuts in the USA are native speakers of Aleut.

Nature's Beauty : Lemming
 
This Issue's Web sites
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Opportunities
"OPPORTUNITIES" is gathered from sources distributed nationally and includes scholarships, grants, internships, fellowships, and career opportunities as well as announcements for conferences, workshops and symposia.
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Canku Ota is a free Newsletter celebrating Native America, its traditions and accomplishments . We do not provide subscriber or visitor names to anyone. Some articles presented in Canku Ota may contain copyright material. We have received appropriate permissions for republishing any articles. Material appearing here is distributed without profit or monetary gain to those who have expressed an interest. This is in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107.
 
 
Canku Ota is a copyright © 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 of Vicki Lockard and Paul Barry.
 

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