Description
Book SynopsisIn this poignant display of the resilience of language, culture, and community in the face of the profound changes brought by settlers, Kluane First Nation Elders share stories from their lives, knowledge of their traditional territory (Á sì Keyi, “my grandfather’s country”), and insights on the building of their self-governing First Nation.With generosity, diligence and deep commitment to their community, Elders from Lhù’ààn Mân Keyi (Kluane First Nation) recorded oral histories about their lives in the southwest Yukon. They shared wisdom, stories and songs passed down from grandparents, aunties and uncles, in Dań kʼe (Southern Tutchone, Kluane dialect) and English. This years-long project arose from the Elders’ desire for their children and future generations to know the foundations of language, culture, skills and beliefs that will keep them proud, healthy and strong. The Elders speak of life before the Alaska Highway, when their grandparents drew on thousands of years of traditional knowledge to live on the land through seasonal rounds of hunting and gathering; the dark years after the building of the Alaska Highway, when children were taken away to residential schools and hunting grounds were removed to form the Kluane Game Preserve and National Park; and the decades since, when the community worked through the Yukon land claims process to establish today’s self-governing First Nation.
Inclusivity is a key community value. The Elders’ stories are accompanied by the voices of youth and citizens of all ages, along with a history of the Kluane region. The book is beautifully illustrated with Elders’ photographs, historical images and art work, and photos showing breathtaking views of Kluane mountains, lakes, sites, trails, and activities in the community today. With passionate and deeply informed voices, this is a stirring portrait created by a community that has shown resilience through massive changes and remains dedicated to preserving their culture, language and lands for the generations to come.
Table of ContentsCouncil Message
Elders Council Message Youth Council Message Turning Memories into a Book A Note on Language
History of LHù’ààn Mân Keyí (Kluane Lake Country)
- The Ways of Our Ancestors
- Dan k’e Dan k’e (We Know People by What They Say): Two Stories in Dań k’e and English
- Dan k’e (We Know People by Their Dance Words)
- Kwäday Dan (Long-Ago People): 10,000 Years before Present to 1700s Guch’àn (Other People) Come to Our Land: 1740s–1890s
- The Klondike Gold Rush and Building Burwash Landing: 1896–1940 The Yukon Archaeological Expedition: 1948
- The Alaska Highway Brings Troubled Times: 1942–1972
- Kwäday Dan Jenntth’à (Hearing Our Elders, Reclaiming Our Lands and Our Lives): 1970s–2003
- Kluane First Nation Self-Government: 2003
Kwäday dän uye Kwànjì (Our Elders Remember)
- Tùlhàsèn (Lena Johnson): The Plan Was Really Good (1926) Gushàka (Margaret Johnson): Living the Old Ways (1929) Dorothy Johnson: Learn from Your Parents! (1934)
- Koołseen (Hank Jacquot): I’ll Tell You a Story (1934)
- Shakwàn` che (Kluane Martin): It Was Challenging Sometimes (1935)
- Louise Bouvier: Coming Home to Kluane (1937)
- Dän Ju Däjel (Peter Johnson): Title TBC with family (1937)
- Jèdàlįmą (Agnes Johnson): Life Has Changed So Much (1943)
- Dennis Dickson: I Went All Over to Work in My Life (1943)
- Gùdia Shäw (Mary Easterson): Good Teaching from Our Elders and Community (1945)
- Doug Sias: Just Really Good People (1952)
- Sulkajunaghraw (Gloria Johnson): Following Grandma—Tsal KàJana (Gopher Lady, Copper Lily) (1952)
- Gùdia (Sharon Kabanak): Lhù’ààn Mân Yu Nìínje (Where I Come From) (1953) Bertha Doris: My Traditions Are Still in My Heart (1954)
- Keith Johnson: We Were Always Working (1954)
- Da Kwäthala mą (Joyce Johnson-Albert): The Strength of Grandma
- Kept Us Going (1956)
- Gùdia (Mary Jane Johnson): It Needs to Be Done, You Do It (1956) Alyce Johnson: Teachings from Our Trails (1957)
- Ernest Martin: Lessons from Grandma Grace (1958)
- Antera (Joe Bruneau): You’re Never Too Old to Learn (1947) Sandy Johnson: There’s A Lot Going On Here (1947)
- David Dubois: Kluane—Beautiful Land, Beautiful People (1949)
Dan Jenntth’ąą? (You Understand People?) – Celebrating and Growing Together: 2003–2023
Acknowledgements Notes
Selected Bibliography Image Credits
Index
