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Bird Names in Meskwaki
A poet helps new generations learn his first language.
© Kerstin Winters Photography
The poet Ray Young Bear writes in both English and Meskwaki, his first language. He says that the task of passing on Indigenous languages feels especially urgent now as linguistic scholars predict the loss of languages.
The Meskwaki language is rich with bird names, like Tti Tti Ka Kwa Ha, the name for the robin, which emulates the bird’s song, he says. After decades of creating poems, novels, and songs, Ray Young Bear has dedicated himself to preserving and teaching his language and culture.
BirdNote®
Bird Names in Meskwaki
Written by Conor Gearin
This is BirdNote.
The poet Ray Young Bear writes in both English and Meskwaki, his first language. He says that the task of passing on Indigenous languages feels especially urgent now.
Ray Young Bear: It's been predicted by scholars that we're on the edge of linguistic atrophy, that we will lose languages. It's whittling down fast.
He says the Meskwaki language is rich with bird names.
Ray Young Bear: You know, it's very important to teach young people the words that we have for these birds. And some of the Meskwaki words tend to emulate the sounds made by the animals. And so for the robin it's Tti Tti Ka Kwa Ha. It almost sounds pattern wise like songs that the robin sings.
Ray Young Bear: It almost starts off with Tti, Tti, Tti, like that.
[American Robin song]
Ray Young Bear: And so I thought, well, you know, that's probably how they started making the word for the robin.
[American Robin song]
After decades of creating poems, novels, and songs, Ray Young Bear has dedicated himself to preserving and teaching his language and culture.
Ray Young Bear: To bring up the Meskwaki language, to make songs, and to leave that with the hope that young Meskwaki will be able to learn the Meskwaki language as I did, to make songs and to continue. And if I did that, if I help one single Meskwaki kid — hey, that's what it's all about. I guess that's — I will leave Earth with that thought.
[American Robin song]
Learn more about Ray Young Bear’s writing and music on our website, BirdNote dot ORG. I’m Ariana Remmel.
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Senior Producer: John Kessler
Content Director: Allison Wilson
Producer: Mark Bramhill
Managing Producer: Conor Gearin
Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. American Robin song ML 168314 recorded by Wil Hershberger.
BirdNote’s theme was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
© 2022 BirdNote November 2022
Narrator: Ariana Remmel
ID# youngbearr-04-2022-11-21 youngbearr-04
Conor Gearin
Writer