Winter Shadows (35 page)
Authors: Margaret Buffie
It is obvious that my main character Beatrice would speak Cree, learned from her Swampy Cree grandmother. However, there would have been no Cree dictionary for her to refer to in order to
write
the language in her journal. She would, no doubt, have relied on phonetic spelling. I decided, once again, for clarity and ease of understanding, to stay with Arok Wolvengrey’s spelling of the words. In the glossary, I have also used the double-vowel words Mr. Paynter gave me, and they are in brackets beside Mr. Wolvengrey’s Cree SRO words. Any errors in this glossary are mine alone.
You will also notice that I leave out words like “my,” “your,” “their” before some Cree words. For example,
nitêh
is the Cree word for “my heart.” The “my” is implied in the Cree word.
Although the general history for this area along Manitoba’s Red River was researched with care – from
the early settlement in what is now Winnipeg to Lower Fort Garry, about twenty miles away – the parish of St. Cuthbert’s is entirely fictional, as are all the events and characters in the story.
âkathâs
– English [Note: the name Aggathas probably came from this Cree word.]
âpihtawikosisânak
– half-breeds or Métis
cakâstêsimowina
(cahkaastesimowina) – shadows
cîkahikanis
(ciikahikanis) – hatchet
ê-nôhtêhtâmoyân
(enoohtetaamoyaan) – I am short of breath, feeling faint
ininiw
– Cree, Cree man, Cree Indian, Indian
kakêpâtis
– silly crazy
kinanâskomitin
(kinanaskomitin) – thank you, I am grateful to you
kîhkwîsiw
(kiihkwiisiw) – whiskey jack, Canada jay, gray jay
kôhkom
(koohkom) – your grandmother
mac-âya
(macaaya) – evil, nastiness
makosêwi-kîsikâw
– Christmas, celebration
minwêntamowin
(minwentamowin) – joy, contentment
mistanask
– badger
mîkowâhp
– wigwam
mîwat
(miiwat) – packsack, backpack
nikâwiy
– my mother
niska
– goose
nitâniskocâpânis
(nitaaniskotaapaan) – my great-great-granddaughter [Note: the extra diminutive suffix (-is) is not strictly necessary, but adds an element of endearment; without the diminutive, it would be nitâniskotâpân.]
nitêh
– my heart
nôhkom
(noohkom) – my grandmother
nôsisim
(noosisim, noosim) – my grandchild
okimâw
(okimaawiw) – head person, boss, king, leader
okiskinwahamâkêw
(okiskinowahamaakew) – teacher, instructor
okîskwêw
(kiiskwew) – crazy person
ôhômisîsis
(oohoomisiisis) – little owl
sâkihitowin
(saakihitowin) – love, mutual love, affection, charity
sihkosis
– weasel [Note: sihkosiw and sihkos are also correct.]
sîwîhtâkan
(siiwihtaakan) – salt
wâpitiy
(waapitii) – white-tailed deer
winsikis
– snakeroot [Note: there are a number of Cree words for this plant. The Cree name for Seneca in Saskatchewan and Manitoba is winsikis, while the pioneers called it rattlesnake root because it was considered an antidote for venomous snake bites.]
wîtisâna
– (wiitisaana) his/her blood relatives, his/her siblings
“à la façon du pays”
– in the manner of the country, commonly referring to a marriage between a white man and an aboriginal woman during the fur trade. The marriage was sealed by a simple ceremony of agreement between the two parties and an exchange of gifts.
Anglican Church Missionary Society
(CMS) – a London-based arm of the Anglican Church that funded mission outposts in different parts of the world, including the Red River settlement. It stressed the themes of the Christian religion, education, and European farming methods to advocate Anglo-Christian principles and to encourage cultural changes within the aboriginal societies.
Carriole
– a light open or covered sleigh or toboggan drawn by a single horse and sometimes dogs.
Carron stove
– a type of stove made at the Carron Foundry in Falkirk, Scotland, exported to fur-trade posts in Canada. The most common was a rectangular
firebox made up of cast-iron plates. These stoves were very practical as they could easily be taken apart and shipped.
Ceilidh
– a party with folk music, dancing, and storytelling.
The Company
– The fur trading company known as the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBO) was commonly referred to by people in the Red River settlement as “The Honorable Company,” or simply, “The Company.”
Freethinkers
– The Victorian freethinker movement was an ill-defined group made up not only of writers and intellectuals, but a growing number of working class who formed a more radical freethought movement. Freethought is a philosophical viewpoint that things, such as religion, should be formed on the basis of science, logic, and reason, and should not be influenced by authority, tradition, or any other doctrine. People who practice freethought are known as freethinkers.
The Interlake
– the name given to a region in Manitoba, Canada, that lies roughly between Lake Winnipeg and Lake Manitoba and is made up of fourteen rural municipalities. It has a number of popular bathing, camping, and fishing areas.
Receipt
– a recipe. Both “receipt” and “recipe” derive from Latin
recipere
, meaning to receive or take.
Rupert’s Land
– a territory in Canada (and a very small portion of the USA) purportedly owned by the
Hudson’s Bay Company (HBO) between 1670 and 1870, although many aboriginal groups who had lived there for generations disputed the HBO’s control of the area. Besides most of Saskatchewan, southern Alberta, southern Nunavut, and northern parts of Ontario and Quebec, it also included all of Manitoba.
Sexton
– a church officer charged with the maintenance of the church’s buildings and graveyard. In smaller Anglican churches, this office was often combined with that of the verger, who assisted in the organization of religious services and other “nonspeaking” duties.
The WI
– The Women’s Institute movement was started in Stoney Creek, Ontario, in 1914 by farm wife Adelaide Hoodless. After the death of her infant, Mrs. Hoodless launched a movement to create a support group that would help rural women by providing an organized source of support, education, and companionship. It is still active today in many rural communities.
Writer
– an office clerk in the HBC, whose job was to keep accounts, write daily journals, and keep up with correspondence.
York boat
– an inland freight boat used on larger waterways and lakes from about 1790 to the early 1870s. It was rowed by ten to twelve men and able to carry several tonnes of goods and provisions. York boats could be portaged by pulling them over log rollers on wide portage trails.