The haunting melody of Hinterland Who’s Who is as iconic to my childhood as the Friendly Giant, so discovering some of these classics have been overdubbed into Woodlands Cree is a special thrill. The voice is unmistakably that of Cree Literacy Network board member Ken Paupanekis. Click “play” on the video and read along!
omithahcîs iyako piyak ôta kânata î-nahtâ piyakot piskisîs. ita anima kâ-pimahkamikisit mâskoc nânitaw piyakwâw kihci-mitâtahto-mitanaw mîna niyânano-mitanaw (1,500) kâcimâsiki cipahakânisa ispihcâthiw. omithahcîsak ta-wî-ocinâsowak omîciwiniwâw kotaka î-misikihtithit pisiskiwa ohci, ikosi tâskoc îkâ kîkwây î-kostahkwâw î-itîthimihcik. mâka, athisitiniwak ôko kâ-pimâhkamikisicik ahcihiwîwak opaspîwinithiw. anohc kâ-kîsikâk, omithahcîsak ati-wî-mîscihâwak ôtî itihkî mâci-kîsikanohk kânata. ta-wîcihâyâhk poko awa piyak ikwatowahk poko î-ihtât pisiskiw kita-paspît. ikosi mâka poko nistam.
kîspin kinohtî-kiskîthihtîn kiyâpic awa ohci omithahcîs, kiyokî ôta http://hww.ca.
Here’s the English original, for comparison:
The wolverine is one of Canada’s most solitary animals. Its territory can cover more than 1,500 kilometres. Wolverines will defend their food from much larger animals, giving them a reputation of fearlessness. However, human activities have affected its survival. Today, wolverines are endangered in Eastern Canada. We need to help this iconic animal survive. And that’s just a start.
To learn more about the wolverine, visit hww.ca.
Thank you to Norah Wakula of Power of Babel International Language Versioning, who located the script for us while arranging voice-over for another episode, coming soon. And thanks (as always) to Solomon Ratt for his editorial contribution!