Solomon Ratt was asked by C. Arnstead of the Waskesiu Heritage Museum for original Cree or translated names for these flowers. In exchange for the translations, they agreed to let him use their photos, and we’re lucky to enjoy the benefit of their collaboration. The fact that, in English, we refer to these as “wild flowers” is a reminder that, while Cree people certainly knew their flowers, their system of respect for the natural world, and for wâhkohtôwin allowed them to appreciate them as “just normal flowers” in their natural prairie environment.
Here’s a postscript for those who may come across this post at a later date. It’s a booklet published by Alberta Culture, probably around 1975. In it, some plants and flowers are given with their Cree, Blood, or Blackfoot names (transcribed by the “best guess” method). It would be great to have a real speaker go through and “harvest” the Cree plant names (to assemble with photos, of course)!
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how do you say red clover in cree, th dialect