Unflattering Ojibway name foisted on Annishnawbe

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OPINION

Recently, I was innocently strolling through the newly reopened Art Gallery of Ontario when I looked up, looked wwaaaaayy up. There, towering a good 25 feet or so above me, was a hugely written word carved into immutable stone.

It was the word "Ojibway," which refers to the Aboriginal nation I'm just lucky enough to be a member of. And around that incredibly noble tribe, inscribed forever upon that wall, were a good half-dozen other words, the names of various Native tribes from throughout Ontario. So I thought to myself on that unusual day, "Now this is something you don't see every day."

By unusual, I mean that you don't normally see the name Ojibway printed in public that noticeably unless it's on the front page of a newspaper with phrases like "land claim" or "mass suicide" attached somewhere. That's usually the only time you would see that word unless you were an anthropologist, archaeologist, government official or lacrosse player.

So there I stood, in the Art Gallery of Ontario, looking up at that majestic looking word hovering high above me, thinking, "Sure is nice. Clean-looking, too. Even spelled right. Pity the word's wrong."

Perhaps the word "wrong" is a little too harsh, because I know that's the term most Canadians are familiar with. Let's just say it's become...antiquated. With Native culture flourishing in its renaissance, more Native words are actually being used to describe Native things. What an interesting concept.

This is a fascinating reversal of history because, for the longest time, Native names were used to describe things that weren't very Native, in an overall context. The name Canada, for instance, or the word Toronto. How many "Canadians" think of Native people when they hear the word Toronto? Probably about as many people as think of our Wisconsin brothers when they hear the word Winnebago.

And Frobisher Bay is now called Iqaluit, and so on. Nowadays, no self-respecting supporter of the cultural rebirth uses the term Ojibway. Most Ojibways prefer to be known as the Annishnawbe. Say it with me - the Annishnawbe.

Now this is because Ojibway is not really what we call ourselves. It's a name that has been foisted upon us poor, unsuspecting Annishnawbe. The origins of that questionable word are kind of hazy but there are several schools of thought on how we came to be called that.

According to the all-knowing and all-curious anthropologists who are so fascinated with us, the word Ojibway translates are fantastic kissers, and I can attest to that, I mean puckered in a different context. The first theory has to do with moccasins. Supposedly the Annishnawbe had a very distinctive way of sewing the seams on their moccasins that gave them a certain "puckered" appearance. So if this is true, the entire contemporary Annishnawbe nation may have to change its name to the noble Reebok First Nations.

The other, somewhat more grisly explanation has to do with the way human skin puckers up when people are being burned alive. Now, these scholars who claim this don't seem to be sure if we were the burners or the burnees, and frankly, I'm not sure which is worse.

So there you go, scientists believe we were named after shoes or burning human skin. There's a proud choice.

Obviously, certain Native academics disagree with this interpretation of history. (Now there's a surprise.) According to "Ojibway" writer and cultural historian Basil Johnston, the word Ojibway is actually a bastardization of a Cree word describing the Annishnawbe people as "those who stutter." It seems, evidently, the Cree are a very proud nation who consider themselves elegant speakers of the language and enunciate their words perfectly. But, in their opinion, the Annishnawbe mangled the language and mumbled their words. Thus we were christened, "those who stutter." Thanks a lot, guys.

The Iroquois, on the other hand, deemed it necessary to refer to us as the "Adirondacks," so I've been told. Not because we were bigand strong, like the mountain range of the same name, but because, as the name translates, we were considered bark eaters.

Historically, the Annishnawbe used to peel off certain types of bark and stuff it into rabbits and ducks as they cooked. This bark would be loaded with vitamin C and help to prevent scurvy. Or in times of hardship during the winter, all that would be available to eat would be mosses and bark, brewed in teas.

None of these names by other nations are exactly flattering. That's why I prefer the name we call ourselves. Annishnawbe translates as meaning, basically, the good beings or the people. And not burning ones either. Just regular pass-the-tea, what's-for-dinner, who-are-the-Leafs-playing-tonight type of people.

And to tell you the truth, that works out just wonderfully for me. I'd rather be known as a good being than a bark-eating, mumbling, human-burning, puckered shoe any day. Unless the shoe is Bata, then we're talking serious money.