DIBAAJIMOWINAN
idash
AADIZOOKAANAG

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True Stories -- Many truths. The first word -- Dibaajimowin -- in Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe language) means just a story -- but the first part of the word -- dibaa -- is a meaning-part that suggests its words are measured, thoughtful, observed, judged. Here, those are are histories, personal narratives, experiences -- truths of that kind. The second long word -- Aadizookaan -- means "a traditional story", what anthros and all sorts of people seem to like calling legends or myths. And idash? That's "and". You'll also find Native language resources here. Did you know there's a word for "computer"? But I don't like it! See why. Items on this overmenu are themselves menus.

	The BOOK REVIEWS SUBJECT INDEX for the NATIVE AMERICAN BOOKS section has many reviews of books for all ages -- from pre-readers to adults -- including contemporary Native fiction and myths and legnds. Purchase info for all reviewed books is provided. See BOOKS MAINMENU for many other features.

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<=== Native Stories Many Truths ===>

Dibaajimowinan -- Native Narratives, true stories, contemporary, humorous, tragic, and older 19th century narratives about traditional tribal lifeways. Aadizookaanag -- Traditional stories, myths, legends, tall tales, teaching stories Shop at our online iTunes shop! There are now Cherokee stories told by Gregg Howard available through iTunes! Mazinaajim --Picture-stories; storyrobe (interpreted), cartoons, image sequences that tell Native stories. Native Author Bios -- essays or just notes, depending on what info I can find. Initial bios are of late 19th and early 20th century authors. Oochigeaskw and Cinderella -- Mi'kmaq and European Myths -- Values-instructive comparison: of a 19th-century Native revisioning with its source, a durable myth of WestCiv. The Native revisioning becomes a cautionary tale, with values that actually oppose those of the fairy tale. Even today the European version has Disney, computer, and Harlequin Romance versions, 300 years later, a durable myth indeed. Pages below can also be accessed in this order from their own page-bottom menus. Introduction: Problems, sources The European Myth's Values -- education of a proper young woman The Mi'kmaq 19th-century Revisioning -- A very different tale, one for our time, too. A comparison of Native vs. European Values in these two tales. Rviews of 2 modern children's story versions of the Mi'kmaq revisioning. Waasamoo-mazina'igan -- Native e-texts, electronic books, transcribed in full from copyright-expired publications of the 19th and early 20th century -- Mayan stories, here on MayaPages, by a Guatemalan Q'uanjo'bal Mayan elder, now a refugee from the terror there. His stories are partly "political myths" used to hide messages from spies. Also: a chapter of a book on traditional Mayan village life, by a Mayan author, story of the birth of a child there. From the page bottom menubar, access many links to ancient and current Mayan events The Pocahontas (Disney film) story -- As seen by Native people, from film-voice actors to kids to the tribe the real historical woman belonged to. Native Languages STORY (by links) of Native Languages -- A page of resource links for those interested in Native languages. A Narrative About A Word -- "Computer" showing how native languages -- here, Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe language) -- carry rich meanings in a network of language and history. Like all living languages, it is able to creat new words for new things, experiences, concepts -- but these creations are especially rich in meanings. Narrative-dialog by Paula Giese. Native language speakers, teachers, computer folks -- It would be nice to create the word for all our languages. In the essay, you see why I reject the one that's been adopted in the Ojibwe dictionary (a recycling of "typewriter") and propose "Draws designs of light" . Propose (or explain by tracing meaning-connections as I did) a word for computer in your own language. If you like my proposal, translate it with such connections. Translations should be quite easy (and similar) for all the Algonquian language-group, though probably there will be different histories of word-creations. (Please read the essay first!)

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If you are not of Indian ancestry, your Indian stories must come of your personal experiences with Indian life--not myths. I encourage creativity in everyone, but there is unfortunately all too much InterNet fakery of phoney "Indian" myths that misrepresents Indian people, cultures, histories, and abuses our heritage. So if you have not had experiences with Indian people and life about which to write, do not make up Indian stories. To most Indian people, such mis-creations, especially when they promulgate alien forms of spirituality, as many "New Agers" are doing, are as bad as or worse than the robberies of land and natural resources. Page prepared by Paula Giese graphics and layout copyright 1995, 1996, 1997 Copyrights to the stories are held by their respective creators, 1995.

Last updated: 1/1/97