Wednesday, November 25, 2020

Nebizon: A Visual Celebration of the Western Abenaki Language

 

“If you don’t know the language, you’ll only see the surface of the culture…the language is the heart of the culture and you cannot separate it.”

–Elaine Ramos, Tlingit

Visit our church yard during the month of November to celebrate the living language of the Western Abenaki people.
As a way to honor Indigenous Peoples Day, several families responded to an invitation to illustrate words in Western Abenaki, the indigenous language of these hills and valleys. This idea came out of a correspondence with Chief Don Stevens of the Nulhegan Band of Coosuk Abenaki. It connects with the new legislation passed into law that will include Abenaki place names on state park signage in Vermont.  
Our question as a congregation for the month of November is "What does it mean to be a people of Healing?" We hope you'll come visit to experience this offering of 'nebizon.' Nebizon is the Abenaki word for 'medicine.' Special thanks to the Abenaki and non-Abenaki language learners / teachers who share their thoughts, and also the artists of all ages and Claudia Clark, Dell Waterhouse, and Anne Ferguson.






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