As in other Indigenous religions, the Creator is non-human and non-gendered. Old Man created and is eternally part of all the living people, creature and life forms on the earth. The Blackfoot language is part of the Algonquian linguistic group. John William Tims, an Anglican missionary, created the Blackfoot syllabary a type of writing system while he lived among the Blackfoot from to Today, the syllabary is rarely used.
In , the Blackfoot writing system officially changed to better reflect the sounds and words of the language. The orthography spelling system typically uses the following:. There are a few linguistic differences among the Blackfoot dialects.
Lexical differences i. Dialectal grammars also have different gender divisions i. The phonology systems of sounds also differs between tribes, but generally speaking, Siksika, Kainai and Piikani peoples can understand one another. Residential schools and other cultural assimilation policies eroded traditional language usage and cultural practices. In , Statistics Canada reported that 5, people identified as speakers of a Blackfoot language, with However, this figure does not specify the number of fluent speakers.
Considered an endangered language, several language programs exist to promote its resurgence. Indeed, the Alberta Ministry of Education, through consultation with Blackfoot elders and educators, provides full curriculum support for Blackfoot language education from kindergarten to grade 12, for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. The virtual reality game, based on a Blackfoot graphic novel called Thunder , tells the ancient Blackfoot story of a man who loses his wife and must travel a great distance to challenge the spirit of Thunder Ksistsikoom to get her back.
Thunder VR is available as a free download on Oculus Go. Though the first European traders did not encounter Blackfoot peoples until the midth century, horses — brought to North America by the Spanish — probably reached them via trade from the west between and Around the same time, they received firearms from neighbouring Cree and Assiniboine traders. Piikani witnesses claimed the dead numbered about people. Facing the reality of dwindling bison herds and increased European settlement — both encouraged by opportunistic settler governments — the Blackfoot were faced with minimal options, and sought cultural and political protection in their homelands.
The Blackfoot signed a treaty with the American government in , and in signed Treaty 7 with the Canadian government. Most of the Piikani settled on a reserve in Montana — in , the Indigenous population of this reserve was more than 9, — while the Siksika, Kainai and North Piikani nations each established reserves in southern Alberta.
By the end of the s, the bison were disappearing on the plains. In addition, the reserves effectively put an end to traditional ways of life, including the bison hunt. The confederacy struggled to survive on reserves without the ability to hunt bison. The Blackfoot nations have been able to retain much of their traditional culture in the face of adversity.
They also used firearms after coming into contact with early European settlers. The longbow was the usual weapon used when hunting buffalo, which is important because the tribe used buffalo as its main food source.
Blackfoot Indians employed a method known as the buffalo jump, in which large herds of bison were chased on horseback and driven off a cliff. Knives and bows were then used to kill the injured or dead buffaloes and collect their meat and hides. The berry form of Pemmican is prepared by first crushing the berries into a paste, then selecting the best cuts of bison meat to dry.
The marrow from boiling bison bones is collected and used to prevent burning the meat. The meat is then minced and mixed with the berry spread and sometimes peppermint for flavor and then held over a fire. Once cooked, the meat goes into a bag for storage and is edible at any point forward for the hunter for many months. Depuyer is the substitute for bread of the Blackfeet. The Blackfeet would usually eat Depuyer in conjunction with lean or dried meats.
Depuyer weighs 5 to 11 pounds and can best be described as a fatty substance taken from the backbone of bison. Once the Blackfeet cleaned the Depuyer, it was cooked by being dipped into hot grease for 30 seconds. Once this was done, the Blackfeet women would hang it up in a smokehouse to allow it to smoke up to 12 hours.
Once smoked, Depuyer is described as being very tender, sweet, and nourishing. The camas root was an important part of the Blackfeet diet that was not meat. The root grows abundantly in certain locations on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains; once found they were dug up, cooked, and then dried.
Camas Root is gathered while in the bloom June 15 to July 15, so a relatively short period of time. The Camas Root is cooked in a large pit with stones on the bottom to which a fire is built upon.
The fire is then stoked for several hours until the stones are properly heated. Once the ashes are removed the pit is lined with grass, and is filled almost to the top with camas bulbs. Four inches of grass, dirt, and twigs are then placed on top of the bulbs. Finally, another fire is built upon the dirt and stoked from one to three days. Once the roots are done, the syrup gathered on the twigs is given to the children, while the roots are spread out in the sun to dry and then are stored away.
When consumed the Camas Root is said to resemble the taste of sweet potatoes. In the spring, the Blackfeet would collect eggs from ducks and other waterfowl to eat. To cook the eggs, a hole was dug in the ground and filled with water. The eggs were then rested on platforms of sticks.
0コメント