TA’N WEJI-SQALIA’TIEK

TA’N WEJI-SQALIA’TIEK MI’KMAW PLACE NAMES DIGITAL ATLAS AND WEBSITE PROJECT GETS A NEW LOOK AND FEEL

Truro, NS, March 1: A unique and long overdue resource, The Ta’n Weji-sqalia’tiek: Mi’kmaw Place Names Digital Atlas and Website Project, has received a facelift with a new logo, colour scheme, more videos, and better map functionality, making it easier for users to engage with the unique history of the Mi’kmaq and the ancient landscape of Mi’kma’ki.

“Our instructions were to build a high-end website that would deliver the data through audio, video and a mapping infrastructure,” states the committees Mi’kmaw Co-chair and Project Director, Tim Bernard of Mi’kmawey Debert Cultural Centre. “With today’s technology, we were able to make improvements in GIS and give the site the look and feel it deserved with a new logo and branding. At the end of the day, we’re thrilled with how it turned out and how well the map functions.”

With help from Membertou Geomatics, the web-based map has undergone a functionality refresh and includes the addition of enhanced sound bites and video clips of Elders sharing their lived experiences on the land. Users can now explore over 1000 Mi’kmaw place names, learn place-name etymology and engage with the rich language of the Mi’kmaq. The new logo design and colour scheme reflect the importance of history and the land, and artworks by Mi’kmaw artists Alan Sylliboy and Gerald Gloade, are featured throughout the site and Elder’s videos.

“When we began our engagement within our Mi’kmaw communities in 2007/08, we were told very clearly, to go deep and dig down and collect this vast but quickly disappearing knowledge from this generation of Elders that still carry the language and still hold the knowledge,” says Tim.

Both the website and digital atlas have become integral to developing educational programming, enhancing Mi’kmaw tourism, and promoting cultural awareness about the Mi’kmaq.

“Some Elders’ have expressed the importance of this research as a way to preserve their stories and histories,” says Dr. Trudy Sable, Project Lead for the Ta’n Weji-sqalia’tiek: Mi’kmaw Place Names Digital Atlas and Website Project. “Hearing the voices of Mi’kmaq who lived throughout Mi’kma’ki wakes me up to the deeply rooted and powerful reality of their relationship to this landscape. I feel confident this website will continue to expand and educate many people in new perspectives and ways of knowing the language that no longer is used in terms of landscapes. It is a living visual memory of the history of the Mi’kmaq and Mi’kma’ki.”

For more information, visit Ta’n Weji-sqalia’tiek – Mi’kmaw Place Names (mikmawplacenames.ca) 

Contact:

Tim Bernard	Dr. Trudy Sable
Project Director	Project Lead
tim@cmmns.com	trudy.sable@smu.ca