...and they steal my lines.
In any case, I shall rant on briefly re the topic of redubbing Canadian locales with their aboriginal names. This is not something I'm against, in principle, but...
On the one hand, we have The Salish Sea--poetic, mysterious: invokes salty mists at dawn and sleeping whales rocked gently in the waves and sea-monsters frolicking under an autumn moon. I'm proud to call such a place my home (or at least where I grew up (not in, but next to)).
On the other hand, we have Xwayxway: sounds like pig-Latin for "please disconnect the HVAC unit". C'mon first nations people! You can do better! Can you imagine trying to convince some girl to drive down to Xwayxway and make out? Can't be done!
OH.MY.GOD.
ReplyDeleteSensitivity AND Common Sense.
Run for the Liberal leadership and some not-so-neo cons might follow.
I only lived in Vancouver for three years, but learned to really appreciate elements of the Salish culture which permeate the city.. I'm actually wearing a silver KELL̵OLEMEĆEN ring as I type (Orca).
But, as you say, there is some reasonable middle-ground between respecting indigenous culture, and running, pell-mell, into changing EVERYTHING to show our respect for our first citizens.
"Sensitivity AND Common Sense".
ReplyDelete"But, as you say, there is some reasonable middle-ground between respecting indigenous culture, and running, pell-mell, into changing EVERYTHING to show our respect for our first citizens".
WTF "EVERYTHING" we're talking about renaming Stanly Park,(that said this does not mean that other places might well be given their original names also)
And it not about respect its about acknowledging the history of this place we call B.C.,its about doing the right thing.
Place names are more than just names,they are represent the history of a place. And whether you like it or not the history of BC's First Peoples in this place we now call BC goes back thousands of years.Indeed the arrogance of white people/settlers, to think that they can ignore that history as if it is was meaningless, is truly astounding.