Indigenous Knowledge Naming Circle

On September 8 and 9, 2021, the City convened an Indigenous Knowledge Naming Circle.

The opening ceremony was held outside next to the Bishop Grandin Greenway; the Mayor, CAO and area Councillors were in attendance for introductions. An opening prayer and drum song opened the day; Circle members were offered tobacco to share their knowledge and experiences with the City. Métis and Two-Spirit Elder Barbara Bruce of All My Relations was also in attendance to facilitate the two-day gathering.

Much of the discussion of the Circle centred around the importance of the reclamation of language, children, and the journey it has been to find the children that did not return home. Themes that emerged from the brainstorm included:

Journey/road
Together
Truth
Child(ren)
Connection
Change and Learning
Caring

A key message we heard from the Circle was that this gathering is just the beginning of consultations that need to be done when naming or renaming City places to reflect Métis, First Nations and Inuit languages, culture, and contributions. An effort needs be made to include each of the seven languages outlined in the Manitoba Aboriginal Languages Recognition Act.

To reach consensus, Circle members agreed they would support the recommendations made by the Elders moving forward. Furthermore, they asked that if either of the names put forward for Bishop Grandin Boulevard or Grandin Street were not acceptable to the City, that the City would come back to the Elders and advise them before proceeding any further, to allow the Elders an opportunity to respond.

At the conclusion of the two-day September gathering, the Indigenous Knowledge Naming Circle proposed renaming Bishop Grandin Boulevard to Abinojiiak Awasisak Oshkii Miikanah Mēskanôw.

The Elders provided the following explanation/translation for this name:

Abinojiiak (Anishinaabemowin/Ojibwe) and Awasisak (Ininimowin/Cree) both mean children. As one Elder shared, this is meant to represent “all of the children, including us residential school survivors”.
Oshkii (Anishinaabemowin) “is a powerful word, and means everything new”.
Mikanah (Anishinaabemowin) and Mēskanôw (Ininimowin) – means road and represents the “journey” theme that was discussed over the two days.

The Elders proposed having the name in both Anishinaabemowin and Ininimowin to be inclusive and to signify Nations coming and working together.

Following that gathering, the Elders of the Circle met with IRD to discuss concerns that the name proposed for Bishop Grandin Boulevard in September contravened the Street Names By-law. Due to its length exceeding 20 characters, there were safety concerns with respect to the delivery of emergency services.

The Elders understood the concern, and expressed their wish for the new name to be inclusive and safe for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous residents and visitors; the revised names put forward reflect the spirit and intent of the initial proposals for Bishop Grandin Boulevard and Grandin Street while allowing for the limitations of the Street Names By-law:

Bishop Grandin Boulevard to Abinojii Mikanah (A-bin-oh-gee Mee-kin-ah)
Bishop Grandin Trail to Awasisak Mēskanôw (Aa-wa-sis-uk Me-ska-noh)
Grandin Street to Taapweewin Way (Tap-way-win)

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