This year at Festival we will have two games of shishibe or Potawatomi Bingo. This was a hit last year so we are going to play games on Friday at 5 p.m. and Saturday at noon. We will also be having a children’s Potawatomi language class at 2 p.m. on Saturday and an immersion Potawatomi class at 10 a.m. on Saturday. We hope you will be able to make one of our classes.
The online language courses Beginner I and II are currently available and the children’s page should be on language.potawatomi.org by Festival. The intermediate course should be available this fall. The courses are broken into 20 chapters with crosswords, tests, video spoofs and cultural teachings. The beauty of these courses is that a person can participate no matter where they live in the country or what time they have available. It’s completely self-paced. We have had 330 students take part in the online classes to date.
Here’s some words you can use for Festival.
Gshatemget – It’s hot. (guh sho dam get)
Kyetnam gshatemget – It’s really hot. (key yet nam guh shot dam get)
Mno gishget – It’s a nice day. (mih no geesh get)
Wijeweshen – Come with me/accompany me. (wee juh way shin)
Widmoshen bgéji éyawyen – Tell me a little about yourself. (weed moe shin buh gah jee eh yow yin)
Migwetch – Thanks. (mee gwech)
Igiwen – Heartfelt thanks. (eeg we in)
Ahaw – OK. (ah how) No direct translation for “you’re welcome.”
Mine kedon – Say it again. (meenuh kuh dohn)
Gbekte ne? – Are you hungry? (guh buck tay nay)
Gbektem ne? – Are you all hungry? (guh buck tahm nay)
Wenet éwabmenan – It was good to see you. (wun it eh wahb muh nahn)
Ni pi je éyéyen? – Where are you? (nee pee juh eh yay yin)
Nweshmowgemgok nde-zhya – I am going to the hotel. (nuh wesh maw gum goke nduh zhee yah)
Wegni je eschegeyen? – What are you doing? (wehk nee juh ehs chu gay yin)
Ggi-mno mba ne? – Did you sleep well? (guh geem gnome bah nay)
Bama mine – Later again. (bahmah meenuh) No direct translation for “goodbye.”
CPN will be hosting the Potawatomi Language Conference on July 27-29 at the Cultural Heritage Center in conjunction with the Potawatomi Gathering of Nations. We will have speakers and students from all over the country, so it’s a great opportunity to not only listen to and learn from different people but also a chance to see what’s going on in different parts of the country with the different groups of Potawatomi.