Bannock Gathering emphasizes speaking language & culture
The Boyer family table was decorated in memory of the late Merceline Boyer.
By LORI ANN EDMO
Sho-Ban News
FORT HALL — The Bannock Gathering was at the Shoshone-Bannock Casino Hotel August 8 & 9.
Fort Hall Business Council Chairman Nathan Small gave a welcome August 8 saying it was good to see everyone. Council member Gaylen Edmo also talked about the importance of cultural gatherings.
FHBC member Lee Juan Tyler spoke words in the Bannock language he learned from tribal elder Caroline Racehorse as he usually speaks fluent Shoshone.
Velda Racehorse, interim Language & Culture Director, did a PowerPoint presentation regarding Sheepeater, Bannock and Shoshone treaties. During the presentation, Bannock teacher Louida Ingawanup Unger told a story about Coyote and Old Lady in the Bannock language. Following is the English explanation. The oral history is about and old lady fishing on the Snake River. Coyote showed up, he was hungry and put on his charm saying he wanted to help her clean her fish. Coyote told her they would need wood so he said he’d go one way and the old lady went another way. Coyote picked up a branch and ran back to the old lady’s fish and she was nowhere around. He threw the firewood down and picked up the basket and it was heavy. He took a step, tripped over the firewood and the basket of fish went flying into the river. Coyote cried, “Oh no. How will I catch them?” He knew the river was swift and wondered if he could dam the river. He ran ahead and began to throw lava rocks into the river. The first dam didn’t stop the fish. The water flowed over the dam. The fish went over the top and down river. That dam is now Idaho Falls. Coyote ran further down the river. He built another dam and the fish went over the top again. The second dam is now American Falls. Coyote was getting angry – he mumbled and grumbled. “This time I will make sure it does not happen again,” he said. Coyote ran down the river again and started to build a larger dam. He waited for the fish and this dam is now Twin Falls. Guess what happened? Coyote decided he should honestly find something to eat.
A discussion occurred about the Bannock War afterward when Deynon Means, Tyler and Charlie Plentywounds told oral history they knew.
The morning session ended with Dillon Diggie playing a recorded story of the late Martha Warjack telling a story about a big bird story in the Bannock language. Door prizes were given. Miss Shoshone-Bannock contestants Kaycee Dixey and Sophia Martin introduced themselves to attendees.
During the afternoon session, Shoshone-Paiute language instructor Alanna Charles talked about their language program where they teach Shoshone and Paiute. They are one of five tribes that received a Native American language grant. She explained she has many relatives in Fort Hall and used to be a caregiver with the Tribes Elderly Nutrition program.
Tribal elder Louida Ingawanup Unger told a story about Coyote and Old Lady in
the Bannock language.
She’s worked for a year and half with their language program and is currently getting certified to be a language instructor. She speaks fluent Shoshone but is learning Paiute. “We don’t forget our language,” noting young people should be present listening as she was always told to bring children to events, teach them to sit still and listen to the elders. Alanna said it’s time to reclaim the language, it’s important for children to hear it, keep it up and trust one another. “We can’t separate each other – we are one,” she continued. “We would be a strong Indian nation,” if that was done.
Alanna encouraged attendees to talk to their children in the language and teach them what they know. She said taivos (white people) want Native people to be separated. She said the Paiute language is scarce in Duck Valley. She appreciated Louida Unger speaking in Bannock and it was beautiful. It’s an endangered language. She and Yolanda Manning taught 177 students this past school year and they’re planning to expand to junior high and high school. They’ve taught the students about cradleboards, moccasins and about mud huts. Instead of tipis, mud huts are what Great Basin tribes stayed in because there was no buffalo in the area.
Alanna had a display table available and she had copies of two small books animal identification in both Shoshone and Paiute languages.
Storytelling followed with many people sharing stories or oral history.
On August 9, the day began with a sunrise ceremony at Tinno Bridge on the Fort Hall Bottoms that Lee Juan Tyler and Nelson Racehorse conducted prior to the start of the Bannock Warrior Challenge.
Numerous workshops were conducted at the same time at the Shoshone-Bannock Casino Hotel including Daisy Dixey who did moccasin making and described her rabbit blanket, Rebecca Ellsworth explained cedar gathering and use, while Manuelita Waterhouse did family history. A talking circle followed about the funniest thing people did.
Events moved to the softball field where a hand drum contest was conducted with Nelson Racehorse winning first, Farrell Wildcat was second and Rebecca Ellsworth was third. Indian games followed and a watermelon bust.
