The Gift of Knowledge / Ttnúwit Átawish Nch'inch'imamí

Reflections on Sahaptin Ways

Virginia R Beavert author Janne L Underriner editor

Format:Paperback

Publisher:University of Washington Press

Published:16th Sep '19

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

This paperback is available in another edition too:

The Gift of Knowledge / Ttnúwit Átawish Nch'inch'imamí cover

"I walk hand in hand with knowing the ways of my family and writing them down for those to come”

The Gift of Knowledge / Ttnuwit Atawish Nch’inch’imamí is a treasure trove of material for those interested in Native American culture. Author Virginia Beavert grew up in a traditional, Indian-speaking household. Both her parents and her maternal grandmother were shamans, and her childhood was populated by people who spoke tribal dialects and languages: Nez Perce, Umatilla, Klikatat, and Yakima Ichishkíin. Her work on Native languages began at age twelve, when she met linguist Melville Jacobs while working for his student, Margaret Kendell. When Jacobs realized that Beavert was a fluent speaker of the Klikatat language, he taught her to read and write the orthography he had developed to record Klikatat myths.

After a stint in the U.S. Air Force during World War II, Beavert went on to earn graduate degrees in education and linguistics, and she has contributed to numerous projects for the preservation of Native language and teachings.

Beavert narrates highlights from her own life and presents cultural teachings, oral history, and stories (many in bilingual Ishishkíin-English format) about family life, religion, ceremonies, food gathering, and other aspects of traditional culture.

"Inspiring and informative. . . . Born in a bear cave in the Blue Mountains of Oregon, raised in a traditional Indian-only speaking household by parents who were shamans, and having served as an Air Force wireless radio operator at a B-29 bomber base during the Second World War, Beavert has spent her adult life tirelessly retrieving, preserving, and sharing Sahaptin knowledge. . . . She began working in her Native language at the age of 12 after meeting linguist Melville Jacobs. Since then she has collaborated with some of the most accomplished linguists and anthropologists. . . . Her passion for and interest in the welfare of her younger readers reverberates throughout every page of The Gift of Knowledge, in which her stated purpose is to record the lifeways taught to her by her family."

* Journal of the West *

"A Colombia Plateau ethnographic study like no other, Beavert’s book shows how her own life story is inextricably connected to the plateau culture and language that she presents. . . . An anthropological text rich in personal biographical detail, context, and warm, vivid prose, this is a must-read for those interested in Indigenous Studies, anthropology, history, and the Columbia Plateau. . . . Adds very important contributions to the fields of sociolinguistics, ethnography, Pacific Northwest history, and cultural anthropology. . . . A shining example of intellectual sovereignty."

* Oregon Historical Quarter

ISBN: 9780295746128

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 295g

208 pages