If you saw the original video I made to share my idea of a social network-based learning website, you probably heard me talk (on and on… and on) about this thing called “Mwalimu.”
The thing is…
I never planned to use the name Mwalimu.
So why the heck did I use the name Mwalimu in the first place?
I wanted a placeholder name to describe the website in my video – a fake name I could use so I didn’t have to keep calling it “this new social-network-based-learning-thingy-website I’m going to build.” Unfortunately, it all sorta backfired on me.
In retrospect, I should have known that lots of people would get attached to the name. Much to my surprise, over 40% of people who took the survey after watching my video said that I should stick with the name Mwalimu. Why is that?
My guess is that after nine minutes of hearing me talk about Mwalimu this, and Mwalimu that… well, if you liked my website idea to begin with, then you probably started digging the name by default.
(When I think of all the branding opportunities I wasted by using a fake name in the video, I could kick myself! Lesson learned…)
Here’s the problem: I was never fond of the name Mwalimu. I never intended to use it. I have no direct connection to Africa, so it feels odd for me to use a Swahili word to name my project. It feels like I’d be appropriating someone else’s culture under false pretenses.
So, I’m very sorry to disappoint those of you who really liked the name Mwalimu. I hope you understand. (Besides, mwalimu.com is already a thriving immigration site!)
So… why Yibboo?
I’m aboriginal (Métis). Really, it’s true. I have a card and everything. My mom is a member of the National Order of the Métis Sash. It’s an honour that’s given to members of the Métis community who’ve made cultural, political or social contributions to their people. (Yep, I’m pretty proud of her!)
I’m fascinated by the history of the Métis people – especially with their historic role as a bridge between cultures:
During the height of the North American fur trade in the 1700s and 1800s, many French-Canadian fur traders married First Nations and Inuit women, mainly First Nations Cree, Ojibwa, or Saulteaux. Most of the fur traders were French and Catholic. Therefore, their children, the Métis, were exposed to both the Catholic and indigenous belief systems, thus creating a new distinct aboriginal people in North America in the years prior to the colonization of Canada and the United States of America as we know it today. First Nations women were the link between cultures, they not only provided companionship for the fur traders, but also aided in their survival. First Nations women were able to translate the language, sew new clothing for their husbands, and generally were involved in resolving any cultural issues that arose. The First Peoples had survived in the harsh west for thousands of years, so the fur traders benefited greatly from their First Nations wives knowledge of the land and its resources.
The Métis played a vital role in the success of the western fur trade. Not only were the Métis skilled hunters, but they were also raised to appreciate both Aboriginal and European cultures. Métis understanding of both societies and customs helped bridge cultural gaps, resulting in better trading relationships. (source: wikipedia.org)
The Métis developed a unique mixed language called Michif. The language was based on Cree and Métis French. Sadly I don’t speak Michif (there are fewer than 1,000 Michif speakers left today) so I spent a lot of time researching Michif morphology and vocabulary.
In Michif, most nouns have a French origin, and most verbs have a Cree origin. This isn’t surprising; it’s not hard to imagine a French Voyageur teaching his Métis son or daughter a few French words simply by pointing to common objects around the home:
- dog = shyen (in French: “chien”)
- man = lom (in French: “l’homme”)
- house = meezoñ (in French: “maison”)
- water = dilo (in French: “de l’eau”)
- sun = saley (in French: “soleil”)
When it came to abstract concepts, however, it’s easier to imagine a Cree mother reverting to her native Cree language to teach her children:
- see = waapow (in Cree: “wâpiw”)
- hear = peehtam (in Cree: “pêhtam”)
- sing = nakamow (in Cree: “nikamôw”)
- eat = miichishow (in Cree: “mîcisiw”)
- leave = shipweeteew; Atishipweeteew (in Cree: “sipwêtêw”)
I don’t speak Cree either, so most of those Cree verbs are completely unpronounceable to me. It didn’t take me long to figure out that “kiskinôhamahk” (learn) or “ta li col e kis-kina-ma-keet” (he teaches at a school) just wasn’t going to cut it as a website name.
But I still really wanted to find a Michif word that would express the spirit of a vibrant social learning community.
We are Métis, with roots and rights that extend 9,000 years into this continent. We are neither First Nations nor Inuit, nor are we European immigrants to this land. Instead, we are the middle-ground between camps; the compromise between differences and the dawn that separates night and day. We are not half-breeds, but the children born of a marriage between two very different worlds…. To be Métis is to be blessed with the best fruit of not one, but two family trees. We are not “half” of anything, but doubled. Being twice blessed, we are likewise proud, strong and determined.
–Terry St. Amant, Georgian Bay Métis Council of the Métis Nation of Ontario
So I started looking at Michif nouns. Simple nouns. Words that would have been in common use by the Métis people. And rather than rely on a literal meaning, I thought about symbols. What symbols represent knowledge and group intelligence and shared wisdom?
Yibboo is a Michif word. (All bets are off on the actual spelling, of course – I’ve seen it spelled every which way from yeeboo to ôhô.) I went with the phonetic spelling that best matched the way I’d say the word in my native French (joual French, of course…)
If you speak French, you might already know what it means. I’ll give you a hint:
Any guesses?
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
l’hibou! cute! i like the way the metis words are pronounced.