Ozaagakiig (Plants)

Seedlings in the earth in a light rain with sun shining on them.

Ozaagakiig artwork by Shannon Noori

This page is home to resources and lessons about beings who create themselves out of minerals, water and light. Ozaagakiig are algae, flowers, fungi, moss, grass, bushes and trees. They can be understood by the ways they grow, the way they reproduce, the way they live through the year, the place where they grow, and how they interact with other beings on earth.

The word “ozaagakiig” is made of several parts. Speakers and learners of Anishinaabemowin hear “zaagi” which is not a word on its own but is a part of many words and indicates an outward motion or opening; and the word “aki” which means land or earth or “akii” which means something that lives or exists. Because plants are recognized as animate, one plant is “ozaagakii” and more than one are “ozaagakiig.”

Anishinaabe traditions include many relationships with plants as teachers, healers and helpers. We thank them when we gather them. We often give them as gifts to others. They are an important part of our journey on earth.

A row of flowers in the Woodland art style by Neebin Southall

Ozaagakiig (Plants) Resources

A poster with illustrations of 14 trees in a grid layout. Mitigoog Gichi-onigamiing Mazina’igan / Trees of Grand Portage Poster

This poster shows how to recognize fourteen trees of the western Lake Superior shore and provides their names in Ojibwe. It was produced by the Miskawaa anang, Erik Martin Redix, the Ojibwe Language and Environmental Education Coordinator for Gichi-onigamiing, the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa to help community members and neighbors learn and use the Ojibwe names.

Explore the poster to download a larger version and listen to audio for the tree names.

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