Tiginaagan (Cradleboards)

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Christy-Bieber

The following lesson was written by Howard Kimewon and Margaret Noodin to enrich a cradleboard making workshop at the 15th Annual Language and Culture Camp in Manistee, Michigan led by Judy Pamp.

For this project you can listen/download the complete audio or listen to each section as you go along. Reading by Christy Bieber

Complete audio: Cradleboard

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1.	Pane gwa	gii bi objikaaznaa’an	tiginaaganan	Anishinaabeg.
	Always	(past) used	wooden constructed things	Anishinaabe people.
	The people have always used cradleboards.

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2.	Bebkaan	igo	gonemaa	daa	ezhi	naagaadoon	nindan	tiginaaganan.
	They are different	really	maybe	was	how	they are built	these	cradleboards.
	The cradleboards are all unique.

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3.	Mii	maanda	gaa	ezhichigeyaad	Anishinaabeg	gii	bi kooganaawaad	binoojiins.
	So	then this	was	did	Anishinaabeg	did	they raised	babies.
	This is what the native people did when they raised a baby.

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4.	Tiginaaganing	maaba	binoojiins	gii	moowejigaazo.
	In the wooden constructed	this	baby	did get	carried around by someone.
	In the cradle they carried the baby around.

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5.	Mii	geye	wii	noondaan	waaamdaan	miinwaa	geye wii	gikendaan	aapichi	zaagikchigaazod.
	And	then		to hear things,	to see things	and to		know it	very	to be loved.
	This also was done so babies would see things, hear things and learn while being loved by someone.

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6.	Mii	maanda gaa	bi ezhi ayaawaad	gii	bi	bimaadiziwaad.
	Then	this	how they were		here	they lived.
	This is the way they lived.

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7.	Niibinaa	mshkwiiziwin	binoojiins	giindenaan	tiganaaganing	enji	gaanawenjigaazod.
	Lots of	strength	baby	received	in the wooden constructed	while in a place	being cared for by them.
	The baby grew strong in the cradle while being cared for in the cradle.

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8.	Kina goya	gii	giikamegwaan	neyen	shkiniigishan.
	Everyone	(pst)	they are all advising	this	young man.
	Everyone advised the young man.

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9.	Tigoonsan	gii	zhoobadibenaan.
	Sticks	were	bent by them.
	They bent sticks.

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10.	Wii	zhitoowaad	tiganaagan.
	To	make it	wooden constructed thing.
	To make a cradleboard.

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11.	Naanagoodinong	geye	wiigwas	gii	objikaaznaa’aa	ni	boon.
	Sometimes	also	birchbark	did	they use	there	in winter.
	We sometimes used birchbark to make the cradleboard especially in the winter.

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12.	Wiigobiish	gii	objikaaznaa’aa	maanda	tiginaagan	wii	shkiwaadamowaad.
	Bass wood	did	they use	this	wooden constructed thing	to	sew it.
	They used bass wood to sew the cradleboard.

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13.	Kaa goya	psagakwan	kwaa	gii	gaawaasiian	Anishinaabeg.
	Nobody	boards	(emphasis)	did	to not have them	Anishinaabeg.
	A long time ago they did not have boards.

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14.	Mii maanda	gaa	ezhi	zhitoowad	maanda	tiginaagan.
	So then	was	the way	they build	this	wooden constructed thing.
	This is the way they built this cradleboard.

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15.	Moonjigeshkweganoon	gii	naabiinoon	tiginaaganing.
	The back straps	were	connected	on the wooden constructed thing.
	The back straps were connected to the cradleboard.

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16.	Speming	gii	temigad	tiginaaganing.
	On top	was	it located	on the wooden constructed thing.
	It was located on top of the wooden constructed thing.

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17.	Dabaashish	gii	temigad	wi	binoojiin	ezhizideshing.
	Below	was	located	that	baby	where the feet go.
	The footboard is located on the bottom.

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18.	Gii	maamwi	minidoomiinsgewag	gondag	kwewag.
	Did	together	they beaded	those	women.
	These women beaded together.

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19.	Giinwaa	enswa	enigizwaad	maaba	danis	geye	gaagwan	aapichigwa	gii	kchi	nenmaan.
	Us	in	they are related	this	daughter	also	porcupine	really	did	a lot	like it.
	All of us in the family of my daughter really liked the porcupine a lot.

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20.	Mii	neyen	ndanis	kaa	nendang	wii	bzingwaachigaaznid	gaagwan	waabooansing
	So	that one	my daughter	did	want	to	sew a design	of a porcupine	on the small blanket.
	So my daughter wanted to sew a design of a porcupine on the small blanket.

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21.	Jibwa	disagwaa’aan	maaba	ankobijigans	mii	gii	zhitooyang	tiginaagan.
	Before	she arrived	this	grand-baby	then	did	we make	a wooden constructed thing.
	Before the grandbaby arrived we made a cradleboard.

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22.	Dayna	goweta	gii	dibamigonaa	maanda	weweni	wii	zhitooyang	tiginaagan.
	Dayna	just	did	watched us	then	carefully	to	we build	the wooden constructed thing.
	Dana watched us carefully build a cradleboard.

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23.	Pii dash	e-disigwaang	Anastasia	gii tene	geye	kwesans	waa	enjigawenmin.
	When then	to arrive	Anastasia	was it be there	also	the little girl	to	where we care for her.
	When Anastasia arrived it was there to care for her.

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24.	Shkwaang	pane	nabe	Anastasia	waamdang	gaa	bi	zhewebedenig	Dayna	epichii	niimid
	Behind	always	look	Anastasia	look		to	what happened in the past	Dayna	while	dancing.
	As Dayna is dancing forward Anastacia is looking back at the past.