Zhashkoonh ( Muskrat ): Nishnaabemowin Children’s Book by Portia Po Chapman
During the Summer (2021), I began learning Nishnaabemowin. My Trent University Professor was Shirley Ida Williams. Professor Williams wrote the textbook for the course: “Eshkintam Nishinaabemang Mzinagan: Introduction to Nishnaabemowin.” On page iv, Professor Williams describes the dialect as, “The main dialect used in this manual is linguistically classified as Manitoulin Central dialect of Ojibwe and Odawa and is part of Eastern Ojibway and an offshoot of the Mother language of Algonkian.”
It was really exciting to begin my journey learning the language.
As part of the course, I wrote, read aloud, and illustrated my first children’s book in Nishnaabemowin. In this little video, you can read along with me.
Why did I choose to write about the Zhashkoonh ( Muskrat )? As well as being part of the creation story, I enjoyed watching the muskrats as I grew up along side the lake. They always seemed to be a bit more playful than the beavers. While they are tiny, they sure are mighty!
I hope you enjoy reading along with me! Maybe you too can learn few Nishnaabemowin words!
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Contact
Belleville, Ontario, Canada
portia@loveartbypo.ca
613-779-7975
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