Cree stories translated into English, fairy tales into Cree

People enjoylegends, fables and fairy tales because they take us to different worlds, make us think about who we are, our values, and tell us something about the human condition.

Many elders in Eeyou Istchee in Quebec grew up hearing oldlegendsshared among family and friends. But the younger generation is more familiar with modern fairy tales from Europe, or Walt Disney films.

Kevin Brousseau, aCreeLanguage Coordinator for theCreeNation Government, is very aware of that generation and culture gap in storytelling.

He thought it could be useful to translateCreelegendsinto Englishand modern fairy tales intoCree. Not only to bridge the generation gap between younger and older Crees, but also to make these stories more accessible to all people, regardless of their language skills.

Growing up, Brousseau saidhe didn't speak muchCree. His elders, including his grandmother, often only spokeCree. He later studied linguistics. When he started his story translation project, translating Hansel and Gretel intoCree, he read it out loud to his grandmother to gauge her reaction.

"She was laughing about it," he said. "She thought it was really funny. She asked me where this story was from. She had actually thought it was aCreestory."

He has since translated dozens of stories, from English toCreeand back. He wrote downCreelegendsshared by elder storytellers. Brousseau explored European folkore and fairy tales to translate them intoCree.

Some elements and nuances are lost in translation, especially from English toCree. Certain animals and objects don't haveCreewords to describe them, so Brousseau said he had to get creative.

In the Three Little Pigs, "they talk about one of the pigs going to the fair, and he's carrying a butter churn. I've never heard a word for 'butter churn' inCree. Neither for a fair. So I ended up translating that as a 'mikushaan' [feast], and the little pig is carrying a pot."

Brousseau has translated 16 European fairy tales and fables intoCree, including Goldilocks, The Gingerbread Boy, The Lion and the Hare, and Little Red Riding Hood.

He's written down and translated fiveCreelegendsinto English.