The Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation is looking to translate a beloved story about a child who goes away to live with the salmon people into Hän. It’s an effort to support the growth of the language in the community.

The First Nation held a public presentation at Yukon University’s Dawson City campus on Tuesday for the Hän language art project, with readings of different variations of the “Salmon Girl” story.

Hän language director with the First Nation, Lydia Soulliere, said the project involved an initial consultation with people, to see if they were familiar with the story.

A Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation version of the tale is set to be written and translated at a later date into Hän for an upcoming documentary project, although no date was given.

After readings and discussion, attendees learned some phrases in Hän, and designed enamel pins related to the story. 

Soulliere said the pins will later be made and handed out to the community to promote the language in an engaging manner.

‘Learn my heritage before I learn someone else’s’

Alexa Nagano, a Robert Service School student and Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation citizen, said she feels upset that Hän isn’t taught more extensively, compared with other languages. She hopes to see it become part of everyday use.

“If I’m on my homeland and my traditional territory, then I feel like I should get a say on what I want to learn and what kind of language. I respect French people, but I’d rather learn Hän, in my opinion,” said Nagano, who is also learning Japanese, a familial heritage.

“I just want to learn my heritage before I learn someone else’s, maybe.”

Kim Joseph, another Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation citizen who attended Tuesday’s presentation, said she would like to see a learning centre in town to teach people how to speak Hän. 

“Our master speakers have pretty much all passed on. But we have people who can understand [Hän] when it’s spoken to them, but they just have a hard time saying it,” said Joseph. “It’s because of the colonization and the residential school and all the effects and that it was taken.”

Other Dawsonites are also interested in revitalizing the language. 

Ken Macdonald, who was at the presentation, said he wants to learn more Hän to support his grandchildren who are learning it at school. 

“And if I can just encourage one word, one phrase at a time, then that’s helping them, that’s helping me, and that’s helping establish the Hän language — or at least keep it going.” 

Emma Diles, a Robert Service School student who is new to the community, called it “genuinely amazing” that the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation culture and language is taught in schools.

“I went to Hän singing here once already and I would like to go back again because I thought it was really beautiful,” she said.