Anishinaabe: Original man
The Great Walk
Anishinaabeg did not always live in the Great Lakes area, but their ancestors had occupied the Atlantic coast more than 10,000 year ago, before embarking on the Great Walk that spirits instructed them to go on in order to find the food that grows on the wild (manoomin or wild rice) (About Anish:Timeline; Ancient History of the Ojibwe People; Fleming, 2017).
Anishinaabeg and the Environment
The fate of Ma’iingan and Anishinaabe are linked and a healthy lifestyle requires that Ma’iingan thrive, according to the Anishinaabe holistic approach to wellbeing (Bemidji, 2013).
From Bemidji Area Assessment of Tribal Environmental Health Services:
“Due to physical location, cultural beliefs, and traditional food sources, many Tribal communities have a much closer relationship to the environment than other communities. Any potential threats to the environment (water, air, land, plants, fish, and wildlife) therefore will likely have a greater impact on Tribal communities. In addition, many Tribes in the Bemidji Area view health through a holistic perspective that includes physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional health.
“Many Tribes view the environment as relatives rather than resources, and many Tribal origin stories include certain animals as co-creators of the universe. The traditional diet of Bemidji Area Tribes included locally sourced foods, including wild rice, walleye and other fish, cranberries, and corn. A higher consumption of these foods can lead to increased health threats if there is contamination present. In addition, there is increasing recognition that promoting cultural beliefs and practices, including a close relationship with the natural environment, can help to both prevent and treat illness.”
Anishinaabeg Traditional Ways
Learn about the way in which Anishinaabeg still hunt, gather, and grow food from Bad River Band tribal youth and Ma’iingan Dodem (wolf clan) member Tommy Sky in the Mazina’igan supplement Growing up Ojibwe
Works Cited
About Anish:Timeline. (n.d.). Retrieved April 17, 2019, from http://www.ojibwe.org/home/about_anish_timeline.html
Ancient History of the Ojibwe People. (n.d.). Retrieved April 17, 2019, from https://canoe.csumc.wisc.edu/LdFCanoe_subpage_North_History_1.html
Bemidji Area Assessment of Tribal Environmental Health Services. Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Center, Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council, Inc. 2013. http://www.glitc.org/forms/epi/envr_health_report_final.pdf
Fleming, B. (2017). Nanaboozhoo and the Wiindigo: An Ojibwe History from Colonization to the Present. Journal of American Indian Higher Education,28(3). Retrieved April 17, 2019, from https://tribalcollegejournal.org/nanaboozhoo-wiindigo-ojibwe-history-colonization-present/.
Map of Anishinaabe Migration. (n.d.). Retrieved April 17, 2019, from http://muskratmagazine.com/sacred-water-walk-2015-living-in-the-seventh-fire/single-event-main-image-16/
Know Ma'iingan 