'O Canada' recorded in Dakota for Portage la Prairie school

O Canada will be sung in Dakota at Portage la Prairie's Yellowquill School at least once a week, as a way to celebrate the heritage of their Indigenous students from nearby Dakota Tipi First Nation.

The version of the song that will be played was translated and recorded by a group of people from Dakota Tipi who hold regular language revitalization classes, led by elders from the community. Children in the group, mostly Yellowquill students, sung the recorded version. 

The group quickly realized that an effective way for the children to learn the language was through song — which led them to translate popular songs, such as the national anthem.

One problem the group faced when writing a Dakota version of the anthem was finding the proper words.

"Everything in our language is connected with nature," said Geneva Smoke, who is part of the language group.

For example, translating the word "north" was a tricky task for the group.

"We call the north Waziya, and to us that [means] where the giant lives and breathes freezing air — in our language one word will mean a story," said Smoke.

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To deal with these concerns, the Dakota version of the song reads much differently than the English version. But the melody remains the same, meaning anyone who hears it will undoubtedly recognize it as the national anthem.  

On Friday, Yellowquill held an event where the Dakota students gifted a copy of the song to the school, which vice principal Rob Thornton described as "very meaningful."

"The students got to learn about our neighbours in Dakota Tipi First Nation," said Thornston.

Thornston said that 34 per cent of the school's population is First Nation, which includes students from nearby Cree and Dakota communities.

Language at risk of extinction

Smoke says the Dakota language is at risk of going extinct — so groups like hers are needed to keep it alive.

"Our elders always said it was such a beautiful evening to come a speak their language," said Smoke.

"Because [it's] not really spoken too much anymore, and that was some of the idea of why we wanted to revitalize it."

The group plans to continue to translate songs, since it is such an effective way of learning the language.

Another song the group has already translated is Kumbaya. By changing the word "kumbaya" to the Dakota word "chekiya" — which means to pray — they've changed the song to a Dakota prayer song.

Smoke says the language group has had a really positive impact on the community, especially among the youth. 

"The kids are texting in [Dakota] too," said Smoke. "They say, 'it's like code talk' — and that's really awesome to see."