Hobbema to change name in New Year
CBC News | Posted: December 26, 2013 9:15 PM | Last Updated: December 28, 2013
Hobbema will become "Maskwacis" on January 1st
First Nations groups on reserves south of Edmonton say provincial and county governments will soon recognize a new name for their community.
The Samson Cree First Nation says Hobbema will become "Maskwacis" – Cree for “Bear Hill” – on January 1st.
Band members say the area wasn't called Hobbema until 1891, when the president of the Canadian Pacific Railway named a flag station after a Dutch landscape painter.
Now, residents say switching the name to its traditional form will better reflect the heritage of the tribe that lives there.
"When I was little kid I thought, why is this place called Hobbema? It's not a Cree word. I thought it was a Cree word because it sounds Cree," said resident Melvin Willier.
Now, Willier said he’s seen his own children grow to question the place name, much like he did as a child.
"This is Maskwacis and it should be called Maskwacis."
He says he'll be proud to teach them about the new name, and pass down a piece of his identity and culture.
"I need to see a change for my children and their children. [I'm] going to want to be a grandfather one day and speak Cree with them."
And Willier hopes that a new name will help reflect the area’s changing reputation, helping to step away from its past notoriety.
"The future is only going to get better here."