“Land is the gift of our ancestors and the guarantee of our right to continue our subsistence lifestyle. Land is the heart of our culture. Without land, we are nothing.”
– Harvey Samuelsen 1926 – 2004
“You can’t lose your culture as long as you are learning place names in your Native language.”
– Robert Charlie, Athabascan Elder
“Alaska’s place names should reflect and respect the rich cultural history of our state…”
– Alaska Governor Bill Walker, lauding the official recognition of the name Denali
Land Acknowledgement
We would like to recognize the Dena’ina Athabascan people of the Eklutna Native Village and Knik Tribal Council whose traditional homelands the Bristol Bay Native Corporation resides on here in Dena’ina Ełnena what we now call Anchorage or Dgheyaytnu (Daguy–kaq) or (Daguy-tnu) the Athabascan name for Anchorage. We recognize the thousands of years of stewardship and acknowledge the people of Dena’ina Ełnena as they continue to be the caretakers of the land and its resources.
Thank you to the Alutiiq/Sugpiaq, Dena’ina/Tanaina, and Yup’ik/Yupiaq peoples of Bristol Bay. We recognize the thousands of years of stewardship and acknowledge the people of the region as they continue to be the caretakers of the land. Quyana, Chin’an, Quyanaa!
News and Updates:
Bristol Bay Native Corporation Land Department has released a free mobile app to support the mission of its place name project and allow access to a wealth of knowledge about Bristol Bay place names…right on…
READ MORE
Southwest Region School District and Bristol Bay Campus developed a language app that helps people learn Yup’ik. The Yugtun Language App was launched in October 2019, and offers 45 lessons on basic vocabulary and grammar,…
READ MORE
New! Explore an updated version of our place names map, now enhanced for mobile users. With assistance from Bristol Bay Remediation, LLC, BBNC’s Land Department recently launched an improved version of the place names mapping…
READ MORE
Our partners at UAF’s Alaska Native Languages Archive have been tracking current news related to Alaska Native languages and place names with an online blog called Talking Alaska. A review of the content that’s been…
READ MORE
Bristol Bay Native Corporation Land Department and Bristol Bay Native Corporation Education Foundation hosted a workshop, attended by 70, that addressed Cultural Heritage Program Resources. Several panelists, representing public and private organizations, described funding opportunities…
READ MORE
