Manitoba to translate legislative documents into Anishinaabemowin
The Manitoba Indigenous Reconciliation Secretariat is establishing a first-of-its-kind Indigenous languages translation division at the Manitoba Legislature.
Two people will be hired to translate Hansard and other complex legislative and procedural documents into Anishinaabemowin, with other Indigenous languages to be added in the future.
Previously known as Ojibway, Anishinaabemowin is spoken by an estimated 28,000 people living within Canada’s borders. Once outlawed by the Canadian Government, Indigenous languages have seen a resurgence in recent years and are now protected by the Indigenous Languages Act.
In 2024, an Anishinaabemowin version of Star Wars: A New Hope was released in select theatres before being added to streaming services like Disney+.
There are approximately 70 distinct Indigenous languages spoken by First Nations, Métis, and Inuit people across Canada.
However, due to years of colonial policies rooted in racism, Statistics Canada reported that 40 of those languages had fewer than 500 fluent speakers in 2016.
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