Angela Sidney, the memory of the Tagish people

A new color in CASA, a new inspiring woman to discover!

Today, it is with great respect and admiration that I present to you Angela Sidney .

She was born in 1902 in Carcross (Tagish First Nations territory), to parents Tagish and Tlingit, members of the Deisheetaan tribe.

Copyright : McCord Museum

Angela divides her childhood between two cultures: the “white” education received sporadically at the Anglican mission school. And, travels with his family on the Tagish territory following the traditional way of life.

A hybrid culture that makes her trilingual: she was fluent in Targish, Tlingit and English.

She married at 14 with Georges Sidney. He ruled Carcross for 3 years. He and Angela fought for mixed schools so as not to separate First Nations children and white children.

But Angela's progressive character was also combined with a mission close to her heart: to preserve the culture of her ancestors and pass it on to the new generation.

This mission, Angela devoted part of her life to it. She notably worked in collaboration with the anthropologist Julie Cruikshank on numerous projects concerning oral history (tales and songs) and literature.

Traditional tales and songs preserve in their plots a piece of the past. Their "magical" context allows its transmission to children, thus planting the roots of the past in the heart of future generations.

Angela was invested as a Member of the Order of Canada on April 9, 1986 for her many contributions to North American linguistics, ethnological studies and the preservation of First Nations heritage .

She died in 1991 at the age of 83.

As a gift, the link to read "Tagish Stories" by Angela Sidney, published in 1982 in Whitehorse, (Yukon). (In English)

A book of traditional tales where you will learn in particular how a woman was kidnapped by a lynx or the mythical figures of the Tagish culture.

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The color in the name of Angela Sidney is a beautiful duck blue.

For inspiration, I suggest this beautiful pattern from a Montreal designer: Jean-Philippe Cliche: Le Horacio Sweater (pattern in French and English).

Photo credit : Jean-Philippe Cliche

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