Robin Wall Kimmerer (Braiding Sweetgrass) has argued insightfully for a “grammar of animacy” that challenges Western tenets of naming. Learning the Potawatomi language that her grandfather was forbidden to speak, she finds out that the Hudson River was originally called “the river that runs both ways” (because of the tidal action). She cites Krista Tippett: “The words we use shape how we understand ourselves, how we interpret the world, how we treat others. Words make worlds” (Becoming Wise). Indigenous languages use verbs and pronouns to name non-human animals, including birds, to describe and respect their relationships to us and the wider ecosystem, often incorporated in stories (e.g., Steller’s jays hopping up trees to see danger better).
Willem van Vliet Boulder On Fri, Apr 16, 2021 at 10:56 AM 'Hugh Kingery' via Colorado Birds < cobirds@googlegroups.com> wrote: > I have another gripe with common names: I dislike ones that demean the > bird: Lesser Yellowlegs, Least Flycatcher. > > Would you like us to call you the Least Birder, or a Lesser Observer? > > Hugh > > -- > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google > Groups "Colorado Birds" group. > To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en > * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include > bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate > * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/CFO/Membership/ > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Colorado Birds" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/1492993338.2002229.1618592205275%40mail.yahoo.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/1492993338.2002229.1618592205275%40mail.yahoo.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/CFO/Membership/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAPySxGbK7WzNWUvkF6Fd1BPuPezFFkMdLGCaxYVo8dCsTJUS7g%40mail.gmail.com.
