"As kids, we used to ask elders to tell us stories we
already knew by heart. We’d say, ‘Can you tell us about this or
that historical event? What do you know about it?’ What we were
really asking for was their analysis, their particular
interpretation of the event as it related to life."1
History is an ever-evolving concept, and what it is varies
from nation to nation. For European settlers it is written and
passed down from one generation to the next. For Aboriginal
Peoples, it is passed down through a series of complex and often
interwoven stories and myths. One way does not take precedence
over another.
The hundreds of generations of Aboriginal Peoples who have
made the prairie province their home for thousands of years have
a multifaceted and rich history. This section will take you into
various aspects of this history with special focus in attention
given to those Aboriginal Nations who reside within the borders
of what is now called the Province of Alberta.
For many Aboriginal Peoples, what it means to be Aboriginal
is grounded in the historical context of their people and, more
specifically, in the history of their respective Nations.
We cannot foretell the future, but we can gain a greater
understanding of the present. Our hope for achieving an
understanding about the present is through our Elders – The
Keepers of Knowledge.
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