Aboriginal Awareness Week Quiz 2009- Answers

Question 1.

Answer: a.) Tommy Prince

- Thomas George Prince (a.k.a. Prince of the Brigade) was a veteran of the Second World War and the Korean War. Hailing from Manitoba, Prince enlisted in June 1940, at the age of 24, and began his wartime service as a sapper with the Royal Canadian Engineers (RCE). After two years with the RCE, he answered a call for paratrooper volunteers, and by late 1942 he was training with the 1st Canadian Special Service Battalion. Soon after Prince joined this select battalion, it merged with an elite American unit officially called the First Special Service Force. This unit would become known to German soldiers as the “Devil's Brigade.” Tommy received 10 medals in total. They include, from the Second World War, the King George Military Medal and the U.S. Silver Star. On one occasion, Prince needed to repair communications equipment in a field near the German-Italian line. He acted the part of an angry farmer, shaking his fists and shouting at the nearby enemy. He then pretended to work the field with a hoe in plain view of the enemy line while he secretly followed the radio line to where the break had occurred. Pretending to tie his shoe, he spliced the line together and continued to work the field. Afterward, he retired to the farmhouse to relay the enemy’s position. With its position revealed to the Allied artillery, the enemy soon withdrew. Upon his return, Prince’s commanding Officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Gilday, recommended Prince for the King George Military Medal for “exceptional bravery in the field.”

Question 2.

Answer: b.) Chewing gum and Aspirin

- Aboriginal peoples discovered the first chewing gum, which was collected from spruce trees. The active ingredient in pain relievers such as Aspirin was known to Aboriginal peoples for centuries. It is found in species of the willow tree, including the pussy willow.

Question 3.

Answer: c.) 1996

National Aboriginal Day was proclaimed in 1996 by the former Governor General Roméo LeBlanc. The following is part of the text of the declaration:

“WHEREAS the Aboriginal peoples of Canada have made and continue to make valuable contributions to Canadian society and it is considered appropriate that there be, in each year, a day to mark and celebrate these contributions and to recognize the different cultures of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada.”

Question 3.

Answer: c.) 1996

- National Aboriginal Day was proclaimed in 1996 by the former Governor General Roméo LeBlanc. The following is part of the text of the declaration:

“WHEREAS the Aboriginal peoples of Canada have made and continue to make valuable contributions to Canadian society and it is considered appropriate that there be, in each year, a day to mark and celebrate these contributions and to recognize the different cultures of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada.”

Question 4.

Answer: a.) A place of fish

- Iqaluit, Inuktitut for “place of fish,” is the Inuit name for the community of Iqaluit, which is still often referred to by its English name, “Frobisher Bay.” Sir Martin Frobisher, an English explorer, “discovered” Baffin Island in 1576 while trying to chart a course through the Northwest Passage. While in the area, Frobisher plundered the land, loading up his ships with the black ore that he had found, believing it to contain gold. After landing back in England, however, the ore turned out to be fool’s gold. The bay surrounding Iqaluit still bears Frobisher’s name.

Question 5.

Answer: d.) To guide the Inuit across the artic tundra or to mark a special or sacred place-

The inukshuk, which, in Inuktitut, means “like a human,” is a stone marker and monument, used for centuries to guide the Inuit across the barren arctic tundra or to mark sacred and special places. The star is the Niqirtsuituq, or North Star, used for centuries as a point of navigation. It also represents the leadership of the elders.

Question 6.

Answer: b.) To be the keeper of traditional teachings and language

- In Aboriginal communities, elders are keepers of traditional teachings and language. They are greatly respected for their life experience and wisdom, and members of the community often seek their counsel. Elders are not necessarily elderly, since traditions vary greatly among Aboriginal peoples. Elders are usually not self-proclaimed; instead, it is the members of the community who acknowledge someone to be an elder.

Question 7.

Answer: c.) It is a name given to the people who controlled trade on the river

- It is a name given by Parliament once it was determined that the city would be Canada’s national capital.

The word “Ottawa” comes from the Algonquin word “adawe,” meaning “to trade.” This was the name given to the people who controlled trade on the river.

Question 8.

Answer: a.) Its origin is the Algonquin expression meaning “ narrow passage “

The Algonquin people first used the name “Kebek” for the region around the city of Québec. The word is the Algonquin word for “narrow passage” or “strait” to indicate the narrowing of the river at Cape Diamond.

Question 9.

Answer : c.) 1970

- The first Arctic Winter Games were staged in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, in 1970 and were officially opened by former Prime Minister of Canada Pierre Elliott Trudeau. Approximately 500 athletes, coaches, and officials participated in the inaugural Games, and they were a great success. Although gold, silver, and bronze medals are awarded to the athletes, the only trophy awarded is to the team that displays the best sportsmanship throughout the Games.

Question 10.

Answer : b.) To carry game and people over snow

- Originally designed to carry game over snow, this traditional sled was made from hardwood (such as hickory, maple, or ash) and rawhide ties. The Inuit people made their sleds from whalebone. In other words, equipment such as this was designed and made from items indigenous to the area.

Question 11.

Answer : False

- Toboggans were pulled by dogs or by people. Among the Chipewyan, toboggans were pulled by women. In addition to its recreational use, the toboggan may still serve the same purpose but has generally been replaced by the Ski-Doo or other motorized sleds.

Question 12.

Answer : c.) 3

- Louis Riel was elected three times to the House of Commons of Canada: on October 13, 1873; January 13, 1874; and September 3, 1874. As a result of political pressure, however, he was never allowed to take his seat.

Question 13.

Answer: b.) An initiative to address violence against Aboriginal (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) women in Canada

-The main objective of the Sisters in Spirit initiative is to address violence against Aboriginal (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) women, particularly racialized and sexualized violence; that is, violence perpetrated against Aboriginal women because of their gender and Aboriginal identity.

Question 14.

Answer: b.) More than 60

- There are more than 60 Aboriginal languages in Canada: those belonging to the Eskimo-Aleut, Inuktitut, Algonquian, Athapaskan, Siouan, Salishan, Wakashan, and Iroquoian language groups, as well as Haida, Kutenai, Tlingit, and Tsimshian.

Question 15.

Answer: c.) The discovery of gold in the Black Hills of South Dakota

- The discovery of gold in 1875 in the Black Hills of South Dakota sounded the death knell for the Lakota and their traditional ways. Sitting Bull took up arms in protest of the desecration of his people’s sacred territory. He had a great vision that said the Lakota would defeat the soldiers in a great battle at the Little Bighorn River in 1876. He was right. Several thousand warriors were amassed, which surprised General Custer, but his arrogance forced him to lead his men into what turned out to be a slaughter. It was the last gathering of Aboriginal warriors of this magnitude. After winning the battle, Sitting Bull and some of his followers found refuge in southern Alberta in May of 1877. The Canadian government, under pressure from Washington, forced Sitting Bull into starvation, which drove him back over the border. He surrendered on July 19, 1881. He rode in “Buffalo Bill” Cody’s Wild West show and became something of a celebrity. Sitting Bull was also a believer in the Ghost Dance, which ultimately led to his second prophecy, of his assassination on December 15, 1890, at the hands of a Lakota police officer, who shot him along with his son Crow Foot. His powerful spirit lives on in the hearts of many of his people.

Question 16.

Answer: c.) 1,172, 790

- In 2006, the total population of Aboriginal peoples in Canada (First Nations, Métis, and Inuit) surpassed the one-million mark, reaching 1,172,790. Between 1996 and 2006, the Aboriginal population grew by 45 per cent, compared with 8 per cent for the non-Aboriginal population.

Question 17.

Answer: d.) Music

- Aboriginal languages do not have a word for music. Music is perceived as an integral part of daily lives and spiritual beliefs.

Question 18.

Answer: b.) 1972

- In 1972, as Canada’s representative Silver Cross Mother, Mrs. Mary Louise McLeod of Cape Croker, Ontario, laid a wreath at the National War Memorial. Mrs. McLeod lost two sons in the Second World War; another two were wounded.

Question 19.

Answer: The Innu

- The Innu, formerly known as the Naskapi-Montagnais Indians, are an Algonquian-speaking people whose homeland (Nitassinan) is the eastern portion of the Quebec-Labrador Peninsula. The word “Innu” means “human being,” and the Innu language is called “Innu-aimun.” Today there are over 16,000 Innu who live in 11 communities in Quebec and two in Labrador.

Question 20.

Answer: c.) To protect sleeping individuals from negative dreams

- The use of dream catchers is one of the most fascinating traditions of Aboriginal peoples in North America. The traditional dream catcher was intended to protect the sleeping individual from negative dreams, while letting through positive dreams. The positive dreams would slip through the hole in the center of the dream catcher and glide down the feathers to the sleeping person below. The negative dreams would get caught in the web and expire when the first rays of the sun struck them in the morning.

 

Thank you / Meegwetch/ Merci