Joseph Laurent

Joseph Laurent (1839-1917) was chief of the Abenaki village of Odanak in Quebec, Canada, from 1880 to 1892. He was a teacher and leader in his Algonquian community, and the Odanak Nation throughout his life.[1] Laurent, also known as Sozap Lolô,[2] is best known for the publication of his book New Familiar Abenakis and English Dialogues.[3] The book is a dictionary that translates Abenaki to English, and was the first of its kind. The Algonquian-speaking nation was verbal, and in need of being preserved in writing. The structure of the dictionary is what widely sets it apart from others. His translations are set up as a journey through their land as opposed to a standard list. He takes the reader on a trip from Quebec and throughout New England through linguistics and language education.[4] Despite Laurent's upbringing of speaking fluent Abenaki and French,[4] he not only created a dictionary to teach English to Abenaki people, he more importantly created the substantial text in an effort to preserve the Abenaki language and culture. The Abenaki language was oral, and little to no written documents had been recorded. New Familiar Abenakis and English Dialogues was vital in taking the number of a hundred-plus speakers to the rest of the Abenaki population as they continued to be a part of an English-speaking world, and it is still widely used today.[5] Among others, the Abenaki linguist Jesse Bruchac has used the work of Laurent in his own work on language revitalization.

Laurent was also an entrepreneur. He purchased goods from Odanak members and took them to his trading post in Intervale, New Hampshire, to sell to tourists. The camp was located in a grove of white pines known as Cathedral Woods, across from the scenic overlook that resides on the border of North Conway and Intervale.[6] They sold things like baskets, Victorian goods, and miniatures.[7] It was not only a business opportunity, but was also a way for his family to practice speaking English. The trading post remained for thirty-three years, until Laurent's death in 1917.[6] His son Stephen Laurent was also an accomplished writer/linguist, and resided in Intervale until his death in 2001.[8]

References

  1. ↑ "Conseil des Abenakis". Conseil des Abenakis. Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  2. ↑ "Native American Audio Collections". American Philosophical Society. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
  3. ↑ Senier, Siobhan (2014). Dawnland Voices: An Anthology of Writing from Indigenous New England. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. pp. 283–288. ISBN 978-0803246867.
  4. 1 2 Brooks, Lisa Tanya (2008). The Common Pot: The Recovery of Native Space in the Northeast. University of Minnesota Press. p. 411. ISBN 9780816647835.
  5. ↑ Belman, Felice (2001). The New Hampshire Century: Concord Monitor Profiles of One Hundred People Who Shaped It. UPNE. p. 101. ISBN 9781584650874.
  6. 1 2 "pdfhost" (PDF). nps.gov. gov. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
  7. ↑ Nash, Alice N. (2006). Daily Life of Native Americans from Post-Columbian Through Nineteenth-century America. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 251. ISBN 9780313335150.
  8. ↑ Heald, Bruce D. (2014). A History of the New Hampshire Abenaki. The History Press. p. 41. ISBN 9781625849656.
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