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New in Paperback
The Gift of Knowledge / Ttnúwit Átawish Nch’inch’imamí
Virginia R. Beavert and Janne L. Underriner
Reflections on Sahaptin Ways From rodeo rider to linguist to elder—teachings for future generations Virginia Beavert grew up in a traditional Native household with parents and a maternal great-grandmother who were shamans, and her childhood was populated by speakers of tribal dialects and languages: Nez Perce, Umatilla, Klikatat, and Yakima Ichishkíin. At age twelve she met linguist Melville Jacobs while working with his student, Margaret Kendell. Jacobs taught her to read and write the Klikatat orthography he had developed, and she began a lifetime of work on Native languages. After a stint in the US Air Force during World War II, Beavert earned advanced degrees in education and linguistics, and she has spent decades devoted to the preservation of Native language and culture.
A Naomi B. Pascal Book September
NATIVE AMERICAN AND INDIGENOUS STUDIES; BIOGRAPHY, AUTOBIOGRAPHY, AND MEMOIR; PACIFIC NORTHWEST / HISTORY 208 pp., 32 b&w illus., 6 x 9 in. $22.95 / £17.99 PB / ISBN 9780295746128
In The Gift of Knowledge / Ttnuwit Atawish Nch’inch’imamí, Beavert sets down the story of her life and the traditions of her family for the benefit of future generations. It is a treasure trove of memories, teachings, and reflections (many in Yakima Ichishkíin with English translation) about family life, religion, ceremonies, food gathering, and other aspects of traditional Indigenous culture.
VIRGINIA R. BEAVERT (Yakama) is a recipient of the Washington Governor’s Heritage Award and the Ken Hale Prize of the Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas. She is coauthor of Ichishkíin Sinwit Yakama / Yakima Sahaptin Dictionary. JANNE L. UNDERRINER is director of the Northwest Indian Language Institute at the University of Oregon. “Inspiring and informative. . . . [Beavert’s] passion for and interest in the welfare of her younger readers reverberates throughout every page of The Gift of Knowledge, in which her stated purpose is to record the lifeways taught to her by her family.”—Journal of the West
Also of Interest
The Tao of Raven
Tulalip, From My Heart
$18.95 PB 9780295745725
$30.00s PB 9780295995410
“A must-read for those interested in Indigenous Studies, anthropology, history, and the Columbia Plateau. . . . Adds very important contributions to the fields of sociolinguistics, ethnography, Pacific Northwest history, and cultural anthropology. . . . A shining example of intellectual sovereignty.” —Oregon Historical Quarterly
University of Washington Press fall 2019 www.washington.edu/uwpress