Ma'git Poulette, Mi'kmaw Elder, and Premier Iain Rankin hold a prototype sign at the announcement ceremony. Photo courtesy; Government of Nova Scotia.
The Canso Causeway will sport a new Mi’kmaq sign this week.
At a ceremony on Friday, July 9, Premier Iain Rankin, Mi’kmaq elders and chiefs Port Hawkesbury Mayor, Brenda Chisholm- Beaton and guests unveiled a prototype sign.
It reads Pjila’si Unama’kik.
“The installation of this sign on the causeway shows how we are working together towards reconciliation,” says Chief Leroy Denny, chairperson, Mi’kmaw Kina’matnewey. “The Mi’kmaw language is vital to our existence. It is the foundation to understanding who we are. Using the original place names gives all Nova Scotians and visitors a better understanding of the landscape here in Mi’kma’ki. Unama’ki is the land of the fog.”
The Mi’kmaq language is verb-based, and doesn’t translate does not translate directly into English.
The sign loosely translates to, Welcome:come in and sit down (Pjila’si), land of fog Unama’kik — the Mi’kmaq word used to describe Cape Breton.
The sign will be installed on the far east entrance to the island this week.
