Third Annual Munsee Language and History Symposium
November 3, 2023—November 5, 2023 · Institute for Advanced Study and Firestone Library
Mary Jane Logan McCallum, University of Winnipeg
This event continues and deepens ongoing relationships with Lunaapeewak (Lenape people) from the Munsee-speaking tribal nations currently living in diaspora, bringing them together with Princeton students, staff, and faculty on their own traditional territory, Lunaapahkiing. Indigenous language revitalization counteracts the violent history of settler colonial regimes, including boarding schools where Native children were forced to speak English exclusively. Speakers at the 2023 Munsee symposium will focus on archival evidence pertaining to these boarding schools, as well as on public history, the role of libraries and archives, and the development of K-12 curriculum.
Organizers: Suzanne Conklin Akbari (IAS), Anu Vedantham (PUL), Catalina Méndez-Vallejo (Spanish and Portuguese)
Attending the Symposium: If you plan to attend in person, please email sakbari@ias.edu so that we can keep track of the numbers. For Zoom attendance, please register on Zoom.
3 November 2023
Opening remarks: How are Lunaapeew communities related?
10:00 to 11:15 am | IAS, Wolfensohn Hall
Opening lecture: Reclaiming the Stories of our Families
- Cody Groat (Kanyen’kehaka, Six Nations / Western University)
11:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. | IAS, Wolfensohn Hall
Session 1: Lunaapeewak in Public History: Indigenous Soldiers in the British, Canadian, and US Armed Forces
- Jo Ann Gardner Schedler and Jacob Lenz (Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohican Indians)
- John Moses (Kanyen’kehaka and Delaware, Six Nations / Canadian Museum of History)
2:30 to 3:45 p.m. | Firestone Library, A6F
Session 2: Munsee Belongings
- Ian McCallum (Munsee-Delaware Nation / OISE, University of Toronto), “Munsee-Delaware Wampum Belts”
- Suzanne Conklin Akbari and Melissa Moreton (IAS), “Lunaapeewak at Princeton and Lunaape Book History”
3:45 to 4:45 p.m. | Firestone Library, Special Collections classroom
- Book and map display presented by Gabriel Swift (Princeton University Library, Special Collections)
4:45 to 5:30 p.m. | Firestone Library, A6F
Session 3: Reclaiming Lunaape Knowledge
- Velma Noah-Nicholas (Eelunaapeewi Lahkeewiit / Western University)
4 November
9:30 to 10:45 a.m. | IAS, Rubenstein Commons
Session 4: Teaching Lunaape Language: Community Updates (roundtable discussion)
- Ian McCallum (Munsee-Delaware Nation)
- Velma Noah-Nicholas (Eelunaapeewi Lahkeewiit)
- Karelle Hall (Nanticoke Indian Tribe)
- Kristin Jacobs (Eelunaapeewi Lahkeewiit)
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. | IAS, Rubenstein Commons
Session 5: Resources for Lunaape Language Learning
- Jamie Tucker (Munsee-Delaware Nation) and Sreeniketh Vogoti (Princeton University), “Towards a Digital Munsee Dictionary”
- Kristin Jacobs, “Using Lunaape Language Camp Videos in Teaching”
2 to 3:45 p.m. | IAS, Rubenstein Commons
Session 6: Representing Lunaapeewak in School Curricula (roundtable discussion)
- Rachel Talbert, Natacha Robert, and Nancy Tavarez-Correa (Teachers College, Columbia University)
- Claire Garland (Sand Hill / Navesink)
- Karelle Hall (Nanticoke Indian Tribe; Rutgers University)
- Ian McCallum (Munsee-Delaware Nation; OISE, University of Toronto)
4 to 5 p.m. | IAS, Wolfensohn Hall
S.T. Lee Lecture: Lunaape History, Colonial Archives, and Munsee Historical Methods
- Mary Jane Logan McCallum (Munsee-Delaware Nation / University of Winnipeg)The public lecture is made possible by the Dr. S.T. Lee Fund for Historical Studies.
5 to 5:30 p.m.
Closing Discussion
Future directions and pathways, news and upcoming events
5 November
10 a.m. to Noon | IAS, Rubenstein Commons
Talking Circles: What are Princeton’s responsibilities with regard to land acknowledgement?
- Native American and Indigenous Studies Initiative at Princeton
- Land, Language, and Art: A Humanities Council Global Initiative
- Institute for Advanced Study
- Princeton University Library
