If you, as a non-native, have come across Natives or Indigenous people greeting each other, you have likely noticed that most of us use at least a single word in our native language, and using terms of kinship. You might also be sitting there asking... but why?

Well today I'm going to tell you why and explain a bit about our cultures so you can both understand what is going on around you and be respectful of it as I'm sure you want to do.

Calling Each Other Cousin?

So two people from completely across the country meet, and they share a few details, and then one of them says something like "I greet you cousin" or similar. Did they just figure out they are related? Is it a Joke? What does it mean?

Well first off, we likely aren't actually related. Although sometimes we are, and that's a whole different can of worms. But it means that we both recognize each other as native, as related in the same way as every tribe is, and that we are all original people to Turtle Island.

In most native cultures, the word for their tribe and other tribes is actually "people." Often this can be "the people", "our people", "moon people," or any other variation on this theme. It all connects back to the idea that natives were literally children or the species of people for Turtle Island. A concept that is obviously a bit hard to explain. However, think of it like using the word mountain cat to describe small wild cats that live in mountains, it's a classification more than anything. Anyone who is indigenous falls under that classification which will become important in just a minute.

We also don't see relation the same way that western cultures do. Your family is your family, but the lines are a lot more blurred. For example, any woman who is older than you by about five years and is somehow related becomes an Auntie. A male an uncle, anyone around your age a cousin, and in a lot of cases younger people than you become nieces / nephews. The terms surrounding kinship are still there, but we rarely actually define the physical relation we have to each other, rather than the connection that we have together as a tribe or family. This combines together to make it so that anyone who native that you meet who you can relate to being called, and in a lot of cases actually feeling like, your cousin.

Next Question!

Greeting Each Other With A Single Indigenous Word

You are cruising along Facebook looking at comments, you see two people talking, and suddenly you see a word like "Aho!" "Boozoo," "Miigwetch," or similar. What do they mean? Why are they being used as a single word and not an entire conversation in whatever language that is, and why is it such a common thing?

First off, they are all different ways of saying hello, wishing people well, or thanking someone. They are words that are from different tribes, but all of them are extremely difficult to perfectly translate into English. They are the words you would hear a medicine man say, the things someone would say when greeting an elder, and the way we have greeted each other for years. They also call to the power of our ancestral languages. We believe that words have power, that the ancestors can hear us when we speak in our language. While some people no longer follow traditional Native American spiritual practices, they still feel the power that these words can hold. Finally, it's a way to keep the culture alive. To learn about each other and to say that you are interested in connecting with other natives. It's an act of resistance that frankly feels amazing.