‍

"Diysh-ta:ng'a:-ding mił na’way ne’in"

Verdena was a cherished part of our community and a deeply respected speaker of our language. She came from the village Diysh-ta:ng'a:-ding. She carried with her the words, teachings, and traditions of the Na:tinixwe people, holding them close and sharing them so they would continue on. Through her voice, patience, and dedication, she helped keep the Hupa Language strong for the generations that will follow.

‍

"Xonchiwh Sa:ts’ k’iwinya’n-ya:n-q’i xiniwidye:wh wha:ne ch’ołts’it-ne’in xo’ji"

To those closest to her, she was lovingly known by her Indian name, (Bear Nose) Xonchiwh Sa:ts’. Verdena grew up speaking Hupa as her first language and did not speak English until she went to school. While in school, she was teased and punished for speaking our language. However, she was determined to hold tight to the language and continued to speak it throughout her entire life. She was a master storyteller and held a great deal of traditional knowledge, receiving traditional training in her early life from elder knowledge keepers. She always had great fun joking and telling stories in the language with her mother. This is how she was able to keep her language speaking and translation skills so strong throughout her early adult life. After her mother passed she realized she didn’t have anyone left to speak to regularly and from then on, she focused her attention on ensuring she shared everything that she knew. She worked for many decades of her life with Hupa Language learners, teachers and linguists to ensure our language and her vast knowledge was documented and preserved.

‍

"Xo’ji me’de:didin-ne’in ya’xinehwh-te k’iwinya’n-ya:n-q’i haya:ł hayi ya’de’idilwa:h"

It was her dream for children to be able to speak our language once again without being punished or teased. She was able to see this dream come true through her work with our team over the past decade making curriculum and developing immersion programming for Hoopa youth, based on traditional stories and teachings. She was able to visit some of our earliest Hupa Language Immersion Camps, witness Hupa Language being learned and spoken by Hupa youth again and present students with their completion certificates, which was a rewarding experience both for her and the youth who called her “Auntie.” Verdena was a co-founder of the Hupa Language Immersion Nest and founding member of the Xine:wh-ding non-profit organization, a place in which all of her teachings could live and be shared with the next generation of Hupa speakers. The Nest is located just across the river from home village territory of Diysh da:ng a din became part of her legacy to have a place to pass on what she fought so hard to maintain.

‍

"Xo’ji niwho:ng xołdinił’ay ch’iłchwe ne’in"

Verdena was a wonderful teacher and mentor to have in learning our language—she was patient, kind, and understanding. She was a very warm and funny woman, and our visits with her often include hilarious anecdotes and sweet stories about her daily life or silly pranks she has played on people. While she lived five hours away from the reservation, we were able to work with her virtually on a weekly basis, and in person as much as possible.

‍

"Mije:e’din xo-ch’ing ch’ixine:wh ne’in"

Although she was never able to physically travel to the Nest (given her physical limitations) we would often update her with stories, pictures and videos of the children speaking, laughing and playing in the language as she had when she was a child. During our teacher training retreats, we were able to bring some students up to see her and share what they were learning. She was able to speak with them about what we were going to eat and play games with them. We were able to celebrate her 90th birthday with her just before her passing and the children all proudly sang “Me:nundiyay na:ła’” (Happy Birthday) to her to which she replied “niwho:ng!” (it is good). Her husband relayed the message that in her final days she wanted us to know that she “knew she was leaving the language in good hands” with our teachers and students. This truly means the world to us and we were so thankful she got to see our collective dream realized in her lifetime. We could not have asked for a better teacher or mentor, she truly instilled a love for our language in all of her students.

‍

"Mije:e’din ‘e’n xwe:da’ay na:da’ay ch’ixine:wh wint’e:-te"

While she is no longer physically here with us we are still able to hear her voice daily in the Nest through recordings of her stories, which means that Hupa babies will always be able to hear her speak in the classroom and continue to learn from her.  You can access some of her recordings at the links below.