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Copyright © 2013-2021
Northwest New Mexico
Arts Council
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Purchase a copy of the
Saad ak’e’elchí the Navajo/English Poetry Book for
$19.00 to support the Northwest New Mexico Arts Council.
What is Saad ak’e’elchí –
Poetry?
As the global community is continually evolving it must be understood
that so is the state of many cultural languages. For many indigenous
languages this is referred to as “language shift.” It is
common in today’s popular culture to hear the younger generations
of children speaking with slang and in a sort of pieced together bilingual
form. Sometimes this is Navajo or Spanish intermixed with their first
languages during their conversations, a trend which some say is negative,
but for the children it is their way of perpetuating their mother tongues.
This compilation of original poetry works by 21st century culturally
diverse children showcases how they, the new generations, see the world.
The goal of these writings is to allow readers to tangibly see in word
form of how these children hear the language, speak it and write it.
The poetry contained in this selection of showcases how young poets
are choosing to express themselves in modern culture. From their homes
they bring a mixed bag of dialog, criss-crossing from one language to
another. There is no word in the Navajo dialogue for the term “poetry.”
The closest translation is literal and would describe the action of
poetry using the verb sense. The Navajo term to describe poetry is,
“Saad ak’e’elchí” which is loosely translated
in English to “words or (talk) that is fancy.” When translating
Navajo terms into English the expression changes into completely descriptive
and does not always give justice to the core meaning or expression of
the Navajo phrase.
Saad ak’e’elchí – Poetry the book was compiled
in the Four Corners by local Artist/Poet, Venaya Yazzie for the Witter
Bynner Foundation.
Mail check or money order – no cash, please
to: Northwest New Mexico Arts Council, PO Box 2235, Farmington, NM 87499
If you would like to use a credit card for payment, please call 505-327-0076.
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