Do you want to learn Niitsi’powahsin, the language of our territory? In the Winter 2025 semester we are offering four different Blackfoot language courses. There’s something for everyone, from total beginners to advanced intermediate speakers. BKFT1000, 2000 and 3850 are taught in Lethbridge at the Iniskim (University of Lethbridge) campus. BKFT2210 is taught entirely online....
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  We are so very sad at the passing of Ikkináínihki (Gentle Singer) Dr. Lena Heavy Shields Russell (BEd ’77, LLD ’06) on March 29, 2024. Lena spent her entire working life promoting and teaching Niitsi’powahsin, the Blackfoot language. She taught in the public schools on and off reserve as well as at Iniskim University....
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The first 8 lessons of our Blackfoot Grammar course are now available on the Blackfoot Language Resources YouTube channel. Let us know what you think of it!

Dominik Kadlec finished his MA thesis in Indigenous Studies at Iniskim University of Lethbridge with a thesis titled A computational model of Blackfoot noun and verb morphology. In this thesis he describes the work he did over the past two years developing a computational model of Blackfoot grammar. The thesis is now available through the....
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  2022 Blackfoot team Our Summer 2022 team is hard at work on various projects surrounding the Blackfoot Language Resources website! Shown in the picture from left to right: Dominik Kadlec, Kristy Eagle Bear, Inge Genee, Cade Fowler. Not pictured: Talia George and Bill Heavy Runner. This picture was taken Monday, July 25th in our....
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We now have our own Blackfoot Language Resources YouTube channel! We just posted two short videos explaining the Blackfoot vowel and consonant sounds and how they are written in the standard spelling system.

Oki! Today we worked very hard with Beverly Hungry Wolf. We recorded words, short sentences, and some procedural texts and recipes. The team now has to process the audio files and then we hope to have them up on our dictionary and story archive soon. For an example of a phrase we recorded last week....
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Today Francis First Charger came to visit our lab to provide some much-needed encouragement and guidance. Francis is one of the resident elders at the University of Lethbridge, and was able to make some time to come downtown to see our lab, even though he is a very busy man! We were very grateful for....
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This year we are again lucky to have a large number of people helping with the Blackfoot Language Resources website. Front row L-R: Brittany Wichers, Don Frantz, Natalie Weber, Shelby Johnson. Middle row L-R: Blaise Russell, Mahaliah Peddle, Inge Genee, Myles Shirakawa, Rachel Hoof. Not pictured: Amanda Thom and Dan O’Donnell. We took this picture....
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Oki! Last year’s wonderful team did an enormous amount of work on our Blackfoot Digital Dictionary and Blackfoot Language Resources website and also for the Algonquian Linguistic Atlas. This year’s team promises to be just as wonderful. Working hard are SSHRC summer students Myles Shirakawa and Mahaliah Peddle and STEP summer students Blaise Russell and....
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