Alumni transcribe, translate for Gwich'in book about caribou

December 6, 2019

University Relations

Three UAF alumni helped bring a bilingual book to a wider audience. Allan Hayton, Crystal Frank and Caroline Tritt-Frank, Gwich'in language transcribers and translators, worked on "Dinjii Vadzaih Dhidlit: The Man Who Became a Caribou," by Craig Mishler and Kenneth Frank.

The illustrated book is based on a series of oral interviews with Gwich'in elders living in rural northeast Alaska and the Yukon Territory. It covers topics based on traditional harvesting and use of caribou from ancient to contemporary times. It also reveals traditional beliefs and taboos about caribou and includes a detailed naming system for caribou anatomy.

Craig Mishler is a cultural anthropologist and folklorist who has worked continuously in Alaska since the late 1960s.  Kenneth Frank is an elder, Indigenous scholar and fluent speaker of the Gwich'in language. He was raised in Venetie, Alaska, lived for many years in Arctic Village, and now resides in Fairbanks. "Dinjii Vadzaih Dhidlit" was published by the International Polar Institute.

For more information, email Crystal Frank at cafrank@alaska.edu.