A municipality in British Columbia is moving backwards in time in a bid to “decolonize”.
The Village of Queen Charlotte on Haida Gwaii officially changed its name to Village of Daajing Giids, pronounced daw-jean geeds, which is its ancestral Haida name.
The name change idea started back in 2019 after the Skidegate Haida Immersion Program sent a letter to the municipality requesting the name to be changed to its ancestral Haida name.
The choice was made in response to a survey conducted earlier this month that found 48.8% of people strongly supported the name change, 11.8% slightly supported it, 36.3% opposed it, and 2.9% had no opinion. According to PostMedia
On Wednesday, the B.C. government said in a news release the name change had become official.
“The names of places hold significance, which is why I commend city council for working in partnership with the Haida Nation to bring this important act of reconciliation forward,” said Nathan Cullen, B.C. Minister of Municipal Affairs, in a statement.
According to the province, restoring the historic name of the community is a step toward “reconciliation” under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.
In a statement Wednesday, the municipality’s mayor, Kris Olsen, said the move was “an opportunity to make things right and show respect to the Haida Nation” .
