NNSL (Mar 27/98) - Frank McKay urges his Yellowknife friends to speak Chipewyan even though he can not speak the language.

The Metis Historical Association consultant was schooled in English in Fort Resolution but learned to understand Chipewyan from elders.

"My father sent me to my granny," McKay said in his Yellowknife office. "She doesn't speak a word of English."

People often walk into the Metis Association office and speak aboriginal languages, something McKay encourages.

He tells them he can not respond in their language but urges them to keep speaking it because he can understand them.

Language gives people a sense of culture and helps shape identity.

Though the number of people who speak aboriginal languages at home has declined since 1986, many people in cosmopolitan Yellowknife feel a sense of their roots when they hear one of the several aboriginal languages spoken in the NWT.

Language evolves, McKay said, noting how Michif, a blending of French and different aboriginal languages, is not officially an aboriginal language but is nevertheless spoken by many NWT elders.

Meanwhile, the GNWT is not doing anything for aboriginal languages month according to manager of the language services section of Education, Culture and Employment, Bob Galipeau.

He blames restructuring, including the move of the section, and what is now an office of one.

Commemoration in Yellowknife has been left to the NWT literacy council.

"For aboriginal languages month, we have put together an information package on what people can do to support aboriginal languages every day," said Carla Bullinger, executive director of the NWT Literacy Council.

The council sent packages to MLAs, aboriginal literacy groups, learning centres and other Yellowkifers.

They also designed Aboriginal Languages Month greeting cards to give to people who show a special effort to help preserve and promote aboriginal languages.

"We need to be modelling behavior. We need our leaders to be speaking the language," she said. "If we want our languages to be strong we have to be using them every day."