Philippe Morin
Northern News Services
Published Monday, September 17, 2007

INUVIK - Imagine showing up to a classroom and being assigned a number.

Or worse, being told your name is too hard to pronounce, so you'll be given a new one.

Anna Pingo, (short for Agnakoniak Pingersugerook) said it's amazing how many aboriginal people use shortened or anglicized names. It's a topic she discusses in her Northern Studies and Inuvialuktun classes in Inuvik. - Philippe Morin/NNSL photo

"Student E7-121," the teacher might ask. "What do you think about your new name?"

It's no exaggeration that most people would find this situation offensive.

And indeed, Inuvik northern studies teacher Anna Pingo was trying to be offensive - well, playfully, anyway - when she gave her students numbered tags on the first day of class.

It was a re-enactment of the Canadian government's so-called "Eskimo identification disk" program.

Pingo explained the small fibre disks were given to all Inuit people across Canada from 1940 to 1971.

These inscribed numbers, coded by region, gender and community, came to replace all names in government matters.

Since she teaches both northern studies and Inuvialuktun at Samuel Hearne high school, Pingo said it's important to talk about names.

She said aboriginal students should think about where their families' names come from, and whether their names were shortened by government record-holders.

In her husband's family, for instance, the name Pingersugerook was shortened to Pingo, and the name stuck.

"I think it's very important for students to learn about their names because that's who we are in the first place. There is honour in calling someone by their true name," she said.

Speaking after class on Sept. 13, Pingo said her recent stunt had gotten mixed reactions.

While most of the class seemed to appreciate the history lesson about tags, she said she'd gotten a few phone calls from parents who disagreed.

"I guess there are some people who were offended, that I actually gave the students numbers," she said. "Some said that's in the past and it should stay there."

While Pingo believes there's much to be learned in examining names - and she encourages students to say their full historical names during roll call - she said she's not ready to change to Agnakoniak Pingersugerook.

Changing her last name would be a decision for her husband's family, she said, and she is happy as "Anna" for now.

The important thing is to learn from the heritage.

"We were made to feel ashamed of our names through government policy and residential schools," she said.

"But we get students to ask their parents about their names. If they start to talk about it they can learn," she said.