The Shiibaashka'igan – Jingle Dress is a sacred Anishinaabe women's dress and dance tradition

GATINEAU, QC, June 26, 2024 /CNW/ - National historic designations are a way to acknowledge and to learn about the full scope of our shared history, including the difficult periods that are part of our past. Understanding the events that have led to the Canada of today helps us reflect on how to build a more inclusive society now and for future generations.

Today, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for Parks Canada, announced the designation the Shiibaashka'igan – Jingle Dress as an event of national historic significance. The Shiibaashka'igan – Jingle Dress is a sacred Anishinaabe women's dress and dance tradition. When the dress is worn, the jingles, which are made of metal cones, make a rhythmic jingling sound when they touch each other as the dancer moves to the tempo and beat of the dance drum and traditional songs of the drum group.

Many oral traditions trace the origins of the Jingle Dress, dating it from the early 20th century. This was a time of extreme hardship caused by the influenza pandemic (1918-1919) and the heightened implementation of assimilative policies by the federal government, including the continued prohibition of First Nations' cultural and spiritual ceremonies and practices. Handed down by Gichi Manidoo (Creator) in a dream and drawing upon Anishinaabe spiritual practices and traditions, Shiibaashka'igan has become a popular and highly esteemed dance style and means of healing, reclaiming culture, and asserting identity. One of the most widely circulating oral traditions traces an origin of the Jingle Dress to the late Maggie White (1922–1991). When eight-year-old Maggie became seriously ill, her grandfather Pinasse received a series of dreams in which he was instructed to make a special dress adorned with shiny metal cones for his granddaughter. He sewed the dress, asked his very weak granddaughter to wear it, and taught her a dance that he had received in his dreams. Despite her illness, the young girl managed to dance, and she was cured. Later in life, Maggie White became known as the "First Lady of the Jingle Dress Dance" because she popularised the Jingle Dress and dance tradition at powwows throughout Canada and the United States from the late 1960s to the early 1980s. Today, the Jingle Dress Dance revered at both competition and traditional powwows across North America where new generations of women and Two-Spirit individuals continue to share the dance.

The Government of Canada, through the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, recognizes significant persons, places, and events that have shaped Canada. Sharing these stories helps foster understanding and reflection on the diverse histories, cultures, legacies, and realities of Canada's past and present.

The designation process under Parks Canada's National Program of Historical Commemoration is largely driven by public nominations. To date, more than 2,240 designations have been made nationwide. To nominate a person, place or historic event in your community, please visit the Parks Canada website for more information: https://parks.canada.ca/culture/designation/proposer-nominate.

"The Jingle Dress is a sacred garment and traditional dance which continues to be a source of healing for individuals, families, and communities. By commemorating the national historic significance of the Shiibaashka'igan – Jingle Dress, we encourage all Canadians to learn more about the perspectives, cultures, and traditions of Indigenous Peoples and help to foster better appreciation, awareness and understanding."

The Honourable Steven Guilbeault
Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for Parks Canada

"The jingle dress symbolizes the spirit of healing. The spirit of dance, drum and the connection to family, community, and the connection to the spiritual. These connections have helped maintain the sacredness of life, to live in a good way: the original way of how creator wanted us to live."

Mr. Randy White, grandson of Maggie White

"Today's recognition of the Shiibaashka'igan – Jingle Dress is an act of deep respect for the cultural heritage and healing traditions of Anishinaabe communities. As we embrace the significance of the Jingle Dress, we also advance our journey towards reconciliation. Let the sound of the dress remind us of our commitment to healing past wounds, fostering understanding, and building a future rooted in respect, unity, and shared purpose." 

The Honorable Patty Hajdu
Minister of Indigenous Services

• The Jingle Dress dance is an official powwow dance category.
• Oral traditions place one of the origins of the dress and dance in the early 20th century in the Anishnaabe community of Naotkamegwanning First Nation (also known as Whitefish Bay) in the Lake of the Woods region of northwestern Ontario and another in the Mille Lacs Ojibwe community of north-central Minnesota.
• The Jingle Dress has evolved from early examples of the 1920s, which were simple in design and fabric and embellished with rows of metal cones sewn across the bodice and ankle-length skirt, to the later introduction of synthetic fabrics in vibrant colours with embellishments and the cones sewn in straight rows or in geometric patterns.
• Created in 1919, the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada advises the Minister of Environment and Climate Change regarding the national significance of persons, places, and events that have marked Canada's history. Together with Parks Canada, the Board ensures that subjects of national historic significance are recognized under Parks Canada's National Program of Historical Commemoration and these important stories are shared with Canadians.
• Parks Canada is committed to working with Canadians in our efforts to tell broader, more inclusive stories in the places that it manages. In support of this goal, the Framework for History and Commemoration outlines a new, comprehensive, and engaging approach to sharing Canada's history through diverse perspectives, including shedding light on tragic and difficult periods of Canada's past.

Backgrounder: Shiibaashka'igan | The Jingle Dress

• Parks Canada
• National historic designations
• Framework for History and Commemoration

SOURCE Parks Canada (HQ)