Gaa Bi Kidwaad Maa Nbiising Nishnaabeg / Stories of the Original People of Lake Nipissing shares the history of Nbiising Nishnaabeg (the people of Nipissing First Nation) from the perspectives of the community, the land, and the lake that holds their name. This social and cultural history explores themes of creation and language; women and gender; family, community, and nation; governance and education; and land and water through the dbaajmowinan (everyday stories) and aansokanan (sacred stories) of Nbiising. These stories live in the memories of Elders and knowledge holders, on the land and waterways, in Nishnaabemwin (the language), and in community and archival records.
The stories are accompanied by photographs from Nipissing First Nation's extensive heritage collection, which challenge the silences and erasures imposed by settler colonialism. Telling stories of strength, joy, and resilience, they document the historical, social, and cultural continuities and changes of the twentieth century for this territory and its people.
In centring Nbiising Nishnaabeg histories and ways of knowing, as well as text in Nishnaabemwin, Gaa Bi Kidwaad Maa Nbiising Nishnaabeg reshapes what we understand about Nbiising, the little waters of the Great Lakes region. At its heart, this book acknowledges and demonstrates the possibility of history to cultivate, strengthen, and support diverse connections to place and kin, offering direction to the next seven generations.