My Family Tree

Arnold Guerin

1986

---

1. wulh lhsuq’ kws sqwxa’mush thu nu ’ukwiya’qw ’i’ ni’ tl’e’ tstalus ’u tu sqwxwa’mush swuy’qe’.
   1. My great-great-grandmother was already half Squamish, and she went and married a Squamish man.
2. nilh sts’a’muqws kw’unu men.
   1. That is the great-grandmother of my father.
3. ts’umqwaat tthu snes kws ’uw’ nilh nu sts’a’muqw.
   1. ts’umqwaat was the name of that great-great-grandmother of mine.
4. nilh hay ’al’ sun’tl’e’ mun’u ’utl’ tiyeqtunaat kwsu nu sts’a’muqw.
   1. She was the oldest child of tiyeqtunaat, my great-great-grandmother was.
5. xuthiinu tthu me’mun’us kwsu nu ts’up’iqa’qw tiyeqtunaat ’i’ kw’ sta’luss.
   1. tiyeqtunaat, my great-great-great-grandmother had four children and her husband.
6. nilh sun’tl’e’ thu ts’umqw’aat.
   1. ts’umqw’aat was the oldest.
7. suw’ nem’s thu ten ’utl’ Charlie q’iyupulenuhw.
   1. Then came Charlie q’iyupulenuhw of Musqueam’s mother.
8. ’uwu te’ nu shtatul’stuhw kw’ snes kw suw’ nilh nu ’ukwiya’qw.
   1. I don’t know that great-great-great-aunt of mine’s name.
9. suw’ nem’s kws ’ukwiya’qw ’utl’ wuswaas, yelhs nem’s tthu qiyupulenuhw, nilh hay ’al’ sa’suqt.
   1. And then came wuswaas’ great-great-grandmother, and then came qiyupulenuhw; he was the youngest.
10. nilh kwthu hayulh ’al’ stl’eluqum stamush qiyupulenuhw kwthey ni’ nu shhwunem’.
    1. It is that great warrior qiyupulenuhw that I am talking about.
11. lhq’utsselu tthu me’mun’us kwsu nu ’ukwiya’qw ts’umqwaat ’i tthu sta’luss t’uchouxenum.
    1. My great-great-grandmother, ts’umqwaat, had five children along with her husband, t’uchouxenum.
12. nilh sun’tl’e’ tthu xwulitth’uluq suw’ nem’s thu q’emi’aat.
    1. The oldest one was xwulitth’uluq, and then came q’emi’aat, a daughter.
13. suw’ nem’s tthu tuwtawunuq.
    1. Then came tuwtawunuq, a son.
14. suw’ nem’s tthu xultsilum suw’ nem’s tthu sqey’xum’tun’.
    1. So, then came xultsilum, and then came sqey’xum’tun’.
15. hay tthu sun’tl’e’ xwulitth’uluq, niw’ ni’ ’al’ ’utl’ North Vancouver tthu swe’s slhi’a’uqwt-s.
    1. The oldest one, xwulitth’uluq, all of his descendants stayed in North Vancouver.
16. nem’ kwelh thu tusmins q’emi’aat, hay toohwelu tthu swe’s me’mun’us.
    1. Then came his sister q’emi’aat; she had nine children.
17. nilh shtunni’iwss tthu “Sparrow family”, ’i’ tthu’ulh Campbell, ’i’ Stephen August.
    1. This is where the Sparrow family comes from, and the Campbells, and Stephen August.
18. nilh slhhwelus ’eelhtun tthu si’lus kw’unu men.
    1. My grandfather came next; he was the third child.
19. tuwtawunuq tthu swe’s snes, kw’unu sts’a’muqw.
    1. His name was tuwtawunuq, my grandfather, my great-grandfather.
20. yey’sul’u tu me’mun’ulh tuwtawunuq.
    1. tuwtawunuq had two children.
21. xwunuthut tthu sun’tl’e’ mun’us.
    1. His oldest was a son, xwunuthut.
22. ts’ulsnamutiye’ “Louisa” thu sa’suqwt.
    1. The younger one was ts’ulsnamutiye’, Louisa.
23. nilh nu si’lu thu ts’ulsnamutiye’.
    1. ts’ulsnamutiye’ is my grandmother.
24. nilh tens kw’unu men.
    1. She was the mother of my dad.
25. yey’sul’u tthu me’mun’us kwsu nu si’lu ts’ulsnamutiye’, ’i’ tthu sta’luss Edward Guerin.
    1. ts’ulsnamutiye’ had two children with her husband, Edward Guerin.
26. nilh sun’tl’e’ kw’unu men John tuwtawunuq Guerin.
    1. My father was the older; his name was John tuwtawunuq Gouerin.
27. suw’ nem’s tthu sqe’eqs William xultsilum Guerin.
    1. And then came along my uncle, William xultsilum Guerin.
28. tth’ukwselu tthu me’mun’us kw’unu men, ’i’ kwsu nu ten Johanna (sxexliye’ tiyulish) suw’ ’een’thus hay ’al’ sa’suqt, mun’us kwsu nu ten.
    1. My father and his wife Johanna had seven children, and I am the youngest child of my mother.
29. ’i’ tst ’uw’ t-hw t’xumulu ’al’.
    1. We are only six living.
30. ni’ wulh ’ikw’ kwthu nu suntl’e’minulh.
    1. The one just older than me has passed away.
31. Johnny (simuletse’) Guerin.
    1. Johnny (simuletse’) Guerin [was his name.]
32. t-hw nuts’a’ sxuxulhnet ’i’ hwq’a’qsun tthu sil’anum kwthu suntl’een’ tst (Herman).
    1. It’s only another week, and it will be the end of another year for my oldest brother, Herman.
33. August 7th, 1896 tthu swe’s shkwans kwthu nu shuyulh.
    1. His birthday is August 7th, 1896, my older brother.
34. wulh nilh tse’s toohwulhshe’s sil’anum.
    1. This will be his 90th year.
35. ni’ tsun tse’ wulh tth’ukwsulhshe’ ’i’ kw’ t’xum sil’anum ’u tuna’ lhqel’ts’ tuna’ ’een’thu.
    1. I will be 76 years of age this month, me.
36. yey’sul’u kwthu suw’wuy’qe’ nu shushiyulh, ’i’ lhhwelu tthu slhunlheni’.
    1. I have two brothers older than myself, and there are three sisters older than I.
37. ’i’ tsun ts’u ’ise’lu silanum ’i’ ni’ kwukwa’tul’ kwthu nu shhwuw’weli’ulh.
    1. I am told that I was two years of age when my parents parted.
38. ni’ stu’e ’u tthey’ sis ’uw’ qul’et tsta’lus kw’unu men.
    1. Then, my father remarried.
39. na’nuts’a’ lhu ni’ kw’umnuhwus ’eelhtun mun’us ’i’ tsun kwelh tsqe’uq, ’u lhu nu snuts’uwyulh Myra.
    1. They raised one child from this second marriage, so I have a younger sister in my half-sister, Myra.
40. lhq’utsselu tthu nu swe’ nu me’mun’u.
    1. I have five children of my own.
41. xuthiinu tthu suw’wuy’qe’ ’i’ na’nutsa’ lhu slheni’ nu mun’u.
    1. Four of them are boys and one girl, my daughter.
42. ’upeenu ’i’ kwthu yey’sul’u tthu nu ’um’i’muth.
    1. I have twelve grandchildren.
43. tutsselu tthu suw’wuy’qe’.
    1. Eight of them are boys.
44. ’i’ xuthiinu tthu slhunlheni’.
    1. Four are girls.
45. ni’ tsun thulh tl’uw’ ts’i’muthum’ ’u kwthu lhhwelu stl’ul’iqulh.
    1. But I do call three other children my grandchildren when I speak to them.
46. skw’a’mi’lhum’s tthu nu me’mun’u.
    1. They are being raised by some of my grandchildren.
47. ’uwu swe’s ’us me’mun’us, ’i’ ’uw’ tuw’ tustusaas ’al’ stl’ul’iqulh, sis ’uw’ yu kwun’utus ’eelhtun ’i’ kw’umutus.
    1. They are not the children of my children, but they are unfortunate children, and they took them and raised them.
48. ni’ thulh ’uw’ tssisul’eem’ ’eelhtun.
    1. But they do call me grandpa.
49. sis ’uw’ hwu stu’e ’u hwu tl’uli’mus ’uw’ nu ’um’imuth ni’ ’u kw’i nu shqwaluwun.
    1. And it’s just as though they are my real grandchildren in my mind.
50. hwi nilh tse’ kwelh lhu nu tenulh nu sqwul’qwul’.
    1. Now, I will speak about my mother.
51. hwlumi’ lhu nu tenulh.
    1. My mother was a Lummi lady.
52. swe’ ’utl’ tiyulish, ’i’ si’em’tunaat mun’u kwsu ni’ wulh taannam’sh nu ten.
    1. She is tiyulish and si’em’tunaat’s daughter, the lady that has left me, my mother.
53. suts’ulenuhw tthu ’ukwiya’qs lhu nu tenulh.
    1. suts’ulenuhw is the great-great-granddad of my mother.
54. sehwumqun tthu sts’a’muqws, tth’iyulikw tthu si’lus, tiyulish tthu mens.
    1. sehwumqun is her great granddad, tth’iyulikw is her granddad, and her father is tiyulish.
55. mukw’ulh ’uw’ “chief” ’u tthu hwlumi’ mustimuhw tthu ni’ yu hun’uteen’.
    1. They were all chiefs of the Lummi people, those that I have named.
56. hay tthu shwuw’welis kwsu nu si’lu, tens kwsu nu ten, ’uw’ ’uni’nus kws pun’e’luxutth’s.
    1. But the mother of my grandmother, the mother of my mother, they were both from Kuper Island; both man and wife were from Kuper Island.
57. ’iilh yuhw m’i teyqul kw’unu sts’a’lum’uqw, sul’si’lus kwsu nu ten tunni’ ’utl’ pun’e’luxutth’ sis ’uw’ tus ’utl’ hwlumi.
    1. They must have moved over; my great-great-grandfather, the mother, the grandmother, the grandfather of my mother came from Kuper Island, and they got to Lummi.
58. tl’ulxul’t-hw kw’ snes tthu swuy’qe’ ’i’ kwulihwulwut thu slheni’.
    1. tl’ulxul’t-hw is the name of the man, and the lady is kwulihwulwut; those are my mother’s grandparents.
59. sis ’uw’ ’i’ ’utl’ hwlumi kwus kwan kwsu nu si’lu.
    1. So, my grandmother, then, si’em’tunaat, was born in Lummi.
60. mun’u ’utl’ tl’ulxul’t-hw ’i’ kwulihwulwut.
    1. She, si’em’tunaat, is the mother of tl’ulxul’t-hw and kwulihwulwut.
61. sis tl’uw’ tseelqum teyqul nem’ ’utl’ hwlumi’.
    1. And they followed and moved to Lummi.
62. tthu squle’uq ’u tl’ul’xul’t-hw.
    1. The younger brothers of tl’ul’xul’t-hw moved to Lummi as well.
63. simuletse’ tthu ’uw’ stuss sqe’uqs, ’i’ siqwam’tun tthu sa’suqwt.
    1. The young brother, just younger than himself, was simuletse’, and the youngest one was siqwam’tun.
64. ’uw’ p’un’e’luxutth’iws tsun kwelh, ’i’ tl’e’ tsun ’uw’ hwlumi’iws ’i’ tl’e’ tsun ’uw’ sqwxwaamush’iws.
    1. So, I have a connection in my blood to Kuper Island, and I am part from Lummi as well, and I am part Squamish.
65. ’i’ ’uw’ hwmuthkwi’um tsun thulh, hwu hwmuthkwi’ums kwthu nu menulh.
    1. But I am Musqueam, because my father was a Musqueam.
66. ni’ hay.
    1. The End