Who We Are

The Blackfoot Language Revival is an Elder-led initiative to create a bridge between the Blackfoot language and technology.  Our group is a partnership between Elder Sheldon First Rider of the Kainai Nation, actor and keynote speaker Eugene Brave Rock, and local tech company Red Iron Labs.

Our Vision

To create thriving and proud communities for future generations through active promotion of Indigenous history, language and culture.
 

Our Objective

Dedicated to  preserving the Blackfoot language and culture by creating educational tools and opportunities to connect people with our way of life.

 

Support Our Projects

Projects

The Blackfoot Syllabics

The Blackfoot syllabics is an 80-character syllabic alphabet, introduced to Elder Sheldon First Rider by Thomas Floyd Heavyrunner (aka Tinyman).

Originally developed by Seqouoyah in the nineteenth century as a means of reading and writing Cherokee, the alphabet was later adapted into Cree, Ojibway and Blackfoot.

Read The Blackfoot Language Revival, By Zoltan Varadi, Glenbow Museum to learn more about Elder First Rider’s journey.

 

The Blackfoot Keyboard (v.1)

In 2016, Elder Sheldon First Rider and Red Iron Labs created the first version of a digital keyboard, with the intention of providing users with a method of hearing the syllabic sounds as they were being pressed, as well as a sample dictionary of words to learn.
If you are experiencing issues with the embedded page, click here to visit the stand-alone page.

 

The Blackfoot Language App

In 2019, Red Iron Labs partnered with Sheldon First Rider and Eugene Brave Rock to create the O(kg)ee Blackfoot Language mobile app that focuses on teaching users the foundations of the Blackfoot syllabics, and provides users with basic entry-level words as well as a modern iteration of the Blackfoot keyboard.

The app also features artwork by Kalum Teke Dan (@kalumdan), which is integrated into augmented reality lenses.

The first version of O(kg)ee is scheduled to be released on July 15th for both Android and Apple devices.

Future iterations of the app will focus on more advanced inflection sounds as well as the development of a dictionary of commonly used phrases.

Subscribe to receive announcements about the app’s release, as well as other upcoming projects.

The Team

The Blackfoot Language Revival group is a partnership between Elder Sheldon First Rider of the Kainai Nation, actor and keynote speaker Eugene Brave Rock, and local tech company, Red Iron Labs.

Elder Sheldon First Rider

Eugene Brave Rock

Red Iron Labs

Episodes

The Blackfoot Language Revival group is a partnership between Elder Sheldon First Rider of the Kainai Nation, actor and keynote speaker Eugene Brave Rock, and local tech company, Red Iron Labs.

Episode 02: The History of the Blackfoot Syllabics

A short history of the Blackfoot Syllabics and the creation of the Blackfoot Language Mobile Application, O(kg)ee.

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Episode 01: White Coyote

A short Blackfoot story about a trapper and a white coyote.

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Episode 03: Teaching the Blackfoot Language

Join us in the third episode, as Elder Sheldon First Rider shares the learning of the Syllabics and the Blackfoot Language.

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