51猎奇入口

The first issue of a new Anishinaabe language magazine crushes major language obstacles as it leans into skateboarding, snowboarding and surfing to revitalize Indigenous language.

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Asab (pronounced AH-sub) is believed to be the first magazine in North America published exclusively in a single Indigenous language. But with no known Anishinaabe words for terms like 鈥渒ickflip鈥�, 鈥渂oned out鈥� or 鈥済oofy stance,鈥� the editorial team turned to first speakers to create hundreds of never-before-spoken Ojibwe words.

鈥淲e have rich vocabularies across dialects for traditional activities like maple sugaring, wild ricing or sewing; things connected to ceremony or harvest,鈥� says Bimose Nick Reo, associate professor of Indigenous Studies at 51猎奇入口 and lead creator of . 鈥淏ut we don鈥檛 have a word for 鈥榪uarter pipe,鈥� or the rail people are grinding, or the type of trick they鈥檙e doing.鈥�

Without these terms, speakers often turn to English to fill gaps鈥攁 reality Reo says limits the language鈥檚 ability to fully reflect contemporary life. 

鈥淧eople trying to talk about these activities in Anishinaabe often have to bring in colonial vocabulary,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e need to get to a point where we don鈥檛 have to do that for any activity.鈥�

Connected to his larger work in Indigenous language revitalization and creating spaces for international Indigenous knowledge exchange, Reo says there is a tangible sense of urgency for projects like Asab. Only first speakers 鈥� those who grew up speaking Anishinaabe as their primary language 鈥� hold the knowledge needed to confidently build new vocabulary and ensure new words will be understandable. 

鈥淲e couldn鈥檛 afford to wait a year or two to get this going, given the limited and decreasing number of first speakers we need to do this work,鈥� Reo says, adding he put out the call for contributors in early 2026, not long after he first envisioned a mono-lingual Indigenous language magazine. 

By springtime, he had gathered a small group of Anishinaabe snowboarders, surfers, and skateboarders, experienced language learners, and first speaker Maajigoneyaash Gordon Jordain 鈥� who grew up speaking Ojibwe as his first and primary language 鈥� at a cultural retreat hosted by the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in Cloquet, Minnesota. 

Over two and a half days, they collaborated to write, design, and lay out the first issue. Maajigoneyaash helped create a list of approximately 300 words, mostly brand-new vocabulary specific to skateboarding, snowboarding, and surfing.

The first issue of the limited-run, hardcopy magazine was published in June 2026 and features photo essays, comics, poetry, iMessage-style conversations, and short written articles from 19 Anishinaabe contributors from both sides of the 49th parallel. 

Each annual issue will explore activities or topics not typically associated with Anishinaabe culture. As for its name? The word 鈥榓sab鈥� refers to a fishing or dip net in Ojibwe, an image that reflects the magazine鈥檚 purpose, Reo says.

鈥淔ishing nets capture many different things. Since each issue will focus on a new topic, it felt thematically appropriate. We鈥檙e going to gather a lot of different ideas in our net, in our Asab.鈥�

The Anishinaabe people are centered around the Great Lakes homeland of the Ojibwe people in Canada and the U.S.