Asian Heritage Month

May is Asian Heritage Month. This acknowledges the long and rich history of Asian Canadians and their contributions to Canada. It also provides an opportunity for Canadians across the country to reflect on and celebrate the contributions of Canadians of Asian heritage to the growth and prosperity of Canada.

The definition of "Asian" may be inclusive and broad, and applies to people who come from or whose ancestors come from:

East Asia - China, Hong Kong S.A.R., Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan.
South Asia - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka.
Central Asia - Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan.
Southeast Asia - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam.

To help celebrate Asian Heritage Month here in Canada, here are a list of recommended local history and genealogy resources for you to check out:

Local History

* Evans, Brian L. The Other Side of Gold Mountain: Glimpses of Chinese Pioneer Life on the Prairies from the Wallace B. Chung and Madeline H. Chung Collection = Jin Shan Dong Fang: Caoyuan Sheng Fen Hua Ren. Edmonton, AB: University of Alberta Libraries, [2010].

* Izumi, Toshiaki. Stories I Heard in the Wheat field: Stories of Japanese and Japanese Immigrants in South Saskatchewan. [Saskatchewan: T. Izumi, 199-?].

* Kato, Arthur. A History of Japanese-Canadians in Regina. [Regina: A. Kato], 1980.

* Luk, Lordson W. The Assimilation of Chinese in Saskatoon. Saskatoon, SK: L. W. Luk, 1971.

* Project Integrate: an Ethnic Study of the Chinese Community of Moose Jaw. Moose Jaw, Sask. : [s.n.], 1973.

* Soo, Wen Lee. Crossings : a Portrait of the Chinese Community of Moose Jaw. Moose Jaw, Sask. : Moose Jaw Museum & Art Gallery, 2005. Click here to view the online exhibit hosted on the Virtual Museum of Canada (VMC) website.

Genealogical Resources

Boey, Danny. Basic Guide to Chinese Genealogy. Singapore : Chineseroots, c2002.

Chao, Sheau-yueh J. In Search of Your Asian Roots: Genealogical Research on Chinese Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Printed for Clearfield Co. by Genealogical Pub. Co., 2000.

* FamilySearch.org: Maintained by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons), this free website offers a number of terrific set of genealogical records for anyone researching their Asian ancestry, including China, Collection of Genealogies from 1239-2011; India, Birth and Baptisms from 1786-1947; and Philippines, Births and Baptisms from 1642-1994. Equally helpful is the Research Wiki pages on the various countries that help explain the geography, customs, naming conventions, types of records that can be found for the locale and further research tips.

Recommended Websites

* Asian Heritage Month in Canada Project: Developed and maintained by Radio Canada International, the website offers three multi-media pages on the history of Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese peoples in Canada.

* CBC Digital Archives: Featuring a huge collection of audio files, video clips and photographs from the CBC Archives, this website features a number of fascinating exhibits and lesson plans for teachers.

To celebrate Heritage Week (3rd week of February), members of the public are invited to attend the 6th Annual Heritage Week Public Lecture taking place on Thursday, February 21, 2013 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m, at Artesian Performance Venue on 13th Ave. 2627 13th Avenue, Regina, SK.

This year's talk is titled Housing & Heritage: The Missed Connection and will feature Donovan Rypkema, President, Heritage Strategies International. Mr. Rypkema's talk will look why historic buildings have proven to a be valuable source of much needed housing stock and learn what developers, governments and other stakeholders can do to take better advantage of these often overlooked community assets.

Admission is free followed by a reception sponsored by the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation and the Architectural Heritage Society of Saskatchewan.

The Prairie History Room staff were very sad to hear the news about the recent passing of Keith Knox, a well-known and respected figure in Regina's heritage community. As a founding member of a number of heritage-related associations, including Biographies Regina, Heritage Regina and the Saskatchewan Architectural Heritage Society, Keith leaves behind an incredible legacy. He will be sorely missed.

For more information about his life, click on the link to his obituary published in the Leader Post.

The Ministry of Tourism, Parks, Culture and Sport is pleased to invite you to the fourth annual Heritage Week Public Lecture, to be held at Government House in Regina on Thursday, February 24, 2011. This year's lecture will be delivered by His Honour the Honourable Dr. Gordon L. Barnhart, S.O.M., Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan.

Dr. Barnhart's lecture, entitled "Imagining the Past, Creating the Future: The Role of Heritage Properties in Creating Enriched Communities," will reflect on the fascinating histories of the Saskatchewan Legislative Building and Government House, and will discuss how these two provincial heritage properties and national historic sites are not only part of our collective past, but are living history that enrich the community today.

Further details can be found at: http://www.tpcs.gov.sk.ca/PublicLecture2011.

The Museum Association of Saskatchewan (MAS) has begun a strategic planning process that will establish both a focused and realistic three-year strategic plan and an ongoing procedure for ensuring the association is on the right track towards a plan that supports their mandate to serve museums and work towards their advancement. Meetings discussing the vision of the MAS will be held during this fall.

For more information, please contact Wendy Fitch at 1-866-568-7386 or wendy.fitch@saskmuseums.org.

A couple of weeks back, the Honorable Dustin Duncan, Minister of Tourism, Parks, Culture and Sport announced the first cultural policy in more than 25 years. Pride of Saskatchewan: A Policy Where Culture, Community and Commerce Meet outlines the principles and priorities designed to help guide the development of the arts, culture and heritage sector in Saskatchewan.

According to the government release “Pride of Saskatchewan is a framework that aligns culture, community and commercial activities to maximize on the social and economic benefits of culture. As a planning and decision-making resource, it will help focus and further strengthen Saskatchewan's already vibrant culture. It aims to reflect and foster culture as defined by people and communities of all types, inclusive of First Nations and Métis people, small towns, big cities and the culture sector. Pride of Saskatchewan responds to more than 25 years of cultural policy discussions.”

Also released was Moving from Reflection to Action: Towards a Cultural Policy for Saskatchewan, a summary document presenting the results of research and public dialogue which supported the development of the policy, including the Community Dialogue sessions.

Both documents are available on-line at www.tpcs.sk.ca/.

The Ministry of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages recently announced funding for the Original Humboldt Committee to present activities to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the significant role played by the Original Humboldt Telegraph Station during the 1885 Northwest Resistance. Events will take place on June 18, 2010, in Humboldt and at the Original Humboldt site. Audiences will relive the stories of the Original Humboldt land and the events of 1885 through multimedia presentations, historical performances, and commemorative art.

For more information, visit http://www.pch.gc.ca/pc-ch/infoCntr/cdm-mc/index-eng.cfm?action=doc&DocIDCd=CR092892.

Also a week and a half ago, the 2010 Municipal Heritage Award winners were announced. The awards program was established in 1984 to recognize individuals or organizations that have enhanced the quality of life in Regina by demonstrating commitment to the conservation of Regina’s heritage. This year's recipients include:

* Restoration - Interior category - awarded to The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Dominion Construction of Regina and Saunders Evans Plosker Wotherspoon Architects Inc. of Regina for Renovations to the RCMP Drill Hall.

* Adaptive Re-use category - awarded to Anderson House Inc. of Regina for the Harding/Anderson House on the former Diocese of Qu’Appelle lands in Regina

* New Design - Sensitive Addition category - awarded to Regina Early Learning Centre, Stantec Architecture and Interior Design of Regina, Dominion Construction of Regina and David Powell Landscape Architecture of Regina for their addition to Regina Early Learning Centre’s existing facility at 2115 Athol Street

* Education category - awarded to Dr. James M. Pitsula his book For All We Have and Are: Regina and the Experience of the Great War

Congratulations!

Almost a week and half ago, the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation announced the allocation of more than $243,000 for 32 conservation, 11 research, 12 education and five special projects. Grants range from $500 each for a heritage inventory in Moosomin and the development of a historical walking tour in Gravelbourg, to $20,000 each for preservation work on Harding House in Regina and Melville City Hall.

The Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation continues to work with communities and organizations to preserve the province's architectural heritage and maintain its cultural treasures. For more information about this year's grants recipients, visit http://www.gov.sk.ca/news?newsId=7688c8a8-cb0b-4966-8d9b-79dd80b86d59.

International Mother Language Day on February 21 was proclaimed by UNESCO's General Conference in November 1999 to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism.

The Saskatchewan Heritage Language Day celebration, jointly organized by Saskatchewan Organization for Heritage Languages and the Multilingual Association of Regina, will take place on from 1:00-300 pm on Sunday, February 21 at the Balfour Collegiate Auditorium (1245 College Avenue) in Regina, and is open to the public at no cost and will consist of short greetings, entertainment by local language schools, and a variety of ethnic finger foods (catered by Immigrant Women).

For more information on the UN declaration, go to http://www.un.org/depts/dhl/language/index.html. For more on local celebrations, visit http://www.heritagelanguages.sk.ca/pdf/HLD-notice-2010.pdf.