Creolization and late nineteenth century Métis vernacular log architecture on the South Saskatchewan River

Abstract

The ethnogenesis of Metis peoples of the western Canadian plains and parklands involved a creolizing process in which cultural traits from many different groups were adopted. An analysis of Metis vernacular log architecture on the South Saskatchewan River illustrates this clearly with individual building components derived from a number of different sources. These structural features are likened to the words of Michif, the Metis language, and their analysis informs upon Metis history and cultural interactions. The final building form, however, can be understood only through the grammar by which it was constructed. This grammar is configured by a Metis worldview that is organic and unbounded. The applicability of a linguistic analogy for the study of creolization is emphasized throughout.