Émile Petitot
Encyclopedia
Father Émile-Fortuné Petitot (also known as Émile-Fortuné-Stanislas-Joseph Petitot) (Inuk name, Mitchi Pitchitork Tchikraynarm iyoyé, meaning "Mr. Petitot, son of the Sun") (December 3, 1838-May 13, 1916), a French Missionary Oblate
, was a notable Canadian northwest cartographer, ethnologist, geographer
, linguist, and writer.
, France. His father, Jean-Baptiste Petitot, was a clockmaker
; his mother was Thérèse-Julie-Fortunée Gagneur. Petitot attended the minor seminary and the Collège du Sacré-Cœur in Grancey. In 1859, he took minor orders of the priesthood before joining the Oblates in September 1860. His training occurred at Notre-Dame-de-l'Osier
, and on March 15, 1862, he was ordained in Marseilles.
Fourteen days after his ordination
, he left for Canada's Mackenzie River
. The young missionary Petitot traveled with Bishop Alexandre-Antonin Taché
, of the Oblates of Saint Boniface, from Marseilles via Liverpool and Montreal to St Boniface (Winnipeg) arriving there on 26th May 1862. By August 1862, he had traveled to the Great Slave Lake
in Canada's Northwest Territories
with the Hudson's Bay Brigade Trail
.
, Fort Providence
, Fort Resolution
, and Fort Good Hope
. Here he collected material for his major Athapaskan languages dictionary, still the best available in the field. He also collected extensive legend
s of the Blackfoot
, Chipewyan
, Cree
, Dogrib, Hare
, and Loucheux cultures.
From 1864 through 1878, he worked on the design, decoration, and construction of the Church of Our Lady of Good Hope
, designated a National Historic Site of Canada.
The late 1860s were troublesome years. In 1866, he was temporarily excommunicated, and in 1868, he developed short bouts of insanity. But in the midst of this, in 1867–68, Petitot became the first European to reach the Tuktut Nogait National Park
area.
Petitot returned to France in 1874 and published his dictionaries and other works. The following year, in 1875, he spoke at the inaugural International Congress of Americanists
in Nancy, France making a strong case for the Asiatic origin of Inuit
and North American Indians. He was awarded a silver medal by the Société de Géographie
for his Arctic
maps, including the partially traveled Hornaday River
, though he referred to it as Rivière La Roncière-le Noury, named in honor of the president of the Société de Géographie.
After two years in France, Petitot returned to the North, mostly helping and studying the people of the Great Slave Lake
area. In late 1881, at Fort Pitt (Sask) he "married" Margarite (Margarita) Valette, a mature Metis woman. In January 1882 he was forcibly taken east by Fr Constantine Scollen, an Oblate who had traveled with him and Bishop Tache, to Canada, in 1862. He entered an asylum near Montreal. By 1883, however, his ill health forced him to end his missionary work and return to France. Honoring his scientific contributions, he was awarded the 1883 Back Prize by the Royal Geographical Society
.
He became a parish priest October 1, 1886 at Mareuil-lès-Meaux, France. Here, he ministered to the sick, and published books and articles on Northern Canada
. He died in 1916.
Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate is a missionary religious congregation in the Catholic Church. It was founded on January 25, 1816 by Saint Eugene de Mazenod, a French priest born in Aix-en-Provence in the south of France on August 1, 1782. The congregation was given recognition by Pope...
, was a notable Canadian northwest cartographer, ethnologist, geographer
Geographer
A geographer is a scholar whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society.Although geographers are historically known as people who make maps, map making is actually the field of study of cartography, a subset of geography...
, linguist, and writer.
Early years
Petitot was born in Grancey-le-Château-NeuvelleGrancey-le-Château-Neuvelle
Grancey-le-Château-Neuvelle is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France.The castle was built between 1705 and 1725 by Jacques Eléonor Rouxel de Grancey on the location of a medieval fortress, erected in 1098 by Ponce de Grancey....
, France. His father, Jean-Baptiste Petitot, was a clockmaker
Clockmaker
A clockmaker is an artisan who makes and repairs clocks. Since almost all clocks are now factory-made, most modern clockmakers only repair clocks. Modern clockmakers may be employed by jewellers, antique shops, and places devoted strictly to repairing clocks and watches...
; his mother was Thérèse-Julie-Fortunée Gagneur. Petitot attended the minor seminary and the Collège du Sacré-Cœur in Grancey. In 1859, he took minor orders of the priesthood before joining the Oblates in September 1860. His training occurred at Notre-Dame-de-l'Osier
Notre-Dame-de-l'Osier
Notre-Dame-de-l'Osier is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.-See also:*Communes of the Isère department...
, and on March 15, 1862, he was ordained in Marseilles.
Fourteen days after his ordination
Ordination
In general religious use, ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart as clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The process and ceremonies of ordination itself varies by religion and denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is...
, he left for Canada's Mackenzie River
Mackenzie River
The Mackenzie River is the largest river system in Canada. It flows through a vast, isolated region of forest and tundra entirely within the country's Northwest Territories, although its many tributaries reach into four other Canadian provinces and territories...
. The young missionary Petitot traveled with Bishop Alexandre-Antonin Taché
Alexandre-Antonin Taché
Alexandre-Antonin Taché was a Roman Catholic priest, missionary of the Oblate order, author and the first Archbishop of Saint Boniface in the Canadian province of Manitoba.In late 1844 Taché entered the Oblate novitiate...
, of the Oblates of Saint Boniface, from Marseilles via Liverpool and Montreal to St Boniface (Winnipeg) arriving there on 26th May 1862. By August 1862, he had traveled to the Great Slave Lake
Great Slave Lake
Great Slave Lake is the second-largest lake in the Northwest Territories of Canada , the deepest lake in North America at , and the ninth-largest lake in the world. It is long and wide. It covers an area of in the southern part of the territory. Its given volume ranges from to and up to ...
in Canada's Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
with the Hudson's Bay Brigade Trail
Hudson's Bay Brigade Trail
The Hudson's Bay Brigade Trail, sometimes referred to simply as the Brigade Trail, refers to one of two routes used by Hudson's Bay Company fur traders to transport furs, goods and supplies between coastal and Columbia District headquarters at Fort Vancouver and those in New Caledonia and also in...
.
Career
Petitot was based at Northwest Territories' missions for 12 years, including Fort NormanTulita, Northwest Territories
Tulita, which in Dene language means "where the rivers or waters meet," is a hamlet in the Sahtu Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was formerly known as Fort Norman, until 1 January 1996...
, Fort Providence
Fort Providence, Northwest Territories
Fort Providence is a hamlet in the South Slave Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada...
, Fort Resolution
Fort Resolution, Northwest Territories
Fort Resolution is a "settlement corporation" in the South Slave Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada...
, and Fort Good Hope
Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories
Fort Good Hope is a charter community in the Sahtu Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is located on a peninsula between Jackfish Creek and the east bank of the Mackenzie River, about 145 km northwest of Norman Wells. The two principal languages are North Slavey and English...
. Here he collected material for his major Athapaskan languages dictionary, still the best available in the field. He also collected extensive legend
Legend
A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
s of the Blackfoot
Blackfoot
The Blackfoot Confederacy or Niitsítapi is the collective name of three First Nations in Alberta and one Native American tribe in Montana....
, Chipewyan
Chipewyan
The Chipewyan are a Dene Aboriginal people in Canada, whose ancestors were the Taltheilei...
, Cree
Cree
The Cree are one of the largest groups of First Nations / Native Americans in North America, with 200,000 members living in Canada. In Canada, the major proportion of Cree live north and west of Lake Superior, in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories, although...
, Dogrib, Hare
Hare
Hares and jackrabbits are leporids belonging to the genus Lepus. Hares less than one year old are called leverets. Four species commonly known as types of hare are classified outside of Lepus: the hispid hare , and three species known as red rock hares .Hares are very fast-moving...
, and Loucheux cultures.
From 1864 through 1878, he worked on the design, decoration, and construction of the Church of Our Lady of Good Hope
Church of Our Lady of Good Hope
The Church of Our Lady of Good Hope is an historic Carpenter Gothic-style Roman Catholic church building located on a bluff overlooking the Mackenzie River in Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories, Canada. Only 45 feet by 25 feet in size, it was built between 1865 and 1885 as a mission of the...
, designated a National Historic Site of Canada.
The late 1860s were troublesome years. In 1866, he was temporarily excommunicated, and in 1868, he developed short bouts of insanity. But in the midst of this, in 1867–68, Petitot became the first European to reach the Tuktut Nogait National Park
Tuktut Nogait National Park
Tuktut Nogait National Park is a national park located in the Northwest Territories of Canada. Meaning "young caribou" in Inuvialuktun, the park contains many herds of caribou. However, it is also the home to other wildlife species, such as Musk Ox, Grizzly Bears, Arctic char, and the Grey Wolf...
area.
Petitot returned to France in 1874 and published his dictionaries and other works. The following year, in 1875, he spoke at the inaugural International Congress of Americanists
International Congress of Americanists
The International Congress of Americanists is an international academic conference for research in multidisciplinary studies of the American Continent. Established August 25, 1875 in Nancy, France, the scholars' forum has met regularly since its inception, presently in three year increments. Its...
in Nancy, France making a strong case for the Asiatic origin of Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
and North American Indians. He was awarded a silver medal by the Société de Géographie
Société de Géographie
The Société de Géographie , is the world's oldest geographical society. It was founded in 1821 . Since 1878, its headquarters has been at 184 Boulevard Saint-Germain, Paris. The entrance is marked by two gigantic caryatids representing Land and Sea...
for his Arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
maps, including the partially traveled Hornaday River
Hornaday River
Hornaday River is a waterway located above the Arctic Circle on the mainland of Northern Canada....
, though he referred to it as Rivière La Roncière-le Noury, named in honor of the president of the Société de Géographie.
After two years in France, Petitot returned to the North, mostly helping and studying the people of the Great Slave Lake
Great Slave Lake
Great Slave Lake is the second-largest lake in the Northwest Territories of Canada , the deepest lake in North America at , and the ninth-largest lake in the world. It is long and wide. It covers an area of in the southern part of the territory. Its given volume ranges from to and up to ...
area. In late 1881, at Fort Pitt (Sask) he "married" Margarite (Margarita) Valette, a mature Metis woman. In January 1882 he was forcibly taken east by Fr Constantine Scollen, an Oblate who had traveled with him and Bishop Tache, to Canada, in 1862. He entered an asylum near Montreal. By 1883, however, his ill health forced him to end his missionary work and return to France. Honoring his scientific contributions, he was awarded the 1883 Back Prize by the Royal Geographical Society
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
.
He became a parish priest October 1, 1886 at Mareuil-lès-Meaux, France. Here, he ministered to the sick, and published books and articles on Northern Canada
Northern Canada
Northern Canada, colloquially the North, is the vast northernmost region of Canada variously defined by geography and politics. Politically, the term refers to the three territories of Canada: Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut...
. He died in 1916.
Legacy
- The Petitot RiverPetitot RiverPetitot is a river in northern Alberta and British Columbia, Canada. It is a tributary of the Liard River.Petitot River originates from Bistcho Lake in northwestern Alberta, and flows westwards along the northern borders of Alberta and British Columbia. It then passes in the Northwest Territories,...
is named in his honor. - Painted circa 1867, Petitot's painting of Fort EdmontonFort EdmontonFort Edmonton was the name of a series of trading posts of the Hudson's Bay Company from 1795 to 1891, all of which were located in central Alberta, Canada...
hangs in the Alberta Legislature's library. - 1975, a plaque was placed by the Canadian Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs at Mareuil-lès-Meaux to commemorate Petitot's scientific contributions to Northern Canada.
- 1980, a copy of Petitot's works were donated to the Institute for Northern Studies, University of SaskatchewanUniversity of SaskatchewanThe University of Saskatchewan is a Canadian public research university, founded in 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. An "Act to establish and incorporate a University for the Province of Saskatchewan" was passed by the...
.
Partial bibliography
In French language:- Vocabulaire Français-Esquimau OCLC 46291818
- Les Amérindiens du nord-ouest canadien du 19e siècle selon Emile Petitot préc. d'une prés. gén. des indiens dènè-dindjié (The Amerindians of the Canadian Northwest in the 19th century, as seen by Émile Petitot), OCLC 179804765
- Monographie de Dènè-Dindjié., OCLC 77347629
- De l'origine asiatique des Indiens de l'Amérique arctique, OCLC 45903111
- Petit vocabulaire sarcis, OCLC 35326154
- Mémoire abrégé sur la géographie de l'Athabaskaw-Mackenzie et des grands lacs du bassin arctique de l'Amérique, ISBN 0-665-04819-X
- (1874). Outils en pierre et en os du MacKenzie (cercle polaire arctique), OCLC 67291221
- (1876). Dictionnaire de la langue dènd̀indjié ; dialectes montagnais ou chippewayan, peaux de lièvre et loucheux renfermant en outre un grand nombre de termes propres a sept autres dialectes de la même langue; précédé d'une monographie des dènè-dindjié, d'une grammaire et de tableaux synoptiques des conjugaisons, OCLC 78851365
- (1884). De la formation du langage. Mots formés par le redoublement de racines hétérogènes, quoique de signification synonyme, c'est-a-dire par réitèration copulative, OCLC 67290388
- (1890). Accord des mythologies dans la cosmogonie des Danites arctiques, OCLC 253141763
- (1891). Autour du grand lac des Esclaves, OCLC 13624838
- (1911). Dates importantes pour l'histoire de la découverte géographique de la puissance du Canada., OCLC 62929581
Filmography
- 2001, I, Emile Petitot — Arctic Explorer and Missionary, a Getaway Films documentaryDocumentary filmDocumentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
.