Friday, April 10, 2026

After much speculation, Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren announced earlier this week that he will seek reelection later on this year. KJZZ’s Gabriel Pietrorazio has more. President Nygren became the youngest president in Window Rock after defeating incumbent Jonathan Nez four years ago. Nygren won that race by just more than 3,500 votes. In a video message on social media, Nygren picked up his signature, black open crown hat. “And I will be tossing my hat into the race for Navajo Nation president. Let’s keep building on the momentum that we’ve built so far.” Since his inauguration, the sitting president has faced considerable scrutiny. A special prosecutor has called for his immediate resignation over alleged ethics violations that included the misuse of public funds, while Navajo Nation Council delegates continue trying to oust him. (Courtesy Mircea Brown) The nonprofit tribal organization Sealaska Heritage Institute has published a new book that presents Tlingit Raven stories for the first time in the original language with English translations. The 860-page volume brings together 50 stories by seven Tlingit storytellers born in between 1870 and 1915 across Southeast Alaska. As KCAW’s Hope McKenney reports, the stories were transcribed from recordings of oral performances and include some of the oldest known recordings of these stories told in Lingít. The book is currently available through Sealaska Heritage Institute’s website. Geiger says they also hope to make the original audio recordings of these stories available in the near future. 75-year-old Ḵ’ashgé Daphne Wright grew up listening to her aunt Katherine Mills tell her stories of Raven, a cultural hero, world-maker, and trickster figure among the Tlingit of Southeast Alaska. “I can just remember we’d be sitting in the kitchen, around the kitchen table, and it was maybe in the evening, with everyone just kind of sitting around and just listening, and just kind of a warm feeling. And just listening to my aunt’s voice.” Wright says reading this book, which features stories from her aunt, is like hearing her aunt’s voice again. “I miss her so much, you know. And I miss my mother … And so it just means so much that there’s something here and an actual physical book that has her stories in it.” This volume has been more than four decades in the making. It is the fifth in a series of books from Sealaska Heritage Institute called the “Classics of Tlingit Oral Literature,” and is the first in the series to be exclusively focused on Raven. Will Geiger is a research specialist with the Southeast nonprofit. “The intention of this series is to present standout examples of the Tlingit oral tradition in a written form, so that people who whether you do speak Lingít or not, you’re able to appreciate the depth and the artistry and the history.” This book features a transcribed version of the original recording on the left hand page and an English translation on the right. Geiger says Raven is one of the most developed characters in the Tlingit oral tradition, with stories ranging from sacred to humorous. “Mostly, he appears in the form of a person. And he can change forms … He turns into a woman, a little hemlock needle … and a raven.” For Lgeik’i Heather Powell Mills, a Lingít language teacher in Hoonah, hearing or reading these stories in the original language leads to deeper understanding. “Hearing our language is it’s like medicine to us… to have a strong connection to the land, to understand where you come from, in order to know where you’re going.” Mills says she’s grateful these stories were recorded and preserved for future generations. “We don’t have the time we used to have. I think this is a great way for us to learn. It was their dream for us.”     Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Friday, April 10, 2026 – Money management during economic uncertainty and the rise of Buy Now Pay Later