Advertisement

Betty Harnum, 'small and mighty' lover of language, dies at 73

Betty Harnum, who was a linguist and the project lead for CBC's Indigenous languages project, died Friday morning. She was 73 years old. (Alyssa Mosher/CBC - image credit)
Betty Harnum, who was a linguist and the project lead for CBC's Indigenous languages project, died Friday morning. She was 73 years old. (Alyssa Mosher/CBC - image credit)

A woman who pushed for Indigenous language revitalization in the Northwest Territories is being remembered as a passionate linguist, a generous friend and an animal lover with a wild streak.

Betty Harnum, the territory's first languages commissioner, died early Friday morning at the age of 73.

She "gave her whole heart" to preserving languages, said Mary Rose Sundberg, who had been friends with Harnum for 40 years.

Harnum was fluent in English, French and Inuktitut and was semi-fluent in Denesuline (Chipewyan), Tłı̨chǫ Yatıì (Tlicho) and Dene Zhatie (South Slavey), Sundberg said. Apatoak Kadlun-Jones, who did work with Harnum, said she was also fluent in Inuinnaqtun.

Serving as the N.W.T.'s languages commissioner from 1992 to 1996 was only a fraction of the work Harnum did during her nearly 50 years in the North.

Submitted by Rosella Stoesz
Submitted by Rosella Stoesz

A lifetime love of language

Harnum graduated from the University of Western Ontario in 1975, then moved to Kinngait, Nunavut (which was called Cape Dorset at the time), where she learned to speak Inuktitut and write syllabics, Sundberg said.

Later, Harnum moved to Fort Liard, N.W.T., and helped set up a craft shop there.

Eventually, she began working at the territory's now-defunct language bureau in Yellowknife and, after serving as the languages commissioner, spent many years consulting. She also led CBC's Indigenous languages archive project — which is archiving 75,000 hours worth of recorded stories in eight Indigenous languages.

Harnum raised a son, Beau, who was the "light of her life," Sundberg said.

A long list of her achievements also includes helping to establish the Goyatikǫ Language Society, developing an Chipewyan dictionary in Fort Resolution, N.W.T., and an Inuinnaqtun-to-English dictionary in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut.

'Small but mighty' 

Rosella Stoesz, a long-time friend, said Harnum lived with her on and off for about 15 years.

"Our love of dogs, I guess, is one of the main things that brought us together," she said, reflecting on how that love led to an extra dog in the house on one particular cold winter day.

Submitted by Rosella Stoesz
Submitted by Rosella Stoesz

Harnum rescued a dog that was tied up outside and unwanted by its owners, Stoesz said. Unsure of what they were dealing with, the two women put the animal in the laundry room. When someone turned on the drying machine, however, the dog panicked.

The dog was jumping all over the place, essentially trying to get through the door, said Stoesz. The unhappy pooch eventually ended up yanking on a plug and causing the dryer to short-circuit — earning herself the name Sparky.

"Betty rescues Sparky, fair enough," said Stoesz. "But then she takes off to Edmonton to go visit her son and granddaughter and leaves me with Sparky… who isn't house trained and needs to go to the vet to have a nipple removed because it was frozen.

"She was very generous in bringing the dog home and then taking off," Stoesz laughed. "Betty did leave me with all kinds of troubles over the years. I guess that is what friendship is. The good, the bad and the ugly."

Some of the good memories, said Stoesz, include finding treasures — and Christmas presents for each other — at the salvage area of the dump in Yellowknife.

Rosella Stoesz
Rosella Stoesz

Harnum's health started declining late last year after a brain aneurysm. Stoesz started taking care of her friend's beloved dog, Sheba, and was glad Harnum was able to spend time with her son and granddaughter over the last few months.

Stoesz says she'll remember her friend for her easy-going nature, fierce independence and for showing strength in the face of adversity.

"She was small and mighty," said Stoesz. "I'll miss her deeply."

'Always playful'

Harnum hired Mary Powder to work on CBC's archiving project in 2017, and became a mentor and close friend.

"She was a beautiful person to talk with. She was funny. She'll be greatly missed," Powder said.

In 2019, Harnum was honoured for her work on the archival project with a Wise Women Award, given by the Status of Women Council of the NWT to women who contribute to advancing women's equality in the territory. At the time, Harnum described her journey as "amazing," noting that she'd grown up as a little white kid in Toronto.

Submitted by Susie Zettler
Submitted by Susie Zettler

Harnum was curious about Indigenous people while in school and taught herself to speak Indigenous languages, Powder said, describing Harnum's ability to speak in different dialects as "amazing."

She also got along well with elders, Sundberg said, especially while working on a CD of hymns.

"The elders really enjoyed working with her because she understood them," Sundberg recalled. "She was always playful with the elders, always teasing them. So during that time we learned a lot."

Kate Kyle/CBC
Kate Kyle/CBC

Harnum's legacy

Brent Kaulback, now retired from his role as assistant superintendent with the South Slave Divisional Education Council, worked with Harnum on developing the Chipewyan dictionary. He said she went through "thousands and thousands" of words and phrases with elders while working on the project.

"She was certainly a trailblazer in terms of linguistic work in the Northwest Territories," he said, adding that she was working on such projects long before there was strong interest in revitalizing Indigenous languages.

"Her legacy is the fact that our languages in the Northwest Territories are becoming stronger. They're flourishing," he said.