Prayer book, c.1846

This book is a collection of hand-written Catholic prayers and religious texts. It is written in hieroglyphic symbols unique to the Mi’kmaq, called Komqwejwi’kasikl (“sucker fish writings”).

The Mi’kmaw word for these hieroglyphic symbols comes from observations in the natural world. The white sucker is a species of freshwater fish in Nova Scotia. They eat by sucking food from the bottom of rivers and streams.
This action leaves behind trails that look like writings or drawings.

Prayer books like this are significant because of how rare they are and their cultural importance to the Mi’kmaq.
The Mi’kmaw language is an oral tradition, which did not need a writing system. There is no known evidence of a true writing system existing or being needed before Europeans arrived in Mi’kma’kik.

Since the 1670’s, these symbols were used to remember catholic prayers and hymns taught by French missionaries (pa’tlia’sk). Hieroglyphic texts were written in blank ledgers or on paper-thin sheets of birch bark, being passed down for generations through family lines.

There is evidence of these symbols originating from northern New Brunswick and the Gaspe peninsula. They were shared in regional pockets before spreading to other locations. French missionaries are responsible for the specific routes and communities these hieroglyphic symbols traveled to.

There are ongoing efforts to better understand and learn more about these symbols.
While some missionary records claim that these symbols could not be taught to others, several families have passed down komqwejwi’kasikl literacy through generations. Today, there are very few who can read komqwejwi’kasikl but efforts are being made to learn more about these symbols.

All cultures evolve and change as they encounter other nations and people with different beliefs. Indigenous peoples have experienced forced change through colonization, yet at different times and phases, they have willingly shared with and learned from other groups.

French settlers and missionaries arrived in Mi’kma’ki in the 1600s, establishing relationships with the Mi’kmaq and becoming allies against the English.

An alliance was born through sharing knowledge of the land and showing the French how to survive. This political alliance was strengthened in 1610 with the baptism of Grand Chief Membertou and [140?] other Mi’kmaw individuals.

Exchanging cultural beliefs with others can be about relationships and trade rather than converting beliefs. This was the case with the adoption and adaption of Catholicism by the Mi’kmaq, as cultural values were not abandoned for Christianity.