Through names and narrative, we experience physical places in profound and sometimes unseen ways. A name can evoke a concept, a sense of home, connect us, and have deep meaning for communities and families. Kate Beane, Ph.D. explains that the dominant narrative of history should include and honor the languages, lives, and legacies of Indigenous Peoples. The work she and her family took on to restore the Dakota name to Bde Maka Ska (from Lake Calhoun) in her ancestral homeland of Bde Ota (Minneapolis) represents not a name change, but rather a reclamation of the Dakota name describing the white earth surrounding the lake. Kate Beane (Flandreau Santee Dakota and Muskogee Creek) holds a BA in American Indian Studies and a PhD in American Studies at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. She served as a Charles A. Eastman Pre-doctoral Fellow at Dartmouth College, and as a President’s Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She is currently a public historian and works in Native American Initiatives at the Minnesota Historical Society. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at
https://www.ted.com/tedx 