For Indigenous people, storytelling is both a gift, and a very old custom, used to teach, entertain, and remember. Since 2004, the LSSAP committee has coordinated Saskatchewan Aboriginal Storytelling Month. Through the month of February, storytelling events are held by libraries and their partners in communities throughout Saskatchewan. You can find a detailed background on the project in a paper presented by LSSAP committee member Tara Million (University of Saskatchewan) at the 2019 IILF conference, available online here.

The goals of SAS Month are:

• To support and promote First Nations, Metis & Inuit oral storytelling traditions in Saskatchewan
• To celebrate First Nations, Metis & Inuit history, language & culture
• To promote cross-cultural relationships and understanding by promoting storytelling as an important foundational cultural activity
• To facilitate and grow a living oral storytelling collection
• To share the vision of the LSSAP Committee: Library Services for Saskatchewan Aboriginal Peoples collaborates through partnerships to enrich communities by promoting and improving library services for Aboriginal peoples

LSSAP works with partner organizations to provide financial support for Saskatchewan Aboriginal Storytelling Month Events, held in libraries, and other institutions during the month of February. Without these financial partners, SAS Month would not be possible.

View this year’s Storytelling Month events calendar here.