A new name could be coming for one of Vancouver’s major landmarks.
Vancouver Park Board Wednesday night approved a motion to consult with the Squamish, Musqueam and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations on changing the name of Stanley Park’s Siwash Rock.
The motion was brought forward by commissioner Catherine Evans as part of the city’s commitment to reconciliation with First Nations.
“The history of Stanley Park includes acts of dispossession and disrespect directed toward the indigenous people who inhabited it,” the motion stated.
“An ongoing symbol of disrespect is the name Siwash Rock, given to a rock situated along the western shore of Stanley Park and identified as a Point of Interest on the Official Map and Guide.”
The word Siwash stems from the French word sauvage.
After considerable debate and a couple of amendments to the motion, the board directed staff to consult with the Stanley Park Intergovernmental Group, which includes representatives of each of the three First Nations, to determine if there is a desire from the three First Nations to rename Siwash Rock.
Staff will then report back to the board on a potential process as well as a time frame for renaming the rock.
Evans is the park board’s liaison member to the city’s civic asset naming committee. She said she was first alerted to the negative connotations of the name last spring.
"There's been a discussion around the [naming committee] table about getting a more diverse representation of names in our city," she told the Courier.
The committee's chair, John Atkin, told her the park board is in a position to deal with Siwash Rock.
Evans, who didn't grow up in B.C., said she wasn't aware the name was considered offensive.
"From his understanding, it has been an issue for decades for the First Nations here — that the term is derogatory and they have sought to have a name change to it in the past. For me, that was a revelation. I didn't know the term was derogatory but I realized probably every Indigenous person around here knows it," she said.
"Once you learn that something is derogatory, you can't unlearn that. Language is symbolic and we attach a great deal of cultural significance to naming. There's rituals around naming and naming is important. So, it's symbolic but it's important."
@JessicaEKerr
