I was talking with a friend of mine the other day about the discussion that's been around town about the potential for Prince George to change its name to Lheidli T'enneh in honour of the First Nations people who were in this area first and who are still here today. Throughout the Canada Winter Games that were held in this area, the Games Committee were very cognizant of the Lheidli T'enneh land claims and thanked the group before any of the events that were taking place.
The initial response of the residents who live in Prince George about a potential name change is almost always overwhelmingly negative.
In my opinion, this is because people, as a whole, don't want change. When I initially heard about the potential name, I thought, "Why? Really? Is it necessary?"
After a few days of living with the idea, I then thought about the name of our fair city. Prince George.
It is not particularly poetic. Nor does is evoke any sort of imagery that I can think of except for a long dead Prince who never came here.
It's not like Windermere or Invermere or Wells or Barkerville.
These are the names of towns that sound beautiful and evocative or named for the founders of the towns that will remind us of the people who built the town.
A town's name should inspire or honour its residents.
I have been attempting to create a pro and con list of whether or not Prince George should have a name change and this is what I've come up with:
Cons
1) We'll have to spend a fortune on re-branding our city and fixing address labels and letterhead at the city.
2) There will be an initial panic as the residents of what was formerly known as Prince George will have to learn how to first spell and then pronounce Lheidli T'enneh.
3) For those of us born in Prince George, our birth certificates will be wrong (sort of).
Pro
1) Our name will now recognize the history of the area and the people who were here first and who the founding fathers misplaced (and burned out).
2) The initial panic of learning how to spell and pronounce Lheidli T'enneh will blow over and we'll all deal.
3) The name change from the Queen Charlotte Islands to Haida Gwaii happened and the world didn't end and everyone eventually adjusted.
4) It might be the best chance for the city to re-brand our own image.
5) It might herald the beginning of a new era of cooperation between First Nations and non-aboriginals based on mutual understanding and respect.
So what's in a name? A lot, I think.
Obviously this should be discussed at length before it is approved or not but I believe that this is a discussion worth having. Our own name becomes the basis of our identity. If the people of Prince George are in the midst of an identity crisis, maybe a name change is just what the doctor ordered.
Like a face lift for a new century. What do you think?
