Chrétien Le Clercq
Encyclopedia
Father Chrétien Le Clercq (born 1641), a Franciscan Récollet
, and a zealous Roman Catholic missionary
to the Mi'kmaq on the Gaspé
peninsula in the mid-17th century, was also a distinguished historiographer of Nouvelle France who wrote two early histories and adapted an apparently native mnemonic
glyph system into a writing system known as Míkmaq hieroglyphic writing.
A Fleming by birth, he joined the province of the Récollets of St. Antoine, in Artois, and went to Canada in 1673. On 11 October 1673, he was put in charge of the Micmac mission by Mgr de Laval. He learned the language of that tribe and devoted himself to its evangelization. In 1676 he tried to persuade the Micmacs that it would be more advantageous to build houses in the French manner, which earned him a stunning rebuke from the Micmac Chief. His superiors sent him to France in 1680 on business connected with the Franciscan missions in Canada; he returned in the following spring with letters authorizing the foundation of a convent in Montreal, where he went during the summer of 1681 to carry out this work. In the month of November he went back to the Micmac mission, where he passed in all twelve years of his life. In autumn 1686 he returned finally to France, where he filled various positions of authority in the Artois province of his order. The date of his death is unknown, but he was still living in 1698. After his return to France, he completed two works which he published at Paris in 1691.
Recollets
The Récollets were a French branch of the Roman Catholic order, the Franciscans , which developed out of a reform movement that began in the 15th century in Spain and established itself in France in Tulle in 1585, at Nevers in 1592, at Limoges in 1596 and in Paris in 1603...
, and a zealous Roman Catholic missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
to the Mi'kmaq on the Gaspé
Gaspé Peninsula
The Gaspésie , or Gaspé Peninsula or the Gaspé, is a peninsula along the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada, extending into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence...
peninsula in the mid-17th century, was also a distinguished historiographer of Nouvelle France who wrote two early histories and adapted an apparently native mnemonic
Mnemonic
A mnemonic , or mnemonic device, is any learning technique that aids memory. To improve long term memory, mnemonic systems are used to make memorization easier. Commonly encountered mnemonics are often verbal, such as a very short poem or a special word used to help a person remember something,...
glyph system into a writing system known as Míkmaq hieroglyphic writing.
A Fleming by birth, he joined the province of the Récollets of St. Antoine, in Artois, and went to Canada in 1673. On 11 October 1673, he was put in charge of the Micmac mission by Mgr de Laval. He learned the language of that tribe and devoted himself to its evangelization. In 1676 he tried to persuade the Micmacs that it would be more advantageous to build houses in the French manner, which earned him a stunning rebuke from the Micmac Chief. His superiors sent him to France in 1680 on business connected with the Franciscan missions in Canada; he returned in the following spring with letters authorizing the foundation of a convent in Montreal, where he went during the summer of 1681 to carry out this work. In the month of November he went back to the Micmac mission, where he passed in all twelve years of his life. In autumn 1686 he returned finally to France, where he filled various positions of authority in the Artois province of his order. The date of his death is unknown, but he was still living in 1698. After his return to France, he completed two works which he published at Paris in 1691.