Pat Ningewance, a first language Ojibwe speaker, once commented that it was awfully hard to effectively translate a lot of English poetry into Ojibwe because there is no way to say things like “her slim arms” bc the only word in Ojibwe for anything like that basically sounds like “her arms were just skin and bones” while meanwhile there is a whole word that means “beautifully fat” (minogaamo) bc that was way more valued in Ojibwe culture than being skinny, which probably meant you were malnourished
For those expressing interest in Pat's work, I recommend her introduction and translation of Anishinaabe writer George Kenny's poems and short stories, Gaawiin Mawisiiwag Anishinaabeg / Indians Don't Cry, and the book she wrote of her mother's storytelling, Gii-nitaa-aadisooke. The second link goes to the publishing company she owns, which also has one of the best available textbooks for learning Ojibwe, titled Gookom's Language.
