| Norman Sylliboy | |
| Order: | 11th Grand Chief of the Mi'kmaq |
| Term Start: | 1 August 2019 |
| Term End: | present |
| Predecessor: | Benjamin Kji Saqmaw Sylliboy |
| Birth Place: | Cape Breton Island, |
| Relatives: | Gabriel Sylliboy (grandfather) |
| Height: | 175 cm |
| Occupation: | Social worker |
| Nationality: | Canadian  |
Norman Sylliboy is the 11th Grand Chief or Kji-Saqmaw of the Mi'kmaq Nation. The Mi’kmaq traditional government is known as Sante' Mawio’mi or Grand Council.
Sylliboy was elected in 2019, two years after the death of his predecessor, Ben Sylliboy. Norman Sylliboy's grandfather Gabriel Sylliboy was elected in 1918 to the position of Grand Chief.[1]
Sylliboy was born at a Eskasoni First Nation reserve in Unamaꞌki (Cape Breton Island) to a Mi'kmaq family filled with culture and traditions. His family owned the first store in over forty years on the island Mniku in Potlotek. Before becoming Grand Chief of Mi’kmaq, he worked as a social worker and worked for Mi’kmaw Family and Children Services of Nova Scotia.
Sylliboy was selected as Grand Chief of the Mi’kmaq on 1 August 2019, succeeding his father, Ben, who died two years prior.[2] The selection for Grand Chief took place in St. Anne's Mission at Potlotek First Nation, Chapel Island, Nova Scotia.[3] The selection process included several rounds of selection until the council unanimously elected Sylliboy.
As Grand Chief, along with then-Chief Paul Prosper of the Paqꞌtnkek First Nation and then-Premier Stephen McNeil, Sylliboy urged people to stay home during the pandemic.
They emphasized prioritizing the health of elders and other vulnerable community members.
The Mi'kmaq Language Act recognizes Mi'kmaq as an official language of Nova Scotia.[4] Then-Minister of L’nu Affairs Karla MacFarlane first announced the government's plan to enact this legislation in October 2021.[5] They have plans to take more steps in the promotion of the language because of the decreasing number of Mi'kmaq speakers. Sylliboy stated:
In 2011, the Canadian government announced the recognition of a group in Newfoundland and Labrador called the Qalipu First Nation.[6] The landless band had accepted 25,000 people to be members of the community.[7] The community had received over 100,000 applications, and it was authorized for the new applicants to be reviewed.[8]
The Grand Council and other Mi'kmaq organizations initially argued against the legitimacy of these new members. However, in 2019, after the legitimacy of applicants had been addressed, the Qalipu First Nation had finally been accepted as a part of the Mi'kmaq Nation.[9] Through these new changes, by 2021, 24,000 people had been recognized as official members.
Currently, the Qalipu First Nation is facing a legal battle over the enrollment process after the Friends of Qalipu Advocacy Association filed a lawsuit against them.[10]
Sylliboy married Arlene Sylliboy on 22 May 1982, having seven children together. They also have ten grandchildren together.