Indigenous People Of The Chilcotin

September 1, 2021

When traveling the Chilcotin it is very evident you are guests on predominantly

indigenous land.  This entry will try to give a little context to the lives of indigenous

people in this part of the world.

Most of the following information was taken from the Canadian Encyclopedia website: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/chilcotintsilhqotin.

The Tsilhqot'in (Chilcotin) live between the Fraser River and the Coast Mountains in west-central British Columbia. In the 2016 census, 2,805 people of the Indigenous population reported Tsilhqot’in ancestry.  Traditionally Dene (Athabascan) speaking, their name means "people of the red river" and also refers to the Chilcotin Plateau region. 

Through most of the 19th century, the Tsilhqot’in were organized into autonomous bands. However, through much of the year, families moved about independently hunting, fishing, and gathering roots and berries. There were leaders, some of whom were forceful, but the society was basically egalitarian and individuals and their families valued their autonomy. In late summer, most families gathered along the rivers to fish the salmon runs. In mid-winter, they moved to sheltered locations, usually near lakes suitable for ice fishing, where they lived in shed-roofed homes or pit houses. 

 

The Tsilhqot'in traditional culture is similar to that of other Northern Dene peoples. Drumming, storytelling, and community celebrations feature prominently in Tsilhqot’in cultural life.  Protection of the environment and of nature is also important to Tsilhqot’in culture.

   

In 1864 the Tsilhqot’in resisted the European intrusion into the area via the pack-train trail established from the Bella Coola Valley through Tsilhqot'in territory to the developing gold mine centres to the east. A small group of Tsilhqot'in killed several European workers on this road in what is known as the Chilcotin War of 1864. Six Tsilhqot'in were eventually tried and executed for these killings. On 26 March 2018, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau exonerated the Tsilhqot'in chiefs of any wrongdoing, and on 2 November 2018, Trudeau formally apologized.

The Tsilhqot’in National Government is a tribal council established in 1989 that represents the six-member First Nations of the Chilcotin Plateau. In 2014, the Tsilhqot’in people won a Supreme Court of Canada case that focused on the issue of Aboriginal title. The Court agreed that the land had been both continually occupied and defended for the exclusive use of the Tsilhqot’in.  The ruling gives the Tsilhqot’in exclusive right to use and enjoy the land, as well as any benefits and profits derived therefrom. Any economic development on the land will require the consent of the Tsilhqot’in Nation.

As you explore the area you cannot help but notice the impressive new tribal offices, schools, and businesses.