Gitxsan Nation
 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| Canada (British Columbia) | |
| Languages | |
| English, Gitxsanimaax | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity, other |
Gitxsan (also spelled Gitksan) are a people whose home territory is the upper Skeena River from about Kitselas Canyon to the Skeena Headwaters and its surrounding tributaries. The area is now considered part of west central British Columbia, Canada. Gitksan territory encompasses approximately 30,000 square kilometers of land.[1]
Society and Culture
Gitxsan are a matrilineal society that consists of Frog, Eagle, Wolf, and Fireweed Clans. There are approximately 10,000 worldwide with many living in traditional Gitxsan territory. Many also live elsewhere in British Columbia, in places like nearby Terrace, Smithers, and down in Vancouver, as well as around the world.
Eighty per cent of the people living on the lands surrounding Kitselas Canyon to the Skeena headwaters are Gitxsan ('People of the River Mist') and archeological evidence supports a continuous habitation of at least 10,000 years. Their traditional language is called Gitxsanimaax.
Title and Treaties
The aboriginal title rights of the Gitxsan and their neighbours, the Wet'suwet'en, was affirmed by the Supreme Court of Canada in its 1997 Delgamuukw decision.
To date, a treaty agreement between the Gitxsan and the Federal Government of Canada and Provincial Government of British Columbia has not been reached.
Communities
References
External links
_a_Kwakwaka%27wakw_big_house.jpg?lang=en){kind=small} | This First Nations in Canada–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |