Lekwiltok
The Lekwiltok or Laich-kwil-tach are one of the Canadian First Nations in the province of British Columbia . They live in the north of Vancouver Island and on the opposite mainland. The two main groups are the Wei Wai Kai (Cape Mudge Band) and the Wei Wai Kum at Campbell River . They speak the Kwakiutl language from the Wakash language stem, their dialect is the Likwala.
Today's Kwakiutl Laich-Kwil-Tach Nations Treaty Society includes six tribes, the Mamaleleqala Que`Qua`Sot`Enox, the Tlowitsis-Mumtagila, the We Wai kai (Cape Mudge), the We Wai kum (Campbell River), including the Kwiakah and the K`ómoks , originally a coastal Salish tribe .
The name Laich-kwil-tach comes from a large sea worm that was difficult to kill, hence the name means "thing that cannot be killed".
history
Contact with Europeans
The first known contact with Europeans came in 1786 through James Charles Stuart Strange, a British trader. He could only buy furs of questionable quality, and his sea lion ivory business was a failure. In 1792 Robert Gray , George Vancouver and the Spaniards Dionisio Alcala Galiano and Cayetano Valdés met the Laich-Kwil-Tach.
The Lekwiltok on Johnstone Strait came to rifles as early as the 1780 / 1790s through trade with the peoples on the west coast of Vancouver Island, especially the Tla-o-qui-aht and the Mowachaht . With these weapons they attacked the tribes of the coastal Salish in long voyages down to the Puget Sound . These found themselves again and again in large coalitions in order to repel the attacks and to undertake counter-attacks.
When the Hudson's Bay Company established new trading posts at Fort Langley on the lower Fraser River in 1827 and in Puget Sound in 1833, they not only got caught up in these sweeping wars, but also attracted traders from all tribes. Trade alliances were formed. In the late 1830s, the Lekwiltok allied with their northern neighbors and raided the Fraser up to Yale and Puget Sound - bypassing Fort Langley. In 1838 the Lewiltok, in alliance with the Musqueam , succeeded in partially controlling the fur trade of Fort Langley. So, together with various Salish tribes, they shifted their efforts further north, where they obtained double the prices for beaver pelts in Fort Simpson .
James Douglas wrote: "The trade in Fort Langley has not been as prosperous this season as usual in any way. The fur trade has been boosted by the interference of the Colquilts [Lekwiltok] ... whom it is through friendly contacts with the Musquiam who participate living near the mouth of the Fraser, has managed to steer trade in a different direction ... "
In the 1840s, the Lekwiltok occupied the Comox territory , with other tribes preferring to flee south. Around 1849 the Salish counterattacked and wreaked havoc around Port Newill / Salmon River north of Comox. Eventually the Lekwiltok were defeated by an alliance of the Salish tribes in the battle of Maple Bay, not far from Duncan .
The Haida only participated in the Lekwiltok raids between 1853 and 1862. From 1853 they appeared to trade before Victoria , but also attacked the Cowichan and Nanaimo . With the great smallpox epidemic of 1862 , the attacks suddenly stopped.
One consequence of these attacks was that the Comox at Courtenay adopted the language of the victors, the Kwak'wala . Meanwhile, the related tribes of the Sliammon and Homalco kept the K'omox. Conversely, many of the Wewaykum in Campbell River have Comox ancestry, while the Weewaikai are more closely related to the northern tribes on Queen Charlotte Strait . This tribal group became known under the name "Kwakiutl" in connection with their huge potlatches .
Overall, the southern Kwakiutl remained separated from their northern neighbors, who are known as Kwakwaka'wakw , i.e. as Kwak'wala speakers. The northern Kwaiutl or Kwagu'ł of Fort Rupert are in turn closer to the southern Kwakiutl. The term Kwakiutl is a colorful term with changing meanings.
The Homayno on Loughborough Inlet united with the Wei Wai Kum before the 1830s. By 1850 the Tlaaluis were almost extinct, so that the remains were taken up by the Kwiakah. The Hahamatsees or Walitsum moved from their home on the Salmon River to the K`ómoks after 1900.
The "Kwakiutl" used to include around 30 ethnic groups. The Laich-Kwil-Tach and the K`ómoks were often incorrectly counted among these. However, the groups known as Kwakiutl live north of the Salmon River. Those living in the south belong to the Laich-Kwil-Tach and K`ómoks.
Settlers
In 1881 there were forty settlers in the area of the Kwiakutl, Laich-Kwil-Tac and K`ómoks, in 1901 there were already 650 and by 1921 the number had risen to over 5,000. Ten salmon canning factories were established between 1881 and 1929, and there were 56 timber companies in 1924. The "Kwakiutl", on the other hand, decreased to 4,500 between the beginning of European contact and 1928. By 1986 their number rose again to 19,125 including the Laich-Kwil-Tach and K`ómoks.
The Kwiakah stayed on Phillips Arm and the Tlaaluis moved to Arran Rapids, but reunited after the great epidemics. By 1910 only ten Kwiakak were left on Phillips Arm, and by 1930 the last two of them moved to the Campbell River.
reserve
The We Wai Kai or Cape Mudge own 5 reserves with a total of 702 hectares. They live in Cape Mudge (444.6 hectares), Quinsam 12 (116.3 hectares), Drew Harbor (94 hectares) and in two reserves on Quadra Island altogether 8.2 ha. In October 2014 there were exactly 1094 people among them, 361 of them lived in their own, 31 in other reserves, 2 on a crown land not assigned to a tribe, plus 700 outside the reserves.
The Wei Wai Kum or Campbell River have 4 reservations (174.4 hectares) near Campbell River, of which the largest is Campbell River with 111.5 hectares. In October 2014, exactly 788 people were counted among them, 354 of which lived on the reservation, 34 in other reserves, 400 outside the reserves.
The Kwiakah only have 2 reserves (67.5 hectares), but they have left their reserve. The remaining Walitsum probably want to unite with the K`ómoks. The Laich-Kwil-Tach are members of the Kwakiutl Laich-Kwil-Tach K`ómoks Nations Treaty Community and take part in the British Columbia Treaty Process .
Tribal council
The Kwakiutl District Council represents the ten tribes of the Campbell River , Cape Mudge , Comox , the Da'naxda'xw First Nation, Gwa'Sala-Nakwaxda'xw , Kwakiutl , Kwiakah , the Mamalilikulla-Qwe'Qwa'Sot'Em , Quatsino and Tlatlasikwala .
See also
literature
- William C. Sturtevant (Ed.): Handbook of North American Indians . Volume 7: Wayne Suttles (Ed.): Northwest Coast . Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington DC 1990, ISBN 0-87474-187-4 .
Web links
Remarks
- ↑ See: [1] .
- ↑ Quoted from Grant Keddie, Aboriginal defensive sites, 4.
- ↑ According to the information from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development , First Nation Profiles: [2] .
- ↑ According to the information from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development , First Nation Profiles: [3] .