Saanich (people)
The Saanich , WSÁNEĆ or xʷsénəč ( "Surfacing, nascent country", "emergent, newly developing people") as they call themselves and their traditional tribal area, are a five First Nations comprehensive Canadian tribal group that once areas of the north coast of the Olympic Peninsula in the US state of Washington in the south northward including the Gulf Islands , San Juan Islands (WELÁLḴȽ / wəlélqɬ), the Saanich Peninsula (W̱SÁNEĆ or xʷsénəč / xʷseʔnəč), the south end of Vancouver Island and the south of the Lower Mainland (SḰX̱O¸MEŚ / sqʷx̣ʷáʔməš ) lived in British Columbia .
Both culturally and linguistically, they belong to the coastal Salish of the northwest coast culture of the Pacific and their language, the SENĆOŦEN / W̱SÁNEĆḴEN , sənčáθən / xʷsénəčqən or Saanich , is a dialect of the Northern Straits Salish , one of the largest dialect groups within the Central Coastal Salish (Central Coast Salish) from the Salish language family .
In addition to the WSÁNEĆ (Saanich) speak SENĆOŦEN / Sənčaθən also neighboring, but not belonging to this tribal group, Scia'new (Beecher Bay) (of them WĆIÁNEW called - a First Nation of Klallam ) (WĆIYÁNEW / xʷčiyénəxʷ), Semiahmoo (of them SEMYOME called) and Esquimalt (Ess-whoy-malth) (called SXIMEȽEȽ by them).
Today (as of September 2013) the five W̱SÁNEĆ First Nations - the Malahat (MÁLEXEȽ) (313 people), Pauquachin (BOḰEĆEN) (393 people), Tsartlip (W̱JOȽEȽP) (approx. 900 people), Tsawout (SȾÁUTW̱) (855 People) and Tseycum (W̱SIḴEM) (181 people) - together a total of approx. 2650 registered tribesmen.
history
The W̱SÁNEĆ (Saanich) were made up of five HÁÁȽTEN / héeɬtən ( groups of houses from each “family”), which today call themselves First Nations: the Malahat (MÁLEXEȽ), known as South Saanich (MÁLEXEȽ) and Pauquachin (BOḰEĆEN) (between Gordon Head and Cowichan Head), as well as the Tsawout (SȾÁUTW̱) (on Saanichton Bay), the Tseycum (W̱SIḴEM) (on Patricia Bay) and the Tsartlip (W̱JOȽEȽP) (on Brentwood Bay).
Early history
Between around 500 and 1000 AD, a prominent feature of the South Salish groups around Victoria (METULIYE / mətúliyə) is a large number of cairns that served as burial sites. In the Rocky Point Area west of Victoria alone, around 400 of these burial mounds can be identified, with hundreds likely being lost because the stones were used to protect the coast against storm surges. A large number of mounds can also be found around metchosin (SMEĆE¸OŦEN / sməčəʔáθən).
Like the other tribes on Vancouver Island, such as the Nuu-chah-nulth , society was divided into three strictly separate classes :
- People of high rank / prestige (an upper class) or SI¸ÁM¸ / SI¸I¸ÁM¸ or siʔém̕ / siʔiʔém̕ - mostly reproduced as Siem ,
- People of low rank / prestige (a lower class) or TSOS / tsás - mostly reproduced as stesem , and
- Slaves or SQÍEŦ / sk̕ʷə́yəθ - mostly reproduced as skeyes .
The first Europeans
The first Spanish and British ships headed for Esquimalt in 1790 and 1792. Don Manuel Quimper anchored in the port of Esquimalt in 1790 and named the place "Puerto de Cordova". Even James Cook admired the landscape cultivated by the Indians around the later Victoria. The later head of the Hudson's Bay Company saw the park-like landscape of the region, with open grassy areas, etc., as an ideal settlement area, "a perfect Elysium in point of climate and scenery".
With muskets equipped Kwakwaka'wakw (- called "robber", a collective name for all the northern tribes WTIWEL / xʷtíwəl) pressed after 1800 increasingly the south living trunks coming out of around 1840 to a large tribal coalition combined and the invaders at the Battle of Defeated Maple Bay . This coalition also attacked Fort Victoria in 1843 after a dispute over Native American grazing cattle broke out, but the dispute was settled after negotiations.
In 1852, James Douglas signed two (of a total of 14 contracts) of the so-called Douglas Treaties with the Saanich, with the southern Saanich on February 6, 1852 - signed by Whut-say mullet and nine other people - and on February 11 with the northern Saanich - signed by Hotutstun and 117 other people. Against 386 blankets, this contract was the basis to take their land from them, similar to the Songhees (called LEQEṈEN / lək̕ʷə́ŋən) in 1850 . In the memory of the Saanich, the contracts did not live on as "treaties", but as "" James Douglas 'Words ", as James Douglas' words or promises.
McKenna-McBride Commission
When the McKenna-McBride Commission visited the reservations of British Columbia from 1913, it suggested that the reservations of the "Saanich Tribe", "No. 1-South Saanich, 483.00 acres ”,“ No. 2-East Saanich, 605.00 acres ”,“ No. 3-Cole Bay, 705.00 acres "and" No. 4-Union Bay, North Saanich District, 71.00 acres ”, as well as“ No. 5-Fulford Harbor, 43.00 acres; No. 6- Mayne Island , 323.00 acres; No. 7-Saturna Island, 360.00 acres, and No. 8-Pender Island, 8.00 acres “should remain, but no. 2 to be confiscated by 8.76 acres in favor of the Canadian Northern Pacific Railway and one road. In addition, “No. 11-Malahut, 586.00 acres "," No. 12-Hatch Point, 92.00 acres "," No. 13-Goldstream, 12.00 acres ”, while“ No. 10-Senanus Island, 3.90 acres ”, which originally comprised 4 acres, has been reduced in size in favor of a lighthouse for the Navy. Originally the reserve was supposed to be withdrawn entirely, but the Navy apparently had very little need.
The Commission's proposals did not become legally binding until 1923.
Reservations
The Malahat First Nation or MÁLEXEȽ lives in two reservations on the west bank of Saanich Inlet south of Mill Bay and in the Goldstream and Highland District at the southern end of the Finlayson Arm and at the mouth of the Goldstream River. In August 2009, they numbered 262 people.
The Pauguachin First Nation or BOḰEĆEN are spread over three reserves, with Cole Bay 3 being by far the largest with 284.7 hectares. Hatch Point and Goldstream cover only 36.8 and 4.8 hectares respectively and are located on the west bank of Saanich Inlet and at the south end of Finlayson Arm and at the mouth of the Goldstream River. A total of 374 people belong to the Pauguachin family.
The Tsawout First Nation or SȾÁUTW̱ inhabits six reserves, two larger ones - East Saanich (237.7 ha) and Saturna Island (145.7 ha) - and four small ones (Fulford Harbor 3, Pender Island, Bare Island, which consists of Mandarte Island , and Goldstream 13, with a total of barely 36 ha). In total, it is about 420 hectares. This group includes 766 people.
The Tseycum First Nation or W̱SIḴEM live mainly on Saturna Island (145.7 ha), plus 28 ha on Saanich Inlet (Union Bay 4) and smaller areas on Pender and Mandarte Island and again at the mouth of the Goldstream River. 162 people are registered as Tseycum.
In 2006, the Tsartlip First Nation or W̱JOȽEȽP counted 784 people. They live on Goldstream 13, Mayne Island 6, Senanus Island 10, and South Saanich 1 reservations.
Revival of the language
Today's ȽÁU, WELṈEW̱ Tribal School ( LÁU, WELNEW - "Refuge", name of their sacred mountain) taught around 279 students from four W̱SÁNEĆ First Nations in 2013 - excluding the Malahat (MÁLEXEȽ). This is all the more astonishing since the W̱SÁNEĆ (Saanich) language was practically extinct. Their language has been practically eradicated by state teaching regulations. The use of the language was strictly forbidden in Indian schools.
Dave Elliott, a fisherman born on the Tsartlip Reservation in 1910, still ruled the Sencofen. When Elliott became increasingly incapacitated from arthritis, he worked as a caretaker at the Tsartlip Indian Day School . In the face of increasing ignorance, he began to record his language phonetically. But with that he reached his limits, so that from 1977 he developed a font in which there was exactly one character for each sound, the Dave Elliott Sencofen alphabet. Elliott died in 1985, and Earl Claxton continued his work to publish a dictionary.
Current situation
Three W̱SÁNEĆ (Saanich) First Nations from the Saanich Peninsula - the Tsartlip, Tsawout and Pauquachin - as well as the Semiahmoo have merged to form the Sencot'en Alliance to negotiate land claims and sovereignty rights with the province of British Columbia and the federal government in Ottawa . They claim - partly in conflict with other First Nations, in particular the Tsawwassen First Nation - the southern Gulf Islands, the San Juan Islands, Point Roberts and the adjacent mainland along the Coquitlam River and the entire area south of the Fraser River including Seattle.
The Malahat First Nation (MÁLEXEȽ) signed up for contract negotiations with the First Nations of Scia'new (Beecher Bay) , Nanoose (Sna-Naw-As) , Songhees (called LEQEṈEN / lək̕ʷə́ŋən) and T'sou-ke (SO¸ EȻ / sáʔəkʷ) together in the Te'Mexw Treaty Association .
The Tsartlip First Nation (W̱JOȽEȽP) is currently trying hardest to maintain its sovereignty. This includes economic independence, for which the Arbutus project was launched. This resort should be completed after five years of construction. Allan Claxton of Tsawout First Nation announced in March 2007 that after a vote in which 232 were in favor, 70 against the project and 2 votes were invalid, the land rights and the administration can be returned. This repeals all areas of the Indian Act relating to land administration and establishes an autonomous administration.
Remarks
- ↑ SENICO Classified Word List
- ^ First Voices - About The W̱SÁNEĆ People
- ↑ First nations mold remediation Case study - Tsartlip First Nation
- ↑ According to the information from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development , First Nation Profiles: Songhees ( memento of the original from April 15, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .
- ↑ The documentation of these numerous finds is not very far advanced. Here are some photos: First Nations Burial Cairns on Great Race Rock Island . Darcy Mathews has been researching these mounds since 2006.
- ↑ Quoted from Janis Ringuette: Beacon Hill Park History ( Memento of the original from August 20, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .
- ↑ Knighton, p. 10.
- ↑ The published text: Minutes of Decision - Cowichan Agency-Saanich Tribe ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .
- ↑ The published text: Minutes of Decision - Cowichan Agency-Songhees Tribe ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as broken. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .
- ↑ According to the information from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development , First Nation Profiles: Malahat First Nation ( memento of the original from May 23, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ According to the information from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, First Nation Profiles: Pauquachin ( Memento of the original from March 5, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ According to the information from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, First Nation Profiles: Tsawout First Nation ( Memento of the original from January 12, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .
- ↑ According to the information from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, First Nation Profiles: Tseycum ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Aboriginal Portal Canada, Tsartlip ( Memento of the original from March 25, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ ȽÁU, WELṈEW̱ Tribal School
literature
- Janice Rose Knighton: The Oral History of the 1852 Saanich Douglas Treaty: a treaty for Peace , MA in Indigenous Governance, Victoria 2004
See also
- History of the Coastal Salish
- History of British Columbia
- First Nations history
- List of Indian tribes recognized in Canada