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The Sahtú or North Slavey (historically called ''Hare'' or ''Hareskin Indians'') are a
Dene The Dene people () are an Aboriginal peoples in Canada, indigenous group of First Nations in Canada, First Nations who inhabit the northern Boreal forest of Canada, boreal and Arctic regions of Canada. The Dene speak Northern Athabaskan languag ...
First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...
people of the Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group living in the vicinity of
Great Bear Lake Great Bear Lake ( den, Sahtú; french: Grand lac de l'Ours) is a lake in the boreal forest of Canada. It is the largest lake entirely in Canada (Lake Superior and Lake Huron are larger but straddle the Canada–US border), the fourth-largest ...
(''Sahtú'', the source of their name),
Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...
, Canada. The Sahtú peoples live in Colville Lake, Deline,
Fort Good Hope Fort Good Hope (formerly ''Fort Hope'', ''Fort Charles'', also now known as the ''Charter Community of K'asho Got'ine''), is a charter community in the Sahtu Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is located on a peninsula between Jackf ...
,
Norman Wells Norman Wells ( Slavey language: ''Tłegǫ́hłı̨'' "where there is oil") is a town located in the Sahtu Region, Northwest Territories, Canada, settled about 140 km (87 mi) south of the Arctic Circle. The town, which hosts the Sahtu Regional o ...
and
Tulita Tulita, which in Slavey means "where the rivers or waters meet," is a hamlet in the Sahtu Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was formerly known as ''Fort Norman'', until 1 January 1996. It is located at the junction of the Great Bear ...
which form the
Sahtu Region The Sahtu Region is an administrative region in Canada's Northwest Territories. Coterminous with the settlement region described in the 1993 Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement, of the Sahtu is collectively owned by its Indi ...
of the NWT. The Dene of the region are represented by the
Sahtu Dene Council The Sahtu Dene Council is a council that represents the Sahtu people of the Northwest Territories, Canada. The council signed a comprehensive land claim agreement in 1993 with the Government of Canada, the Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land C ...
who, in 1993, signed the
Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement The Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement, is a comprehensive lands claim agreement between The Crown in the right of Canada and the Dene and Métis of the Sahtu area in the Northwest Territories. The agreement was signed by ...
. Sahtú groups include the ''Hare Dene'' (K'ahsho Got'ine District, today: Colville Lake and Fort Good Hope), ''Bear Lake Dene'' (Déline District), and ''Mountain Dene'' (Tulit'a District). They call themselves also ''Ɂehdzo Got’ı̨ne'' (Trap People).


Ethnography

An early description of Sahtú cultures is given in Alexander Mackenzie's journal of his voyage down the Mackenzie River to the
Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, a ...
in 1789. Although there are close interrelationships among the Dene communities, they are culturally and linguistically distinct. The ''K’ahsho Got’ine (Hare(skin) Dene)'' are now centred in Fort Good Hope and Colville Lake. The ''Shita Got’ine (Mountain Dene)'' have joined with the ''K’áálǫ Got’ine (Willow Lake Dene)'' (they lived around K’áálô Tué – ″Willow Lake″, today known as Brackett Lake) in the community of Tulit’a. The ''Sahtúot’ine (Sahtú Dene or Great Bear Lake Dene)'' are named after Sahtú/Great Bear Lake, and are based in Deline. Métis people, descendants of relationships established between Dene people and fur traders, reside in all five communities of the region. The Hareskin Dene called themselves ''K'a so Got’ine/Katoo Got’ine'' ("big willow people") or ''K’ahsho Got’ine/K'áshot’ Got’ine'' (″big-arrowhead-people″, mistranslated as Hareskin people, an English rendering of ''Gahwié Got’ine'' – ″Rabbit(skin) People″). The Déline community of the Sahtú Dene experienced great loss during Canada's participation in the
Manhattan Project The Manhattan Project was a research and development undertaking during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with the support of the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the project w ...
. The need for
radioactive Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is consid ...
materials, (such as
radium Radium is a chemical element with the symbol Ra and atomic number 88. It is the sixth element in group 2 of the periodic table, also known as the alkaline earth metals. Pure radium is silvery-white, but it readily reacts with nitrogen (rather t ...
), to create
atomic weapons A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...
was met with the deposits mined from the Eldorado Mine at
Port Radium Port Radium is a mining area on the eastern shore of Great Bear Lake, Northwest Territories, Canada. It included the settlement of Cameron Bay as well as the Eldorado (also called Port Radium) and Echo Bay mines. The name Port Radium did not ...
on Great Bear Lake. The Sahtú Dene were hired to transport the ore containing radium from the Northwest Territories to be processed in
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
or the United States. Since much of the uranium that existed in Europe was under
Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
control, the radium deposits in Canada were vital to the creation of the first atomic bombs. Unaware of the radiation's effects, the Sahtú Dene used "cloth sacks" to transport the ore. The number of deaths caused by radiation is disputed by the Government of Canada. The government report says that the people of Deline did not handle
yellowcake Yellowcake (also called urania) is a type of uranium concentrate powder obtained from leach solutions, in an intermediate step in the processing of uranium ores. It is a step in the processing of uranium after it has been mined but before fue ...
but
sulfur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...
powder. The level of exposure to uranium ore without modern safety standards is expected to cause a small number of excess cancer deaths. Ultimately, the devastating effects of radiation poisoning impacted the Déline community severely. A 1999 documentary by Peter Blow entitled '' Village of Widows'' detailed the experiences of the Sahtú Dene.


Today's Sahtu Dene First Nations

Sahtu Dene Council *
Behdzi Ahda' First Nation The Behdzi Ahda' First Nation is a Dene First Nations band government in the Northwest Territories. The band's main community is Colville Lake. The Behdzi Ahda' First Nation is a member of the Sahtu Dene Council. Under the Sahtu Dene and Metis ...
(headquartered in Colville Lake (''K'áhbamį́túé'' – ″ptarmigan net place″), ancestral homeland of the ''K'ahsho Got'ine (Hare(skin) Dene)'', the surrounding area is still inhabited by them, reserve: Colville Lake Settlement, Population: 219) *
Délı̨nę First Nation The Délı̨nę First Nation is a Dene First Nations in Canada, First Nations band government in the Northwest Territories. The band's main community is Deline, Délı̨nę, the only populated place on Great Bear Lake. All of its powers and respon ...
( Deline (''Délınę'') – ″Where the Water Flows", pronounced ′day-li-neh′, located near the headwaters of the Bear River (''Sahtu De''), where it rushes out of
Great Bear Lake Great Bear Lake ( den, Sahtú; french: Grand lac de l'Ours) is a lake in the boreal forest of Canada. It is the largest lake entirely in Canada (Lake Superior and Lake Huron are larger but straddle the Canada–US border), the fourth-largest ...
to the Mackenzie River, a place nearby where the lake seldom freezes over was a fishing place for the ''Sahtúot’ine/Sahtugotine (Bear Lake Dene)'', reserve: Fort Franklin Settlement, Population: 981, Sahtú Dene families are often related to ''K'ahsho Got'ine (Hare(skin Dene)'', Gwich’in and ''Shita Got'ine (Mountain Dene)'' peoples. The people of Great Bear Lake had to be hardy and resourceful to survive in the past. Within living memory, they lived a nomadic life, following fish and game with the seasons. Many still supplement their diets by hunting, fishing and trapping at least part of the time. Homes often feature a traditional lodge or tipi used to smoke meat and fish. In contrast, many of these same homes today are equipped with satellite dishes to pull in North American television.) *
Fort Good Hope First Nation The Fort Good Hope First Nation is a Dene First Nations in Canada, First Nations band government in the Northwest Territories. The band's main community is Fort Good Hope. The Fort Good Hope First Nation is a member of the Sahtu Dene Council. Und ...
(also known as ''K’asho Gotine Dene Band'' or''K’asho Go’tine Community Council''), headquartered in
Fort Good Hope Fort Good Hope (formerly ''Fort Hope'', ''Fort Charles'', also now known as the ''Charter Community of K'asho Got'ine''), is a charter community in the Sahtu Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is located on a peninsula between Jackf ...
(or the Charter Community of K'asho Got'ine), called ''Rádeyîlîkóé'' – "Where the Rapids Are" by the local ''K'ahsho Got'ine (Hare(skin) Dene)'', is located on a peninsula between Jackfish Creek and the east bank of the Mackenzie River, about 145 km (90 mi) northwest of Norman Wells, reserve: Fort Good Hope Settlement, Population: 869) *
Tulita Dene First Nation The Tulita Dene First Nation is a Dene First Nations band government in the Northwest Territories. The band's main community is Tulita, along the Mackenzie River. The Tulita Dene First Nation is a member of the Sahtu Dene Council. Under the Sa ...
(''Tulita Band Council'', also known as ''Begade Shotagotine First Nation'', headquartered in Tulit'a – "Where the two Rivers Meet", which was formerly known as Fort Norman, reserve: Fort Norman Settlement, Population: 670) – they are as ''Begade Shotagotine (eng)'', ''Begaa Deh Shuh Tah Got’ie (North Slavey)'' or as ''Begaee Shuhagot'ine (South Slavey variety)'' also members of the
Dehcho First Nations The Dehcho First Nations is a tribal council representing the Dene (South Slavey) and Métis people of the Dehcho Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is made up of ten First Nations bands and two Métis Locals. Membership The Deh ...
of the South Slavey


Language

Sahtú speak the North Slavey language, which belongs to northwestern Canada group of
Northern Athabaskan languages Northern Athabaskan is a geographic sub-grouping of the Athabaskan language family spoken by indigenous peoples in the northern part of North America, particularly in Alaska (Alaskan Athabaskans), Yukon, and the Northwest Territories. The Northe ...
.


Notable Sahtu people

*
Ethel Blondin-Andrew Ethel Dorothy Blondin-Andrew (born 25 March 1951) is a Canadian politician, educator, and public servant. She became the first Indigenous woman to be elected to the Parliament of Canada in 1988 when she became a member of Parliament for the di ...
, former Member of Parliament for the district of the
Western Arctic Northwest Territories (french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest) is a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada. The electoral district covers the entire territory. This riding was created in 1962 from Mackenzie River ...
*
Rosemary Georgeson Rosemary Georgeson is a Coast Salish and Sahtu Dene filmmaker and multi-media artist. Georgeson was born on Galiano Island in British Columbia, Canada. Her work ranges from film, theatre, radio to involvement in the culinary arts. Georgeson was the ...
, mixed Sahtu/
Coast Salish The Coast Salish is a group of ethnically and linguistically related Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast, living in the Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. states of Washington and Oregon. They speak one of the Coas ...
multi-media artist *
Stephen Kakfwi Stephen Kakfwi (born 1950 in Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories) is a Canadian politician, who was the ninth premier of the Northwest Territories. His sixteen-year tenure in the cabinet of the Northwest Territories is the longest in the Territo ...
, politician and was the ninth Premier of the Northwest Territories *
Rick Rivet Rick Rivet (born 1949 in Aklavik, Northwest Territories) is a Sahtu–Métis painter living in Canada. Background and education Rivet's family lived both in the country and in town at Aklavik, which was a Métis trading center. Métis have a spec ...
(born 1949), Neo-expressionist painter"The Fellows: 1999."
''Eiteljorg Fellowship for Native American Fine Art.'' Accessed 4 May 2014.
*
James Wah-Shee James Wah-Shee (born 1945 as James Washie) is Tłı̨chǫ elder and a former territorial level politician from Northwest Territories, Canada. He served as a Member of the Northwest Territories Legislature from 1979 until 1987. In the 1970s Wah-S ...
, a former territorial level politician


See also

*
Hare Indian Dog The Hare Indian dog is an extinct domesticated Canis, canine; possibly a breed of domestic dog, coydog, or domesticated coyote; formerly found and originally bred in northern Canada by the Hare Indians for coursing. It had the speed and some cha ...
*
Saoyú-ʔehdacho Saoyú-ʔehdacho (also known as Sahoyue-Edacho, Sahoyúé-§ehdacho, Saoyú and Æehdacho and Grizzly Bear Mountain and Scented Grass Hills) is a cultural landscape in the Northwest Territories, Canada, comprising two peninsulas in Great Bear ...
, a National Historic Site of Canada with spiritual and historical significance to the Sahtu


References


Further reading

* Auld, James and Robert Kershaw, Eds. ''The Sahtu Atlas: Maps and Stories from the Sahtu Settlement Area in Canada's Northwest Territories''. orman Wells, N.W.T. Sahtu GIS Project, 2005. * Blondin, George. ''When the World Was New: Stories of the Sahtú Dene''. Yellowknife, N.W.T., Canada: Outcrop, the Northern Publishers, 1990. * Canada. ''Implementation Plan for the Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement''. Ottawa: Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, 1993. * Kuhnlein, H V, et al. 1995. "DIETARY NUTRIENTS OF SAHTU DENE/METIS VARY BY FOOD SOURCE, SEASON AND AGE". ''Ecology of Food and Nutrition''. 34, no. 3: 183. * Sahtu Heritage Places and Sites Joint Working Group. ''Rakekée Gok'é Godi = Places We Take Care of''. ellowknife, NWT?: Sahtu Heritage Places and Sites Joint Working Group 2000.


External links


Official website: Sahtú Secretariat and Sahtú Dene Council

Map: Sahtú region, NWT



Sahtu Renewable Resources Board


* Photos:

an

*
Tulita, Fort Norman, Sahtú Region
{{Aboriginal peoples in the Northwest Territories Dene peoples