The Tahltan or

Nahani Nahani (Nahane, Nahanni) is an Athapaskan word used to designate native groups located in British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the Yukon Territory between the upper Liard River and the 64th parallel north latitude. While these native ...

are a

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 Athabaskan (also spelled ''Athabascan'', ''Athapaskan'' or ''Athapascan'', and also known as Dene) is a large family of indigenous languages of North America, located in western North America in three areal language groups: Northern, Pacific C ...

-speaking

ethnolinguistic group An ethnolinguistic group (or ethno-linguistic group) is a group that is unified by both a common ethnicity and language. Most ethnic groups share a first language. However, "ethnolinguistic" is often used to emphasise that language is a major bas ...

who live in northern

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

around

Telegraph Creek Telegraph Creek is a small community located off Highway 37 in northern British Columbia at the confluence of the Stikine River and Telegraph Creek. The only permanent settlement on the Stikine River, it is home to approximately 250 members of Tah ...

Dease Lake Dease Lake is a small community located in the Cassiar Country of the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It is located a few hours south of the Yukon border on Stewart–Cassiar Highway (Highway 37) at the south end of the lake o ...

, and

Iskut Iskut is a small, mostly Indigenous community in the Stikine Country of northwestern British Columbia. It is located on Highway 37, at the north end of Eddontenajon Lake just south of Dease Lake and the crossing of the Stikine River. Communi ...

. The Tahltan constitute the fourth division of the ''Nahane'' (People of the West).

Culture

The Tahltan cultural practices and lifeways varied widely as they were often widely separated and would have to endure varying conditions depending on their locality. In Tahltan culture it was believed that some of their ancestors had knowledge that others did not from times before a great flood. Some of these ancestors used that knowledge for the good of the people, while others used it for evil and to the disadvantage of others. Raven is considered to be the protagonist hero against these evil ancestors.

Social organization

Tahltan social organization is founded on

matriarchy Matriarchy is a social system in which women hold the primary power positions in roles of authority. In a broader sense it can also extend to moral authority, social privilege and control of property. While those definitions apply in general E ...

and intermarriage between two main clan designations. The two main clans of Tahltan people are Tses' Kiya (pronounced Tses-kee-ya) (

Crow A crow is a bird of the genus ''Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifical ...

) and Chiyone (pronounced Chee-oanah) (Wolf). These two clans are further subdivided into four parties: # Kartchottee (Raven)—This family originated in the Interior toward the headwaters of the

Taku River The Taku River (Lingít: ''T'aaḵu Héeni'') is a river running from British Columbia, Canada, to the northwestern coast of North America, at Juneau, Alaska. The river basin spreads across . The Taku is a very productive salmon river and its dra ...

. This is the most numerous family of the tribe, also represented by the

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...

. # Nanyiee (Wolf)—Also represented by the

brown bear The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is kno ...

, the killer-whale, and the

shark Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachimo ...

. This family originated near the headwaters of

, moved towards the ocean and settling among the Stikine

Tlingit The Tlingit ( or ; also spelled Tlinkit) are indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. Their language is the Tlingit language (natively , pronounced ),

; and then ascended the Stikine River and became a family of the Tahltan. # Talarkoteen (Wolf)—Originating near

Peace River The Peace River (french: links=no, rivière de la Paix) is a river in Canada that originates in the Rocky Mountains of northern British Columbia and flows to the northeast through northern Alberta. The Peace River joins the Athabasca River in th ...

in the Interior, these peoples followed

Liard River The Liard River of the North American boreal forest flows through Yukon, British Columbia and the Northwest Territories, Canada. Rising in the Saint Cyr Range of the Pelly Mountains in southeastern Yukon, it flows southeast through British Co ...

and then crossed to the Tuya. # Tuckclarwaydee (Wolf)—Also represented by the

, the

eagle Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

, and the killer-whale. This family is credited as being the founders of the Tahltan tribe, originating in the interior near the headwaters of Nags river.

Government

Contemporary Tahltan society constitutes itself as the

Tahltan Nation The Tàłtàn Nation is a tribal council-type organization (but ''not'' a tribal council) combining the governments of two band governments of the Tahltan people in the Stikine Country of the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. The two ...

, which comprises the membership and governments of the

Tahltan First Nation The Tahltan First Nation, also known as the Tahltan Indian Band, is a band government of the Tahltan people. Their main community and reserves are located at Telegraph Creek, British Columbia. Their language is the Tahltan language, which is an A ...

and

Iskut First Nation The Iskut First Nation is a band government of the Tahltan people. Their main reserve is Iskut IR No.6, located at Iskut, British Columbia; Iskut is in the same vicinity, while the band's third reserve, Stikine River IR No. 7 is located one mile w ...

History

Ten thousand years ago, the Tahltan people used

obsidian Obsidian () is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Obsidian is produced from felsic lava, rich in the lighter elements s ...

from

Mount Edziza Mount Edziza is a stratovolcano in the Stikine Country of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. The volcano and the surrounding area are protected within Mount Edziza Provincial Park. It consists of multiple peaks and ridges, with several glaci ...

to make

tool A tool is an object that can extend an individual's ability to modify features of the surrounding environment or help them accomplish a particular task. Although many animals use simple tools, only human beings, whose use of stone tools dates ba ...

s and

weapon A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, s ...

s for trading material. This is the main source of obsidian found in northwestern British Columbia.

Coal-bed methane conflict

Coal-bed methane extraction had already been the subject of protests in the

Bulkley Valley The Bulkley Valley is in the northwest Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Geography The Bulkley, a stream running through Houston, British Columbia, joins the larger Morice River about to the west. At the confluence, they become not ...

against a project planned near

Telkwa, British Columbia Telkwa is a village located along British Columbia Highway 16, nearly southeast of the town of Smithers and west of the city of Prince George, in northwest British Columbia, Canada. History Settlement in the area began around 1904 in a townsi ...

. In a unanimous 2003 resolution, the Union of B.C. Municipalities asked for a moratorium on coal-bed methane mining in the province. Since 2005, the Klabona Keepers, a group of Tahltan elders, have watched the road leading through Tahltan territory towards the

Sacred headwaters The Sacred Headwaters is a large subalpine drainage basin centred around Klappan Mountain of the Klappan Range in northern British Columbia. It is the source of three wild salmon rivers: the Skeena River, Nass River, and Stikine River. It is als ...

(Klappan Valley) in opposition to development there, specifically a

coalbed methane Coalbed methane (CBM or coal-bed methane), coalbed gas, coal seam gas (CSG), or coal-mine methane (CMM) is a form of natural gas extracted from coal beds. In recent decades it has become an important source of energy in United States, Canada, Au ...

mining project planned by

Royal Dutch Shell Shell plc is a British multinational oil and gas company headquartered in London, England. Shell is a public limited company with a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and secondary listings on Euronext Amsterdam and the New Yo ...

.Native Group Opposes Mining on Sacred Site, Joan Delaney, The Epoch Times (Toronto Edition), December 6, 2007. The Sacred Headwaters (Klappan Valley) is home to the

headwater The headwaters of a river or stream is the farthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or downstream confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river. It is also known as a river's source. Definition The ...

s of the Nass, Skeena and

Stikine River The Stikine River is a major river in northern British Columbia (BC), Canada and southeastern Alaska in the United States. It drains a large, remote upland area known as the Stikine Country east of the Coast Mountains. Flowing west and south f ...

s. Not only do these rivers provide a home to important salmon stocks, Tahltan

oral history Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people wh ...

holds that these headwaters are the place where the earth was first created and where Talhtan culture began. According to the Klabona Keepers, the valley is used for fishing, hunting, and trapping. It is the site of a Tahltan burial ground and a cultural camp where Talhtan youth can learn their culture in the summer. In 2004, Shell was awarded the oil and gas rights to the Klappan Valley, one of

's largest

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

deposits with an estimated of

methane Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The relative abundance of methane on Eart ...

. That year, Shell drilled three exploratory wells at the headwaters, but in 2005 four Shell employees who arrived at the band office in

were turned away by a group of elders and no drilling occurred that summer. Non-violent blockades in 2005 and 2006 delayed development efforts and led to the arrests of 13 protesters. Talhtan territory was the site of half of all the mining exploration in British Columbia during 2006. Protests in

Smithers Smithers is a surname of English origin. It derives from the Middle English term "smyther", referring to a metalsmith, and is thus related to the common occupational surname Smith. The name Smither is related. People *Alan Smithers (born 1938), ...

have been as large as 600 people.

David Suzuki David Takayoshi Suzuki (born March 24, 1936) is a Canadian academic, science broadcaster, and environmental activist. Suzuki earned a PhD in zoology from the University of Chicago in 1961, and was a professor in the genetics department at th ...

and Wade Davis have both criticized plans for coal-bed methane mining in the headwaters and, in June 2007, 14 different environmental groups sent a joint letter to Shell opposing the project. Representatives from Shell assert a determination to reach consensus in the community and note that the elected

Tahltan Central Council The Tàłtàn Nation is a tribal council-type organization (but ''not'' a tribal council) combining the governments of two band governments of the Tahltan people in the Stikine Country of the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. The ...

(TCC) agreed to the exploration. Chief Jerry Asp was forced to resign in 2005 after protests from Tahltan members accusing him of a

conflict of interest A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates to situations i ...

because of his involvement with two pro-development organizations. On December 18, 2012, the B.C. government announced that Shell would be withdrawing its plans to explore and drill for coalbed methane gas in the Tahltan Territory. According to the

Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition The Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition is a non-governmental organization based in British Columbia which opposes Royal Dutch Shell's Klappan Coalbed Methane Project in a region dubbed the Sacred Headwaters by the Tahltan people, which is l ...

, Shell has launched a lawsuit against Talhtan elders for loss of revenue. The Klabona Keepers have filed a counter-suit for failure to consult. Employment opportunities have come from natural resources development in recent years. Because of various concerns over the lands, the parties involved balance development and environmental aspects. Talk of an Alaska-Canada railroad traversing Tahltan lands recurs every so often with feasibility studies being done.

Language

Tahltan is a poorly documented Northern

Athabaskan language Athabaskan (also spelled ''Athabascan'', ''Athapaskan'' or ''Athapascan'', and also known as Dene) is a large family of indigenous languages of the Americas, indigenous languages of North America, located in western North America in three areal ...

. Some linguists consider Tahltan to be a language with three divergent but mutually intelligible dialects.Marianne Mithun. ''The Languages of Native North America. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Other linguists consider these to be separate languages. The number of speakers are below. *

Kaska The Kaska or Kaska Dena are a First Nations people of the Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group living mainly in northern British Columbia and the southeastern Yukon in Canada. The Kaska language, originally spoken by the Kaska, is an Athabas ...

: approximately 400 speakers (Poser 2003) *

Tahltan The Tahltan or Nahani are a First Nations people of the Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group who live in northern British Columbia around Telegraph Creek, Dease Lake, and Iskut. The Tahltan constitute the fourth division of the ''Nahane' ...

: approximately 35 speakers (Poser 2003) *

Tagish The Tagish or Tagish Khwáan (Tagish language, Tagish: ; tli, Taagish ḵwáan) are a First Nations in Canada, First Nations people of the Athabaskan languages, Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group that lived around Tagish Lake and Marsh ...

: no fluent speakers as of 2008

Notes and references

Notes

References

*Hodge, Frederick Webb, Compiler. ''The Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico''. Bureau of American Ethnology, Government Printing Office, 1906. As cited i
Access Genealogy: Indian Tribal Records
Retrieved 4 December 2008. *

External links

Tahltan Central Council

Map of Northwest Coast First Nations

Photos of the Tahltan
* {{authority control Stikine Country Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Plateau Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest First Nations in British Columbia