Gitxsan (also spelled Gitksan and Kitksan) are an

Indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

in Canada whose home territory comprises most of the area known as the

Skeena Country The Skeena Country is a historic geographic region comprising areas of both the British Columbia Coast and the British Columbia Interior in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. See also * Skeena Crossing * Skeena Mountains * Skeena River ...

in English (: means "people of" and : means "the River of Mist"). Gitksan territory encompasses approximately of land, from the basin of the upper

Skeena River The Skeena River is the second-longest river entirely within British Columbia, Canada (after the Fraser River). Since ancient times, the Skeena has been an important transportation artery, particularly for the Tsimshian and the Gitxsan—whose na ...

from about Legate Creek to the Skeena's headwaters and its surrounding tributaries. Part of the Tsimshianic language group, their culture is considered to be part of the civilization of the

Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast The Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast are composed of many nations and tribal affiliations, each with distinctive cultural and political identities. They share certain beliefs, traditions and prac ...

, although their territory lies in the Interior rather than on the

Coast A coast (coastline, shoreline, seashore) is the land next to the sea or the line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. Coasts are influenced by the topography of the surrounding landscape and by aquatic erosion, su ...

. They were at one time also known as the ''Interior Tsimshian'', a term which also included the

Nisga'a The Nisga’a (; ), formerly spelled Nishga or Niska, are an Indigenous people in British Columbia, Canada. They reside in the Nass River valley of northwestern British Columbia. The origin of the term ''Niska'' is uncertain. The spelling ' ...

, the Gitxsan's neighbours to the north. Their neighbours to the west are the

Tsimshian The Tsimshian (; ) are an Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast, Indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. Their communities are mostly in coastal British Columbia in Terrace, British Columbia, Terrace and ...

(a.k.a. the Coast Tsimshian) while to the east the

Wetʼsuwetʼen The Wetʼsuwetʼen are a First Nations in Canada, First Nation who live on the Bulkley River and around Burns Lake, Broman Lake, and François Lake in the northwestern British Columbia Interior, Central Interior of British Columbia. The We ...

, an Athapaskan people, with whom they have a long and deep relationship and shared political and cultural community.

Society and culture

Gitxsan are a

matrilineal Matrilineality, at times called matriliny, is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which people identify with their matriline, their mother's lineage, and which can involve the inheritan ...

society that consists of Frog, Eagle, Wolf, and Fireweed

Clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, a clan may claim descent from a founding member or apical ancestor who serves as a symbol of the clan's unity. Many societie ...

s. Each clan consists of a series of independent Houses (Wilp), each with their own High Chief, and traditional territories and fishing sites. Marriage within a clan is forbidden. There are approximately 5,000 people

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

wide with many living in traditional Gitxsan territory. Many also live elsewhere in British Columbia, in places such as

Terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk a ...

, Smithers, and in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, as well as around the world. Eighty per cent of the people living on the lands surrounding Legate creek to the Skeena headwaters are Gitxsan ('People of the River Mist') and archaeological evidence supports a continuous habitation of at least 10,000 years. Their traditional language is called Gitxsanimaax. A museum known as 'Ksan displaying some traditional and modern Gitksan art and history is located on the Gitanmaax reserve near Hazelton.

Title and treaties

The aboriginal title rights of the Gitxsan and their neighbours, the

, were affirmed by the

Supreme Court of Canada The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; , ) is the highest court in the judicial system of Canada. It comprises nine justices, whose decisions are the ultimate application of Canadian law, and grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants eac ...

in its 1997 Delgamuukw decision. To date, a treaty agreement between the Gitxsan Nation and the Federal

Government of Canada The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...

and Provincial Government of British Columbia has not been reached.

Communities

Some of the Gitxsan (Gitksan) villages are, divided by dialect: Gitxsan dialect or Gitxsanimax̱, also known as Eastern Gitxsan dialect speaking bands in Gigeenix (eastern region): * Old Hazelton (traditional name: Gitanmaax, Gitanmaax Band) * Kispiox (traditional name: Anspa'yaxw, Kispiox Band Council) * Glen Vowell (traditional name: Sik-e-Dakh, Glen Vowell Indian Band) Gitsken dialect or Gitsenimx̱ , also known as Western Gitksan dialect speaking bands in Gyeets (western region): * Gitanyow (formerly Kitwancool, Gitanyow Band) * Gitsegukla (formerly: Kitsegeucla, Gitsegukla Indian Band (formerly Kitsegugkla)) * Kitwanga (traditional name: Gitwangak, Gitwangak Indian Band (formerly Kitwanga)) - the Gitksan community of Cedarvale (traditional name: Minskinish or Meanskaniist) belong as Koonwat Indian Reserve No. 7 to the Gitwangak.

Notable people of Gitxsan descent

* Cindy Blackstock * Simon Gunanoot, long sought-after fugitive later cleared of wrongdoing * Walter Harris, hereditary chief and artist/carver * Doreen Jensen, artist, carver, activist and educator * Judith P. Morgan, painter * Angela Sterritt, journalist * Neil J. Sterritt, author and activist * Billy ThunderKloud, singer/entertainer, Nashville recording artist, 1975 Outstanding Indian of the Year, hereditary chief * Nathaniel P. Wilkerson, artist/carver, engineer, programmer/developer * Jean Virginia Sampare, an abducted girl missing from Gitsegukla, British Columbia, Canada

References

Bibliography

*Adams, John W. (1973) ''The Gitksan Potlatch: Population Flux, Resource Ownership and Reciprocity.'' Toronto: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston of Canada. *Barbeau, Marius (1928) ''The Downfall of Temlaham.'' Toronto: MacMillan. *Barbeau, Marius (1929) ''Totem Poles of the Gitksan, Upper Skeena River, British Columbia.'' Ottawa: Canada, Department of Mines. *Beynon, William (2000) ''Potlatch at Gitsegukla: William Beynon’s 1945 Field Notebooks.'' Ed. by Margaret Anderson and Marjorie Halpin. Vancouver: U.B.C. Press. *Bookbuildes of 'Ksan (1977) ''We-Gyet Wanders On: Legends of the Northwest.'' Saanichton, B.C.: Hancock House Publishers. *Cove, John J. (1982) "The Gitksan Traditional Concept of Land Ownership." ''Anthropologica,'' vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 3–17. *Daly, Richard (2005) ''Our Box Was Full: An Ethnography for the Delgamuukw Plaintiffs.'' Vancouver: UBC Press. *Duff, Wilson (ed.) (1959) ''Histories, Territories and Laws of the Kitwancool.'' Victoria: Royal British Columbia Museum. *Galois, Robert, and Neil J. Sterritt, (1998
''Tribal Boundaries in the Nass Watershed.'' Vancouver: U.B.C. Press.
*Gibson, John Frederic (1972) ''A Small and Charming World.'' Toronto: Collins Publishers. *Glavin, Terry (1990) ''A Death Feast in Dimlahamid.'' Vancouver: New Star Books. *Harris, Christie (1975) ''Sky Man on the Totem Pole?'' New York: Atheneum. *Harris, Kenneth B. (1974) ''Visitors Who Never Left: The Origin of the People of Damelahamid.'' Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press. *Monet, Don, and Ardythe Wilson (1992) ''Colonialism on Trial: Indigenous Land Rights and the Gitksan and Wet’suwet’en Sovereignty Case.'' Philadelphia: New Society Publishers. *Sterritt, Neil J., (2020
''Mapping My Way Home: A Gitxsan History.'' Smithers, BC: Creekstone Press.
*Russell, Roy (2015) ''Feast: A Gitksan Story''

External links

Gitxsan Nation official website

Evictions
{{Authority control Skeena Country