| Nisga’a Nation | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| — Autonomous area — | |||
|
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| Country | Canada | ||
| Province | British Columbia | ||
| Land-claim settlement | 11 May 2000 | ||
| Capital | Gitlakdamix (de facto) | ||
| Villages | Gitlakdamix (New Aiyansh), Gitwinksihlkw (Canyon City), Laxgalts’ap (Greenville), Gingolx (Kincolith) | ||
| Government | |||
| • Type | Nisga’a Lisims Government | ||
| • Body | • Wilp Si’ayuukhl Nisga’a (central legislature, composed of executives from both levels) • Central executive • Village executives |
||
| • President | Sim’oogit K’aw’een - Mitch Stevens | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 2,000 km2 (772.2 sq mi) | ||
| Population | |||
| • Total | 6,000 | ||
| • Density | 3/km2 (7.8/sq mi) | ||
| Time zone | PST (UTC−8) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC−7) | ||
| Postal code prefix | V0 | ||
| Area code | 250 | ||
The Nisga’a (pronounced [nisqa]), often formerly spelled Nishga and spelled in the Nisga’a language as Nisga’a, are an Indigenous nation or First Nation in Canada. They live in the Nass River valley of northwestern British Columbia. Their name comes from a combination of two Nisga’a words: Nisk’-"top lip" and Tl’ak’-"bottom lip". This term was used because K’alii-aksim Lisims (Nass River Valley) is so bountiful that many living creatures come to it to feed. The Nisga’a saw that every living creature used its Nisk’ and Tl’ak’ to eat, therefore... Nisga’a!
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Nisga’a society is organized into four Tribes:
Each Tribe is further sub-divided into House Groups - extended families with same origins. Some houses are grouped together into Clans - grouping of Houses with same ancestors.
Example:
The Nisga’a harvested "beach food" all year round. This would include razor clams, mussels, oysters, limpits, scallops, abalone, fish, seaweed and other seafood that could be harvested from the shore. Eating too much beach food was believed to make you sick. However salmon, cod, char, pike, trout and other fresh water fish were harvested in the streams. Men went out in ocean going canoes to hunt seals, whales, fish and sea otters. The blubber was often traded with other tribes as well as fish oil. Mountain goat, marmot, game birds and more were hunted in the forests. The meat was roasted or boiled. Fish and sea mammals flesh was eaten frozen, boiled or roasted. The heads of a type of cod which were half eaten by sharks were boiled into a soup which kept colds at bay. Dried fish, seal oil, fish oil, blubber and cedar were traded with inland tribes.
Houses of the Nisga’a were rectangular shaped and made of cedar planks. The doors faced the water. The doors were usually decorated with the family crest. Inside, there was a sunken floor which held the hearth and beds and boxes of possessions around the walls. Around 3 to 4 families lived one house. Masks and blankets decorated the walls.
Men wore nothing in the summer and it was normally the best time to hunt and fish. However women wore softened cedar bark skirts and went topless. During the colder season, men wore cedar bark skirts (shaped more like a loincloth), a cape of cedar and a basket hat outside in the rain but wore nothing inside the house. Women wore basket hat sand cedar blankets indoors and outdoors. During war, men wore red cedar armor, a cedar helmet and cedar loincloths. They wielded spears, clubs, harpoons, bows and slings. Wicker shields were common. Shell and bone necklaces and bracelets were worn by both sexes. Seal blubber was rubbed into hair and men kept their hair long or in a top knot.
Approximately 2,500 live in the Nass Valley (within the 4 villages) and another 3,500 Nisga’a live elsewhere in Canada, and around the world (predominantly within the 3 urban societies).
The Nisga’a people number about 6,000. In British Columbia, the Nisga’a Nation is represented by four Villages:
There are also Nisga’a people residing away from their "home communities" with a large concentration in three urban areas which are not in traditional Nisga’a territory:
The Nisga’a calendar revolves around harvesting of foods & goods used. The original year followed the various moons throughout the year.
On August 4, 1998, a land-claim was settled between the Nisga’a, the government of British Columbia, and the Government of Canada. As part of the settlement in the Nass River valley, nearly 2,000 square kilometres of land was officially recognized as Nisga’a, and a 300,000 cubic decameter water reservation was also created. The Bear Glacier Provincial Park was also created as a result of this agreement. The land-claim's settlement was the first formal treaty signed by a First Nation in British Columbia since the Douglas Treaties in 1854.
The Tseax Cone situated in a valley above and east of the Tseax River was the source for an eruption during the 18th century that killed approximately 2,000 Nisga’a people from poisonous volcanic gases.
The Royal Chilkat Robe Originated with the Nisga'a People, called Gwiis Halayt this is the Chieftain's Blanket, worn mainly by head Chiefs, the story of the Chilkat: When the Wife of a Nisga'a Chief who came from Tlingit Came to live amounst the Nisga'a She Learned the art of weaving the Chilkat from from her new family, she wove a very nice Chilkat dance apron, when she died the Nisga'a Sent the weaving back to her Tlingit Family, who in turn wanted to learn this art of the Chilkat weaving, they unwove the apron to learn how it was woven, with the great smallpox epidemic most of the Nisga'a Chilkat Weavers died, so the art of weaving the chilkat was almost lost to Nisga'a, the Chilkat then became known to originate from Tlingit. We now have a handfull of Nisga'a that now know how to weave the Chilkat patterns and Raven's Tail Patterns, one day the Nisga'a Chieftain's will be wear the real Chilkat Robe to show their true Authority. This is the True Story of The Chilkat Chieftain's Robe Called Gwiis Halayt
The government bodies of the Nisga'a include the Nisga'a Lisims Government, the government of the Nisga'a Nation, and the Nisga'a Village Governments, one for each of the four Nisga'a Villages.[1] The Nisga'a Lisims Government is embodied in the Wilp Si'Ayuukhl Nisga'a and located in in the Nisga's Lisims Government Building in Gitlakdamix.
| President | Sim’oogit K’aw’een - Mitch Stevens |
| Secretary-Treasurer | Sim’oogit K’amluugidis - Edmond Wright |
| Chairperson | Kevin McKay |
| Chairperson, Council of Elders | Sim’oogit Ksimxsaan - Oscar Mercer |
| Chief Councillors | Sim’oogit Gwisk’aayin - Nelson Clayton (Gingolx) Sim’oogit Ni’isyuus - Willard Martin (Laxgalts’ap) Peter Lambright (Gitwinksihlkw) Sim’oogit Ksdiyaawak - George Williams Sr (New Aiyansh) |
In 2011 the Nisga'a Museum, a project of the Nisga'a Lisims Government, opened in Laxgalts'ap. It contains many historical artifacts of the Nisga'a people returned after many decades in major museums beyond the Nass Valley.