Keywords Native Tribes

Culture
Gitksans no longer burn the bodies of their dead, a cultural trait which they shared with their Carrier (Wet'suwet'en) neighbours but not with related Tsimshian or Nishga (Nisga'a) groups. They are noted for their traditional art, which ranges from the complex Chilkat blankets and intricately wrought mountain-sheep horn spoons to the totem poles which the heirs of chiefs were obligated to raise as memorials. Traditional crafts are encouraged by programs of Ksan (the reconstructed Gitksan village which serves as a cultural centre), and by the band councils and band-operated schools.

Social and Political Organization
The Gitksan-Wet'suwet'en (previously Gitksan-Carrier) Tribal Council co-ordinates social programs and is engaged in land claims litigation. In the historic court case Delgamuukw et al v The Queen (8 March 1991), the hereditary chiefs of the 2 tribes claimed aboriginal rights to 22 000 sq mi of their traditional territories in northwestern BC, an area approximately the size of New Brunswick. The judgement by BC Supreme Court Justice A. MacEachern stated that the Gitksan/Wet'suwet'en have neither sovereignty, jurisdiction nor aboriginal title, such rights having ceased to exist during the colonial period because colonial legislation exhibited a clear and plain intention to extinguish them, even though these laws did not do so expressly, nor did they even mention aboriginal rights. The judgement did find that the Gitksan were entitled to use unoccupied crown land in their claimed territory for aboriginal subsistence activities. A Supreme Court of Canada judgement (11 Dec 1997) found that no blanket extinguishing of ABORIGINAL RIGHTS pre- or postcontact had occurred (see DELGAMUUKW CASE). The Tribal Council continues to document and foster Gitksan traditions.

Author J.V. POWELL and VICKIE D. JENSEN

Links to Other Sites
Gitxsan culture and heritage
This illustrated website profiles the culture and history of Gitxsan people in northwest British Columbia. Developed by the 'Ksan Historical Village and Museum

Encyclopedia of Canada's Peoples
The website for the "Encyclopedia of Canada's Peoples." Click on the links for feature articles about Canada's many multicultural communities, access to their extensive digital archives collection, learning modules, and much more. From "Multicultural Canada."

Languages of Canada
A comprehensive online database of languages currently in use in Canada. Also provides details about extinct languages. Check out the "language maps" for more information. Based on "Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Fifteenth edition." From SIL International, a US website.