Gwich'in

Gwich'in (formerly Kutchin), the northernmost of all North American Indians, occupied a broad sweep of territory located primarily North of the Arctic Circle and extending across the Mackenzie drainage and northern tributaries of the Yukon River into northwest Alaska. Their northern boundary abuts INUIT land. They speak an Athapaskan language, unintelligible to all other Athapaskans except possibly the HAN (see NATIVE PEOPLE, LANGUAGES).

Keywords

Native Tribes

Early Economy

Depending on an upland or lowland habitat, the 9 or 10 regional bands concentrated on moose hunting or salmon fishing, though caribou, captured in impressive corrals, were available to all bands. Even though big game supplied the greater part of their food and hides for clothing and shelter, the Gwich'in also caught whitefish, hare and other small game. Gwich'in knowledge of their environment was extensive; one anthropologist recorded 400 Gwich'in names for plants and animals. Gwich'in technology was similar to that of other subarctic Athapaskans, with distinctive western elements, including large metal knives with double recurved handles, sleds, chair-style birchbark baby carriers, partially decked-over kayak-canoes, and portable domed caribou-skin tents. Adults and children alike wore V-tailed summer shirts decorated with red ochre, dentalium (beads made with mollusc shells) and dyed porcupine quills. Women tattooed their chins and, on ceremonial occasions, men coiffed their hair with red ochre mixed with grease and sprinkled with down.

Man's Summer Costume
Adults and children alike wore V-tailed summer shirts decorated with red ochre, dentalium (beads made with seeds) and dyed porcupine quills (courtesy CMC/K-75-954).

Social System

A pair of same-sex siblings with their nuclear families customarily formed a household. Several households related to one senior person or "chief" made up a local band, which worked together to build caribou surrounds and large fish traps, but sometimes larger groups met to hunt. Several local bands formed a regional band, maintained through intermarriage and other interactions between constituent families within a single geographic area. Regional bands assembled for annual festivities and ceremonies. Gwich'in identity was achieved through language. Cross-cutting the band structure were 3 matrilineal clans which regulated marriage.

Religion
The Gwich'in world view included beliefs in animal spirits, spirit beings, bushmen (wild Indians with supernatural attributes) and the culture hero-trickster Raven (crow), recorded in culture hero myth cycles and raven myths.

History Since Contact

In 1789 the Gwich'in, locally named "Loucheux," were contacted by Alexander MACKENZIE south of the Mackenzie Delta. Within 2 decades they were trading extraterritorially at posts on the Mackenzie River, and, in 1840, FORT MCPHERSON was built on the Peel River. The HUDSON'S BAY COMPANY established Fort Yukon, Alaska, in 1847. The Gwich'in had been intermediaries in trade between the coastal Inuit and interior tribes and between the Mackenzie and Yukon and resented establishment of European trading posts in their territory.

During the 20th century OLD CROW progressively became the focal point and then the only Gwich'in town in the Yukon. Gwich'in suffered severe setbacks early in the 20th century due to EPIDEMICS, especially INFLUENZA. The current Gwich'in population is approximately 2800 persons, with slightly more than half living at Old Crow, Fort McPherson (which the Gwich'in call Tetlit Zhee, holds the greatest number of Gwich'in of any single settlement) and TSIIGEHTCHIC or in the relatively large mixed Inuit/First Nations/white communities of AKLAVIK and INUVIK. The remainder live in Alaska. Although communities have regular air service, only a few can be reached by road, such as Fort McPherson and Tsiigehtchic.

Well-known personages among the Gwich'in include Wally Firth, who became the first aboriginal member of Parliament in 1972, and recipients of the Order of Canada Mary Simon (Fort McPherson), Edith Jose ("here are the news," Old Crow) and Charlie Peter Charlie (Old Crow). Today many Gwich'in students are following post secondary studies, mainly at colleges in Whitehorse and Inuvik. The recently concluded Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement has opened new avenues for local industry and commercial development and employment, and for political, social and cultural fulfilment.

See also NATIVE PEOPLE: SUBARCTIC and general articles under NATIVE PEOPLE.

Author A. McFADYEN CLARK

Links to Other Sites

Legends Project
Listen to dramatizations of oral histories, including ancient legends and myths, that Inuit and First Nations elders would have shared during family gatherings and activities in their communities. The series of recordings on this website were originally broadcast on the CBC Radio 1 program “Ideas.”

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.

Yukon Native Language Centre
A superb multimedia site that offers an introduction to native languages in the Yukon. Features the Gwich'in, Hän, Kaska, Northern Tutchone, Southern Tutchone, Tagish, and Upper Tanana languages. Includes information about training programs for teachers and the public.

Gwich'in Tribal Council
Local news and information about the Gwich'in communities in Canada’s Northwest Territories. Also photographs of the rugged landscape and glimpses of daily life in the region. Check out the Gwich'in Social and Cultural Institute.

Old Crow
The Official Website of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation (VGFN) in Old Crow, Yukon. Learn about their colourful history and culture, local environmental issues and more. Be sure to check out their traditional recipes, crafts, and audio clips.

History of the Old Crow Basin
A historical overview of Vuntut Gwitchin and Euro-Canadian activity in the Old Crow Basin region of the Yukon. Topics include pre-contact history of the Vuntut Gwitchin, the community of Old Crow, the International Boundary Survey 1909-1912, non-Gwitchin trapping, and much more. The information in this website is based mostly on non-Gwitchin published sources and is part of the very extensive "Resource Description and Analysis of Vuntut National Park" project.

The Gwich'in
A brief history of the Gwich'in, the northernmost Athapaskan-speaking group. From the website for the Canadian Museum of Civilization.

Drum Songs
A synopsis and excerpts from "Drum Songs," a book that examines important moments in the history of the Dene Nation.