Nisga'a
The Nisga'a are a First Nation people located in Northwestern British Columbia, Canada, primarily inhabiting the Nass River Valley. With deep cultural roots dating back to before European contact, the Nisga'a maintain a rich heritage characterized by storytelling, matrilineal clan systems, and significant traditions such as the raising of totem poles and potlatch ceremonies. Their culture revolves around four clans—Laxsgiik, Laxgibuu, Ganada, and Gisk’aast—each with distinct songs, crests, and dances that are integral to their identity.
Historically, the Nisga'a faced numerous challenges following the arrival of Europeans in the late 18th century, including trade opportunities and exposure to diseases, as well as pressures from missionaries and legislation that sought to suppress Indigenous cultures. Despite these challenges, the Nisga'a have actively fought for their land and rights, culminating in a landmark self-governance agreement in 2000, which made them the first Indigenous people in Canada to achieve this status. This agreement also enabled individual land ownership, a significant shift from their traditional communal land holdings.
Today, the Nisga'a continue to navigate their rights and governance in collaboration with federal and provincial governments, addressing contemporary issues such as hunting rights and environmental concerns. Their ongoing commitment to preserving their culture and autonomy reflects the resilience of the Nisga'a people in the face of historical adversities.
Nisga'a
The Nisga'a are a First Nation people of Canada. First Nations are the Indigenous people of Canada who were living there before European settlers arrived.
The ancestral home of the Nisga'a people is in Northwestern British Columbia along the Nass River Valley, though in contemporary times, some have moved to other areas of Canada. After decades of petitions to end negotiations with the Canadian government, in 2000, the Nisga'a won a landmark legal case allowing them to self-govern. In 2013, the Nisga'a became the first of all the First Nations to allow its members to purchase and personally own property in the Indigenous land holdings.
Background
Storytelling is an important part of the Nisga'a culture, including the Nisga'a people's origin story. A common theme in several variations of the story is the Nisga'a belief that the Creator, K'am Lingii Hahlhaahl, or "Chief of Heavens," sent four clans, or pdeek, to earth to live in the Nass River Valley. Even in modern times, the Nisga'a have four pdeek: the Laxsgiik (Eagle/Beaver), the Laxgibuu (Wolf/Bear), the Ganada (Raven/Frog), and the Gisk'aast (Killer Whale/Owl). The Nisga'a have a matrilineal society and belong to the pdeek of their mother's family. These clans each have unique songs, crests, dances, and names that are handed down through generations.
The Nisga'a believe their storytelling heritage comes from the Creator's grandson, Txeemsim, a traveling storyteller and trickster whose exploits provide lessons for the Nisga'a. Many of these stories tell the history of various animals, plants, people, and other things in their surroundings. The Nisga'a believe these stories are part of their heritage and treat them as personal property; the tales may only be told by the Nisga'a and some may only be told within the wilp, or individual family house in which the Nisga'a lives.
The culture and laws of the Nisga'a are also passed down in an oral manner through their Ayuuk, which is the inheritance that includes the culture, oral tradition, and laws of the people. The Ayuuk includes their spiritual beliefs, art, music, and other aspects of their shared history. These things would be shared among the people, especially at events such as the raising of an elaborately hand-carved totem pole, or pts'aan, and at special potlatch feasts held to celebrate births, marriages, and funerals.
Traditionally, the Nisga'a lived in homes called plank houses. These rectangular structures were often made of cedar wood, as are the totem poles and many other objects used by the Nisga'a. Each family's home would be elaborately painted and decorated inside and out with meaningful objects such as family crests and ritual masks. They relied on hunting, fishing, and gathering to provide for their needs. Their Northwestern North American homelands provided a wealth of seafood such as crab, clams, cod, salmon, seal, and sea lion, as well as plant foods such as berries and mushrooms.
Life for the Nisga'a began to change in 1793 when the first Europeans arrived. British naval officer George Vancouver arrived by way of the Nass River in July of that year, and the Nisga'a were soon engaged in trade with the Europeans. Within a decade, the Hudson's Bay Company was operating in the area and the Nass River was a bustling trade area. A gold rush in the mid-1800s and the arrival of Christian missionaries increased the Nisga'a peoples' exposure to Europeans, their goods, and their ideas.
This brought both benefits and drawbacks to the Nisga'a. The Europeans brought new metal tools, such as knives, for which the Nisga'a offered animal pelts. The Europeans also carried diseases for which the Nisga'a, like other Indigenous North Americans, had no immunity. Measles, smallpox, influenza, and tuberculosis decimated the Nisga'a over the course of two centuries. Christian missionaries also worked to convert the Nisga'a, going so far as to attempt to eliminate many traditional ceremonies.
When British Columbia became part of Canada in 1871, legislation was passed that outlawed many aspects of Indigenous culture, claimed their land, and forced the Nisga'a onto reservations. Many Nisga'a children were sent to Indian boarding schools, also called American Indian residential schools, which were largely intended to eliminate Indigenous culture. The schools only allowed the children to speak English and follow more Canadian/American styles of dress and behavior.
Fight for land
After the Indian Act of 1876 and the national changes that came when their ancestral lands became part of Canada, the Nisga'a began a long campaign to regain their land. They never signed a treaty or in any way relinquished the rights to the land they had inhabited for as long as their people existed. Nevertheless, they found themselves living on small areas of land known as reserves, as designated by the government.
In 1887, the Nisga'a chiefs began the first organized effort to regain their land and right to self-govern. They travelled to the British Columbia capital city of Victoria to meet with government officials. They met with no success. In 1913, they petitioned King George V of England, seeking a restoration of their rights to their ancestral lands, but were again unsuccessful.
In 1968, the Nisga'a took their concerns to the British Columbia Supreme Court in what was known as the Calder case, after British Columbia Prime Minister Frank Calder. Calder was a Nisga'a and the first member of a First Nations peoples elected to the Canadian legislature. He was integral to the legal attempt to regain Nisga'a land. The Supreme Court in British Columbia dismissed the Nisga'a request, but the Canadian Supreme Court took it up in 1973.
The higher court was divided and was unable to reach a decision on the Nisga'a position that they had never relinquished their claim to their ancestral land. Finally, after years of negotiations with the Canadian government, the Nisga'a, the national government, and the government of British Columbia reached an agreement in principle in March 1996. In 2000, the agreement came into full effect, and the Nisga'a became the first Indigenous people of Canada to have the right to self-govern.
In the twenty-first century, the people's Nisga’a Lisims Government follows a three-level system—the Nisga'a Lisim Government, the Provincial Government of British Columbia, and the national government. The Nisga'a Lisim government also includes three levels—three Urban Local governments, four Village Governments, and a central tribal authority.
The agreement also allows the Nisga'a to own land individually. Previously, all land was held by the Nisga'a. As of 2013, individual Nisga'a may own land and pass it on by selling or inheritance as they see fit. This is the first such agreement for any First Nations people in Canada. In 2019, the Nisga'a Lisims government disputed several issues in the treaty signed in 2000 with the government of British Columbia. In 2024, Nisga'a announced it had reached resolutions concerning three main issues, including hunting rights, environmental issues, and dispute resolution concerns.
Bibliography
"B.C.'s Nisga'a Becomes Only First Nation to Privatize Land." Canadian Broadcasting Corp., 5 Nov. 2013, www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/b-c-s-nisga-a-becomes-only-first-nation-to-privatize-land-1.2355794. Accessed 10 Dec. 2024.
"Frank Calder." Canadian Encyclopedia, 2020, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/frank-calder. Accessed 10 Dec. 2024.
"George Vancouver." Canadian Encyclopedia, 2015, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/george-vancouver. Accessed 10 Dec. 2024.
Gough, Barry M. Historical Dictionary of Canada. Scarecrow Press, 2010, pp. 297-98.
"Nisga'a." Canadian Encyclopedia, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/nisgaa. Accessed 10 Dec. 2024.
"Nisga’a Treaty Disputes Settled between B.C. and First Nation Governments." Vancouver Sun, 26 Feb. 2024, vancouversun.com/news/local-news/nisgaa-treaty-disputes-settled-between-bc. Accessed 10 Dec. 2024.