Secwepemc

Shuswap
Secwepemc
Total population
(6,500 (1990)[1])
Regions with significant populations
Canada (British Columbia)
Languages
Shuswap, English
Related ethnic groups
other Salish

The Secwepemc (/ʃˈhwɛpəm/ shə-WHEP-əm;[2][3] Secwepemc: [ʃəˈxʷɛpməx] or [səˈxwɛpməx]), known in English as the Shuswap people /ˈʃʃwɑːp/, are a First Nations people residing in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Their traditional territory ranges from the eastern Chilcotin Plateau and the Cariboo Plateau southeast through the Thompson Country to Kamloops and the Shuswap Country, and spans the Selkirk Mountains and Big Bend of the Columbia River to include the northern part of the Columbia Valley region. The Secwepemc are perhaps the most numerous of the Interior Salish peoples of British Columbia if based upon the numbers who speak their language.[4]

Their traditional language is Shuswap, known as Secwepemctsín (IPA: [ʃəxwəpməxtˈʃin]), which is currently spoken by over 1,600 people.[4] Secwepemctsín is being revitalized by the efforts of organizations such as Chief Atahm School, which offers an immersion program until the ninth grade.

The Secwepemc have always stressed the importance of recognizing their title to the land. In 1910, the Secwepemc Chiefs addressed a memorial to Prime Minister Laurier. The memorial laid out the grievances of the Secwepemc stemming from the previous 50 years of settlement.

Notable Secwepemc people

See also

Notes

  1. Shuswap at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
  2. The "c"s are pronounced as "h"s.
  3. "First Nations Peoples of British Columbia". Government of British Columbia – Ministry of Education. Retrieved 2013-05-14.
  4. 1 2 Statistics Canada: 2006 Census

External links


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