Fernie & Elk Valley Culture Guide Fernie Cultural Guide FALL 2018 | Page 34

THE KTUNAXA NATION –
LIVING CULTURE, LIVING TRADITIONS
For more than 10,000 years, the
Ktunaxa people, also known as the
Kootenai or Kootenay, have occupied
a traditional territory that spans what
is now known as southeastern British
Columbia, Southwestern Alberta, and
parts of Washington, Idaho and
Western Montana.
For hundreds of generations, the
Ktunaxa people used the Elk Valley
and the Crowsnest Pass as a trade
and travel route through the Rocky
Mountains. Twice a year, Bison hunts
were coordinated on the prairies east of
the Rockies until the bison population
was decimated in the mid-1800s.
The Elk Valley area was the primary
home of the easternmost branch of
the Ktunaxa people, who are closely
connected to families living at what is
now Tobacco Plains. The Michel Prairie
people, after whom the former town
of Michel was named, used the area
near Sparwood to plant tobacco. Their
Ktunaxa name is aqawakanmituqnik
and means ‘river running into and out
again’ (the Michel Creek into the
Elk River).
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Despite being subjected to 120 years of
living on Indian Reserves, and decades
of forced attendance at a Residential
School at the St. Eugene Mission
near Cranbrook, the Ktunaxa Nation
continues to be a strong and thriving
community. Today, there are more than
1,500 members in the BC communities
of akis nuk, a am, akin umŧasnuqŧi it,
and yaqan nu kiy. The Ktunaxa Nation
Council is located in Cranbrook. There
are two Bands in Idaho and Montana
connected by language and culture but
politically independent.
To learn more about the living culture
and traditions of the Ktunaxa Nation
visit Ktunaxa.org.
THE TIPI
The traditional dwelling of indigenous
communities, the tipi (or teepee) is
a large, durable, cone-shaped tent.
Traditionally, it is constructed of wooden
poles and tanned animal skins, often
buffalo. The poles are tied together at
the smaller ends and then raised with
a twist, the bases spread out to form a
large circle. A hole is left at