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Nuu-chah-nulth-aht: Original inhabitants of the West Coast
There are signs of the original inhabitants of the west coast of Vancouver Island all over the place: both in the landscape, and within their vibrant communities today.
The Nuu-chah-nulth people were living here long before the arrival of the first Europeans. They didn’t identify themselves as Nuu-chah-nulth at the time. They simply called, and still call, themselves qu-us (spellings of native words may vary using our English letters)—which means “real live people.”
The word Nuu-chah-nulth means “all along the mountains and the sea.” It was selected in 1979, when 13 or so tribes, linked through language, culture, and family relations, chose to unite politically. The suffix -aht means “people of.”
The tribes within the Nuu-chah-nulth grouping include Tla-o-qui-aht (the “different people”, referring to their origins away from the coast, around Kennedy Lake), whose territory includes Tofino, and the Ucluelet (the people from the safe harbour called Ucluth).
The oldest radiocarbon dates from archeological sites inhabited by the ancestors of the Nuu-chah-nulth come from excavations in the Broken Group, Barkley Sound. There is evidence of native occupation here as long as 5,000 years ago. It is generally accepted that native people arrived here long before that, though—but higher sea levels following the last Ice Age have wiped out most of the archeological evidence of this.
There is abundant evidence of native occupation and use of the land, if you know how to look. The photo above is a picture of me standing beside a CMT, or “culturally modified tree.” You can see how, a century or more ago, a plank was chiseled out from the living tree. How’s that for sustainable forestry?
There are many places where you can see ancient stumps with no log on the ground—where a canoe log was obviously removed—or long scars on the sides of cedar trees where bark was stripped. Tofino’s new Lighthouse Trail, currently under construction but accessible, is a good place to see examples of both of these.
But the Nuu-chah-nulth are definitely not a culture only of the past. They have a long, long history here, but they are also a very important and active part of our west coast community today.
North of Tofino, two Nuu-chah-nulth villages are accessible by water taxi, and are open to visitors: Hot Springs Village (Hesquiaht tribe) and Ahousaht village (Ahousaht tribe).
Straight across from Tofino is the Tla-o-qui-aht village of Opitsaht, which is not really set up for unexpected visitors.
The other Tla-oqui-aht village of Esowista, on the highway halfway between Ucluelet and Tofino, has a store, offers surfboard rentals, and welcomes visitors.
Across the harbour from Ucluelet, the village of Itatsoo (Ucluelet tribe) is also accessible by road.
A good start for learning about Nuu-chah-nulth-aht is to visit one of their fine galleries which showcase traditional art:
- House of Himwitsa, Tofino
- Quisitis Gift Shop, Wickaninnish Interpetive Centre, Pacific Rim National Park Reserve
- Du-Quah Gallery, Ucluelet
- Huu-mees ma-as (Cedar House) Gallery, Ucluelet
- Huupaquinum Gft Shop and Gallery, Ucluelet
- Ahtsik Native Art Gallery, Port Alberni, on the right as you head to the west coast, about 5km out of town
Carvings on display at Huu-mees ma-as Gallery, Ucluelet
- Photos & text by Jacqueline Windh©
