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101-778: Known as the Island Premier Baseball League when it was founded in 1995, the league originally included only five teams, all from Vancouver Island : Victoria Investors, Victoria Selects, Mid-Island Canadians, Nanaimo Pirates and the Parksville Royals. Although these five teams had been playing exhibition games against teams from the Lower Mainland , only in 1999 did the league officially expand to include six new teams: North Shore Twins, Vancouver Mounties, Coquitlam Reds, North Delta Blue Jays, White Rock Tritons, and Abbotsford Cardinals. In 2000,

202-512: A 2016 census, is 3,665. Most live in their traditional territory on northern Vancouver Island , nearby smaller islands including the Discovery Islands , and the adjacent British Columbia mainland. Some also live outside their homelands in urban areas such as Victoria and Vancouver . They are politically organized into 13 band governments . Their language, now spoken by only 3.1% of the population, consists of four dialects of what

303-499: A cedar or wool blanket on top during the winter. Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw transportation was similar to that of other coastal people. Being an ocean and coastal people, they travelled mainly by canoe. Cedar dugout canoes , each made from one log, would be carved for use by individuals, families and communities. Sizes varied from ocean-going canoes, for long sea-worthy travel in trade missions, to smaller local canoes for inter-village travel. Some boats had buffalo fur inside to keep protection from

404-405: A deadlock with nothing resolved. Vancouver insisted the entire Spanish establishment be turned over, but Bodega y Quadra held that there were no buildings seized in 1789, and the only possible land was a tiny and useless cove nearby. The two decided to refer the entire matter back to their respective governments. The friendly meeting between Bodega y Quadra and Vancouver led the former to propose that

505-442: A demand for stored surpluses, as such a display of wealth had social implications. By the time of European colonialism, it was noted that wool blankets had become a form of common currency . In the potlatch tradition, hosts of the potlatch were expected to provide enough gifts for all the guests invited. This practice created a system of loan and interest , using wool blankets as currency. As with other Pacific Northwest nations,

606-451: A festival or dance, or to celebrate the same, or who shall assist in the celebration of same is guilty of a like offence, and shall be liable to the same punishment. Oʼwax̱a̱laga̱lis, Chief of the Kwaguʼł "Fort Rupert Tribes", said to anthropologist Franz Boas on October 7, 1886, when he arrived to study their culture: We want to know whether you have come to stop our dances and feasts, as

707-432: A head chief, who acted as the leader of the nation, with numerous hereditary clan or family chiefs below him. In some of the nations, there also existed Eagle Chiefs , but this was a separate society within the main society and applied to the potlatching only. The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw are one of the few bilineal cultures. Traditionally the rights of the family would be passed down through the paternal side, but in rare occasions,

808-564: A homestead in Sooke . Following the brief governorship of Richard Blanshard , James Douglas , Chief Factor of the Hudson's Bay post, assumed the role in 1851. The island's first legislative assembly was formed in 1856. Government buildings were built and were occupied in 1859; the replacement, today's Parliament Buildings , were opened in 1898. Fort Victoria had become an important base when prospectors, miners and merchants began arriving for

909-481: A long monologue, in which the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw had nothing to say." As a result of these pressures, there are relatively few Kwakʼwala speakers today. Most remaining speakers are past the age of child-rearing, which is considered a crucial stage for language transmission. As with many other Indigenous languages, there are significant barriers to language revitalization . Another barrier separating new learners from

1010-580: A loose grouping of many tribes with numerous distinct cultures and historically speak one of the Coast Salish languages . On Vancouver Island, Coast Salish peoples' territory traditionally spans from the northern limit of the Strait of Georgia on the east side of Vancouver Island and covers most of southern Vancouver Island. Distinct nations within the Coast Salish peoples on Vancouver Island include

1111-457: A major area for recreation. The northern, western, and most of the central portions of the island are home to the coniferous "big trees" associated with British Columbia's coast – western hemlock , western red cedar , Pacific silver fir , yellow cedar , Douglas fir , grand fir , Sitka spruce , and western white pine . It is also characterised by bigleaf maple , red alder , sword fern , and red huckleberry . The fauna of Vancouver Island

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1212-483: A part of the Wakashan language group. Word lists and some documentation of Kwakʼwala were created from the early period of contact with Europeans in the 18th century, but a systematic attempt to record the language did not occur before the work of Franz Boas in the late 19th and early 20th century. The use of Kwakʼwala declined significantly in the 19th and 20th centuries, mainly due to the assimilationist policies of

1313-435: A request by Bodega y Quadra that Vancouver: would name some port or island after us both in commemoration of our meeting and friendly intercourse that on that occasion had taken place (Vancouver had previously feted Bodega y Quadra on his ship); ...and conceiving no place more eligible than the place of our meeting, I have therefore named this land ... The Island of Quadra and Vancouver. Bodega y Quadra wrote, however, that it

1414-404: Is Nanaimo , which has a population of 115,459 as of 2021. There are also five census agglomeration areas ( Alberni Valley , Campbell River , Comox Valley , Cowichan Valley , and Oceanside ) as defined by Statistics Canada . [REDACTED] Nanaimo [REDACTED] Duncan Within the island's largest city, Victoria , there is a significant IT and technology industry. According to

1515-572: Is a Northern Wakashan language , a grouping shared with Haisla, Heiltsuk and Wuikyala. Kwakwakaʼwakw centres of population on Vancouver Island include communities such as Fort Rupert , Alert Bay and Quatsino , the Kwakwakaʼwakw tradition of the potlatch was banned by the federal government of Canada in 1885, but has been revived in recent decades. The Nuu-chah-nulth (pronounced [nuːʧanˀuɬ]), are indigenous peoples in Canada. Their traditional home

1616-678: Is based on a bilinear structure, with loose characteristics of a patrilineal culture. It has large extended families and interconnected community life. The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw are made up of numerous communities or bands. Within those communities they are organized into extended family units or naʼmima, which means 'of one kind'. Each naʼmima had positions that carried particular responsibilities and privileges. Each community had around four naʼmima , although some had more, some had less. Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw follow their genealogy back to their ancestral roots. A head chief who, through primogeniture , could trace his origins to that naʼmima' s ancestors delineated

1717-438: Is commonly referred to as Kwakʼwala . These dialects are Kwak̓wala, ʼNak̓wala, G̱uc̓ala and T̓łat̓łasik̓wala. The name Kwakiutl derives from Kwaguʼł —the name of a single community of Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw located at Fort Rupert . The anthropologist Franz Boas had done most of his anthropological work in this area and popularized the term for both this nation and the collective as a whole. The term became misapplied to mean all

1818-539: Is considered invasive for its voracious appetite and scaring away of the Douglas squirrels. The island has the most concentrated population of cougars in North America. The Vancouver Island wolf , a subspecies of grey wolf , is found only on the north part of the island. Harbour seals and river otters are common. Resident orcas live in two major groups, one in the waters of the south island and one in

1919-409: Is on the west coast of Vancouver Island. In pre-contact and early post-contact times, the number of nations was much greater, but as in the rest of the region, smallpox and other consequences of contact resulted in the disappearance of some groups and the absorption of others into neighbouring groups. They were among the first Pacific peoples north of California to come into contact with Europeans, as

2020-487: Is part of a group of peaks that include the only glaciers on the island, the largest of which is the Comox Glacier . The west coast shoreline is rugged and in many places mountainous, characterized by its many fjords , bays, and inlets. The interior of the island has many lakes ( Kennedy Lake , north of Ucluelet , is the largest) and rivers. The 49th parallel north crosses the island just north of Ladysmith on

2121-509: Is separated from the mainland of British Columbia by Johnstone Strait and Queen Charlotte Strait on the north and northeast, and by the Strait of Georgia on the southeast, which along with the Strait of Juan de Fuca along its southwest separate it from the United States. West of the island is the open Pacific Ocean, while to its north is Queen Charlotte Sound . The Straits of Georgia and Juan de Fuca are now officially part of

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2222-788: Is shamed. The ceremony, which had not been performed since the 1950s, was revived by chief Beau Dick in 2013, as part of the Idle No More movement. He performed a copper cutting ritual on the lawn of the British Columbia Legislature on February 10, 2013, to ritually shame the Stephen Harper government. The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw are a highly stratified bilineal culture of the Pacific Northwest. They are many separate nations, each with its own history, culture and governance. The Nations commonly each had

2323-447: Is similar to that found on the mainland coast, with some notable exceptions and additions. For example, mountain goats , moose , coyotes , porcupines , skunks , chipmunks , and numerous species of small mammals, while plentiful on the mainland, are absent from Vancouver Island. Grizzly bears are absent from the island, where black bears are prevalent, but in 2016, a pair of grizzlies were sighted swimming between smaller islands off

2424-612: Is some overlap, Kwakwakaʼwakw territory includes northern and northwestern Vancouver Island and adjoining areas of the mainland, the Nuu-chah-nulth span most of the west coast, while the Coast Salish cover the southeastern Island and southernmost extremities along the Strait of Juan de Fuca . Their cultures are connected to the natural resources abundant in the area. The Kwakwakaʼwakw today number about 5,500, who live in British Columbia on northern Vancouver Island and

2525-648: Is the Laich-kwil-tach at Campbell River —they are known as the Southern Kwakiutl, and their council is the Kwakiutl District Council . Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw oral history says their ancestors ( ʼnaʼmima ) came in the forms of animals by way of land, sea, or underground. When one of these ancestral animals arrived at a given spot, it discarded its animal appearance and became human. Animals that figure in these origin myths include

2626-474: Is the extension of summer dryness to latitudes as high as 50 °N . Only in the extreme north of the island near Port Hardy is the rainfall of the driest summer month as much as one fifth that of the wettest months from November to March. West coasts of other continents at similar latitudes have a practically even distribution of rainfall throughout the year. Vancouver Island is mostly made up of volcanic and sedimentary rock which were formed offshore on

2727-474: Is used primarily for ceremony and ritual, and is based on percussive instrumentation, especially log, box, and hide drums, as well as rattles and whistles. The four-day Klasila festival is an important cultural display of song and dance and masks; it occurs just before the advent of the tsetseka , or winter. The potlatch culture of the Northwest is well known and widely studied. It is still practised among

2828-505: The Chilkat blanket , dance aprons and button cloaks, each patterned with Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw designs. The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw used a variety of objects for jewellery, including ivory, bone, abalone shell, copper, silver and more. Adornments were frequently found on the clothes of important persons. Kwakwakaʼwakw music is the ancient art of the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw peoples. The music is an ancient art form, stretching back thousands of years. The music

2929-669: The 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. An account of experiences of two founders of early residential schools for Aboriginal children was published in 2006 by the University of British Columbia Press . Good Intentions Gone Awry – Emma Crosby and the Methodist Mission On the Northwest Coast by Jan Hare and Jean Barman contains the letters and account of the life of the wife of Thomas Crosby ,

3030-638: The Farallon Plate , the Juan de Fuca Plate , are now subducting below the island. This process has led to Vancouver Island being one of the most seismically active regions in Canada. The subduction zone off the coast of the island forms a section of the Ring of Fire . The area has been known to host megathrust earthquakes in the past, the last being the Cascadia earthquake of 1700 . The Forbidden Plateau , in

3131-485: The Fraser Canyon Gold Rush in 1858. The Hudson's Bay lease expired in 1859 and the island reverted to Great Britain. The burgeoning town was incorporated as Victoria in 1862. Victoria became the capital of the colony of Vancouver Island, retaining this status when the island was amalgamated with the mainland in 1866. A British naval base, including Esquimalt Royal Navy Dockyard and a naval hospital,

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3232-688: The Lower Mainland . The capital was moved to Victoria in 1868. By 1867, Canada was established by the first of the British North America Acts , the Constitution Act, 1867 and the United Colonies joined Canada on 20 July 1871 through the British Columbia Terms of Union , following negotiations that secured the interests of the colonial elite in relation to a rail connection that would unite

3333-662: The Pacific Northwest . Vancouver Island is the world's 43rd largest island , Canada's 11th largest island , and Canada's second most populous island after the Island of Montreal . Vancouver Island has been the homeland of many indigenous peoples for thousands of years. The groupings, by language, are the Kwakwakaʼwakw (also known as the Kwakiutl ), Nuu-chah-nulth , and various Coast Salish peoples . While there

3434-550: The Salish Sea , which also includes Puget Sound . The Vancouver Island Ranges run most of the length of the island, dividing it into a wet and rugged west coast and a drier, more rolling east coast. The highest point in these ranges and on the island is the Golden Hinde , at 2,195 m (7,201 ft). Located near the centre of Vancouver Island in 2,500 km (970 sq mi) Strathcona Provincial Park , it

3535-1018: The Stz'uminus , the Kʼómoks of the Comox Valley area, the Cowichan of the Cowichan Valley , the Esquimalt , the Saanich of the Saanich Peninsula , the Songhees of the Victoria area and Snuneymuxw in the Nanaimo area. Europeans began to explore the island in 1774 when rumours of Russian fur traders caused Spain to send a number of expeditions to assert its long-held claims to

3636-502: The Thunderbird , his brother Kolas , the seagull , orca , grizzly bear , or chief ghost. Some ancestors have human origins and are said to come from distant places. Historically, the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw economy was based primarily on fishing, with the men also engaging in some hunting, and the women gathering wild fruits and berries. Ornate weaving and woodwork were important crafts, and wealth, defined by slaves and material goods,

3737-788: The United Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia by the Act for the Union of the colonies, passed by the Imperial Parliament . Arthur Kennedy was appointed governor of the united entity. (He would leave office in 1866 and later became Governor of the West African Settlements, British West Africa .) Victoria became the capital but the legislative assembly was located in New Westminster on

3838-415: The 18th and 19th centuries, sea otters ( Enhydra lutris ) were protected by an international treaty in 1911. Despite protection, the remnant population off Vancouver Island died out with the last sea otter taken near Kyuquot in 1929. From 1969 to 1972, 89 sea otters were flown or shipped from Alaska to the west coast of Vancouver Island. This population expanded to over 3,000 as of 2005 , and their range on

3939-466: The 1990s showed that the potential to fully revitalize Kwakʼwala still remained, but serious hurdles also existed. In the old times, the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw believed that art symbolized a common underlying element shared by all species. Kwakwakaʼwakw arts consist of a diverse range of crafts, including totems, masks, textiles, jewellery and carved objects, ranging in size from transformation masks to 40 ft (12 m) tall totem poles . Cedar wood

4040-533: The Canadian province of British Columbia . The island is 456 km (283 mi) in length, 100 km (62 mi) in width at its widest point, and 32,100 km (12,400 sq mi) in total area, while 31,285 km (12,079 sq mi) are of land. The island is the largest by area and the most populous along the west coasts of the Americas . The southern part of Vancouver Island and some of

4141-409: The Canadian government. Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw children were forced to attend residential schools , which enforced English use and discouraged other languages. Although Kwakʼwala and Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw culture have been well-studied by linguists and anthropologists, these efforts did not reverse the trends leading to language loss . According to Guy Buchholtzer, "The anthropological discourse had too often become

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4242-465: The Haisla people. A review article entitled Mothers of a Native Hell , about these two books, was published in the British Columbia online news magazine The Tyee in 2007. Restoring their ties to their land, culture and rights, the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw have undertaken much in bringing back their customs, beliefs and language. Potlatches occur more frequently as families reconnect to their birthright, and

4343-650: The Kula plate, leading to the formation of the distorted Insular Mountains . Much of the central mountainous region around Strathcona Park is part of the Karmutsen Formation , which is a sequence of tholeiitic pillow basalts and breccias . Since Vancouver Island has become an accretionary wedge on the North American continent, the Kula Plate has fully subducted beneath it and the remnants of

4444-463: The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw chiefs. When the Canadian government was focused on assimilation of First Nations, it made the potlatch a target of activities to be suppressed. Missionary William Duncan wrote in 1875 that the potlatch was "by far the most formidable of all obstacles in the way of Indians becoming Christians, or even civilized". In 1885, the Indian Act was revised to include clauses banning

4545-618: The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw highly valued copper in their economy and used it for ornament and precious goods. Scholars have proposed that prior to trade with Europeans, the people acquired copper from natural copper veins along riverbeds, but this has not been proven. Contact with European settlers, particularly through the Hudson's Bay Company , brought an influx of copper to their territories. The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw nations also were aware of silver and gold , and crafted intricate bracelets and jewellery from hammered coins traded from European settlers. Copper

4646-542: The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw, as is the lavish artwork for which they and their neighbours are so renowned. The phenomenon of the potlatch, and the vibrant societies and cultures associated with it, can be found in Chiefly Feasts: The Enduring Kwakiutl Potlatch , which details the incredible artwork and legendary material that go with the other aspects of the potlatch, and gives a glimpse into the high politics and great wealth and power of

4747-674: The Pacific Northwest . The first expedition was that of the Santiago , under the command of Juan José Pérez Hernández . In 1775, a second Spanish expedition under the Spanish Peruvian captain Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra was sent. By 1776, Spanish exploration had reached Bucareli Bay including the mouth of the Columbia River between Oregon and Washington , and Sitka Sound . Vancouver Island came to

4848-627: The Spanish force seized the Portuguese-flagged British ships. British naval captain George Vancouver was sent to Nootka Sound in 1792 in order to negotiate a settlement. His Spanish counterpart in the negotiations was Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra, who was commandant of Santa Cruz de Nuca in 1792. Vancouver had sailed as a midshipman with Cook. The negotiations between Vancouver and Bodega y Quadra ended in

4949-579: The Spanish, Americans and British attempted to secure control of the Pacific Northwest and the trade in otter pelts, with Nootka Sound becoming a focus of these rivalries. The Nuu-chah-nulth speak a Southern Wakashan language and are closely related to the Makah of the Olympic Peninsula , Washington state and the Ditidaht . The Coast Salish are the largest of the southern groups. They are

5050-599: The Victoria Advanced Technology Council website, over 800 technology companies operate in the Victoria area, with combined annual revenues of $ 1.95 billion. High-speed internet is delivered to the island by Shaw Communications , Telus , and various local providers with their own networks. Wireless Internet connections can be found all over the island, many free for public use. While the island does generate much of its own power at several hydroelectric stations, increased demand required

5151-621: The Victoria Eagles. Also the team formerly known as the Kelowna Cubs became known as the Okanagan Athletics in the 2010 season. Several well known ballplayers have played Major League Baseball: † active player Many well known ex-BCPBL players have gone on to have successful minor league baseball careers: Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of

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5252-474: The attention of Britain after the third voyage of Captain James Cook , who spent a month during 1778 at Nootka Sound , on the island's western coast. Cook claimed it for Great Britain. Maritime fur trader , John Meares arrived in 1786 and set up a single-building trading post near the native village of Yuquot (Friendly Cove), at the entrance to Nootka Sound in 1788. The fur trade began expanding into

5353-539: The coast near Port McNeill . Vancouver Island does support most of Canada's Roosevelt elk , however, and several mammal species and subspecies, such as the Vancouver Island marmot are unique to the island. Columbian black-tailed deer are plentiful, even in suburban areas such as in Greater Victoria , as well as the native Douglas squirrels . The Eastern grey squirrel is found in the south and

5454-418: The colonies with the rest of Canada, establish Indian lands policy that would effectively perpetuate BC's pre-Confederation practices, and enshrine colonial officials' security of position. Victoria was named the capital of the province of British Columbia . Three delegates were appointed to the federal government. Vancouver Island is located in the southwestern corner of the province of British Columbia. It

5555-506: The community uses language programs, classes and social events to restore the language . Artists in the 19th and 20th centuries, such as Mungo Martin , Ellen Neel and Willie Seaweed , have taken efforts to revive Kwakwakaʼwakw art and culture. Each Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw nation has its own clans , chiefs, history, culture and peoples, but remain collectively similar to the rest of the Kwak̓wala-Speaking nations. Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw kinship

5656-564: The construction of several high-voltage power cables, both HVDC and AC, connecting to the Canadian Mainland . Kwakwaka%CA%BCwakw The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw ( IPA: [ˈkʷakʷəkʲəʔwakʷ] ), also known as the Kwakiutl ( / ˈ k w ɑː k j ʊ t əl / ; " Kwakʼwala -speaking peoples"), are one of the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast . Their current population, according to

5757-426: The east and Ucluelet on the west. Southern Vancouver Island is typically considered to refer to the area south of Courtenay, while Northern Vancouver Island generally refers to the area north of Campbell River. Those cities and the area between them are sometimes described as "Mid-Island" or "Central Island". There are a number of rivers draining the island, some of which though short are large in volume. Among

5858-498: The east of the Vancouver Island Ranges , was the epicentre of the 1946 Vancouver Island earthquake that registered 7.3 on the moment magnitude scale , the strongest ever recorded on land in Canada. Vancouver Island was the location of the observation of the episodic tremor and slip (ETS) seismic phenomenon. Vancouver Island lies in the temperate rainforest biome . On the southern and eastern portions of

5959-609: The first missionary in Lax Kwʼalaams (Port Simpson). This covers the period from 1870 to the turn of the 20th century. A second book was published in 2005 by the University of Calgary Press , The Letters of Margaret Butcher – Missionary Imperialism on the North Pacific Coast , edited by Mary-Ellen Kelm. It picks up the story from 1916 to 1919 in Kitamaat Village and details of Butcher's experiences among

6060-400: The island be named after both: "Quadra and Vancouver Island", which became the original name. While we know this island today as "Vancouver Island", the British explorer had not intentionally meant to name such a large body of land solely after himself. In his September 1792 dispatch log report for the British Admiralty, Captain Vancouver reveals that his decision here was rather meant to honour

6161-400: The island remained in dispute between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Spanish Empire in the early 1790s. The two countries nearly began a war over the issue; the confrontation became known as the Nootka Crisis . That was averted when both agreed to recognize the other's rights to the area in the first Nootka Convention in 1790, a first step to peace. Finally, the two countries signed

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6262-452: The island's west coast expanded from Cape Scott in the north to Barkley Sound to the south. The majority of Vancouver Island's population lives in the Capital Regional District , more specifically in the primate city and the provincial capital of Victoria . With a population of 397,237 (2021), Greater Victoria is the island's largest population centre and one of its two census metropolitan areas . The island's other metropolitan area

6363-441: The island, eventually leading to permanent settlement. The island was further explored by Spain in 1789 with Esteban José Martínez , who established the settlement of Yuquot and the artillery battery of Fort San Miguel at Friendly Cove , which Spain called Puerto de San Lorenzo de Nuca. This was to be the only Spanish settlement in what would later be Canada. Asserting their claim of exclusive sovereignty and navigation rights,

6464-452: The island, this is characterized by Douglas fir , western red cedar , arbutus (or madrone), Garry oak , salal , Oregon grape , and manzanita ; moreover, Vancouver Island is the location where the Douglas fir was first recorded by Archibald Menzies . Vancouver Island is also the location where some of the tallest Douglas fir were recorded. This southeastern portion of the island is the most heavily populated region of Vancouver Island and

6565-504: The late 18th century. The Spanish and British conjointly named it Quadra's and Vancouver's Island in commemoration of the friendly negotiations held in 1792 between the Spanish commander of Fort San Miguel in Nootka Sound , Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra , and British naval captain George Vancouver , during the Nootka Crisis . (Bodega y Quadra's name was eventually dropped.) It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, who between 1791 and 1794 explored

6666-403: The league expanded once again by adding two more teams: the Whalley Chiefs and Penticton. Later that year, the league changed its name to the British Columbia Premier Baseball league to reflect its new membership. In 2009, the PBL would again expand, by bringing a team back to Vancouver known as the Vancouver Cannons. In 2010, the PBL board has granted a second PBL franchise to Victoria, known as

6767-445: The mainland. They are also known as Kwakiutl in English, from one of their tribes, but they prefer their autonym Kwakwakaʼwakw . Their indigenous language, part of the Wakashan family, is Kwakʼwala . The name Kwakwakaʼwakw means "speakers of Kwakʼwala". The language is now spoken by less than 5% of the population—about 250 people. Today, 17 separate tribes make up the Kwakwakaʼwakw. Some Kwakwakaʼwakw groups are now extinct. Kwakʼwala

6868-452: The metropolitan area of Greater Victoria on the southern tip of the island, which includes Victoria , the capital of British Columbia. Other notable cities and towns on Vancouver Island include Nanaimo , Campbell River , Courtenay , Port Alberni and Parksville , all on or near the east coast. Indigenous peoples have inhabited Vancouver Island for thousands of years, long before the arrival of Spanish and British naval expeditions in

6969-411: The missionaries and agents who live among our neighbors [ sic ] try to do. We do not want to have anyone here who will interfere with our customs. We were told that a man-of-war would come if we should continue to do as our grandfathers and great-grandfathers have done. But we do not mind such words. Is this the white man's land? We are told it is the Queen's land, but no! It is mine. Where

7070-447: The more notable rivers are the Somass River in the Alberni Valley , the Nimpkish River in the North Island region, the Englishman River up island from Nanaimo near Parksville , and the Cowichan River whose basin forms the Cowichan Valley region in the South Island region. The climate of Vancouver Island is the mildest in Canada, with temperatures on the coast even in January being usually above 0 °C (32 °F). In summer,

7171-433: The naming of the city of Vancouver in 1885. By March 1843, James Douglas of the Hudson's Bay Company and a missionary had arrived and selected an area for settlement. Construction of the fort began in June of that year. This settlement was a fur trading post originally named Fort Albert (afterward Fort Victoria ). The fort was located at the Songhees settlement of Camosack (Camosun), 200 m (660 ft) northwest of

7272-570: The nations who spoke Kwakʼwala, as well as three other Indigenous peoples whose language is a part of the Wakashan linguistic group, but whose language is not Kwakʼwala. These peoples, incorrectly known as the Northern Kwakiutl, were the Haisla , Wuikinuxv , and Heiltsuk . Many people who others call "Kwakiutl" consider that name a misnomer. They prefer the name Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw , which means " Kwakʼwala -speaking-peoples". One exception

7373-459: The native speaker is the presence of four separate orthographies; the young are taught Uʼmista or NAPA, while the older generations generally use Boaz, developed by the American anthropologist Franz Boas. A number of revitalization efforts are underway. A 2005 proposal to build a Kwakwakaʼwakw First Nations Centre for Language Culture has gained wide support. A review of revitalization efforts in

7474-431: The nearby Gulf Islands are the only parts of British Columbia or Western Canada to lie south of the 49th parallel . The southeast part of the island has one of the warmest climates in Canada, and since the mid-1990s has been mild enough in a few areas to grow Mediterranean crops such as olives and lemons . The population of Vancouver Island was 864,864 as of 2021. Nearly half of that population (~400,000) live in

7575-581: The north , while a third group of transient orcas roam much farther and avoid the resident orcas. Residents are watched from a distance and are numbered, with many being named as well. Humpback whales and gray whales are often seen on their migration between Alaskan waters where they feed in the summer and southern waters such as around California and Mexico where they give birth in the winter. The island's rivers, lakes, and coastal regions are renowned for their fisheries of trout , salmon , and steelhead . After near-total extirpation by fur traders in

7676-548: The now disappeared Kula oceanic plate . Around 55 million years ago during the Paleogene Period , a microplate of the Kula Plate subducted below the North American continental margin with great strain. A volcanic arc on the surface of the Kula Plate was thus accreted and fused onto the western edge of North America. These terranes were subjected to extreme warping from continued subduction of

7777-588: The period. But as Spanish interests in the region dwindled, so did the use of Bodega y Quadra's name. The Hudson's Bay Company played a major part in the transition; by 1824 'Vancouver's Island' had become the usual designation in its correspondence for the island. A quarter of a century later, Vancouver Island had become such a well-known geographical feature that the founding of the Colony of Vancouver Island in 1849 gave this name full official status. Period references to "Vancouver" referred to Vancouver Island until

7878-567: The potlatch and making it illegal to practise. The official legislation read, Every Indian or other person who engages in or assists in celebrating the Indian festival known as the "Potlatch" or the Indian dance known as the "Tamanawas" is guilty of a misdemeanour, and shall be liable to imprisonment for a term not more than six nor less than two months in a jail or other place of confinement; and, any Indian or other person who encourages, either directly or indirectly an Indian or Indians to get up such

7979-436: The potlatch ceremony. The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw were too numerous to police, and the government could not enforce the law. Duncan Campbell Scott convinced Parliament to change the offence from criminal to summary, which meant "the agents, as justice of the peace, could try a case, convict, and sentence". Sustaining the customs and culture of their ancestors, in the 21st century the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw openly hold potlatches to commit to

8080-488: The potlatch, commoners, and slaves. On the nobility class, "the noble was recognized as the literal conduit between the social and spiritual domains, birthright alone was not enough to secure rank: only individuals displaying the correct moral behavior [sic] throughout their life course could maintain ranking status." As in other Northwest Coast peoples, the concept of property was well developed and important to daily life. Territorial property such as hunting or fishing grounds

8181-581: The present-day Empress Hotel on Victoria's Inner Harbour . In 1846, the Oregon Treaty , which ended the Oregon boundary dispute , was signed by the British and the United States to settle the question of the U.S. Oregon Country borders. The Treaty made the 49th parallel latitude north the official border between the two countries. In order to ensure that Britain retained all of Vancouver Island and

8282-407: The revival of their ancestors' ways. The frequency of potlatches has increased as occur frequently and increasingly more over the years as families reclaim their birthright. The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw built their houses from cedar planks, which are highly water resistant. They were very large, anywhere from 50 to 100 ft (15 to 30 m) long. The houses could hold about 50 people, usually families from

8383-462: The rights could pass on the maternal side of their family also. Within the pre-colonization times, the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw were organized into three classes: nobles, commoners, and slaves. The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw shared many cultural and political alliances with numerous neighbours in the area, including the Nuu-chah-nulth , Heiltsuk , Wuikinuxv and some Coast Salish . The Kwakʼwala language is

8484-522: The roles throughout the rest of his family. Every clan had several sub-chiefs, who gained their titles and position through their own family's primogeniture. These chiefs organized their people to harvest the communal lands that belonged to their family. Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw society was organized into four classes: the nobility, attained through birthright and connection in lineage to ancestors, the aristocracy who attained status through connection to wealth, resources or spiritual powers displayed or distributed in

8585-482: The same clan. At the entrance, there was usually a totem pole carved with different animals, mythological figures and family crests. In summer, men wore no clothing except jewelry. In the winter, they usually rubbed fat on themselves to keep warm. In battle the men wore red cedar armor and helmets, and breech clouts made from cedar. During ceremonies they wore circles of cedar bark on their ankles as well as cedar breech clouts . The women wore skirts of softened cedar, and

8686-490: The second Nootka Convention in 1793 and the third Convention in 1794. As per that final agreement, the Spanish dismantled their fort at Nootka and left the area, giving the British sovereignty over Vancouver Island and the adjoining islands (including the Gulf Islands ). For decades, Quadra's and Vancouver's Island was the most prominent name on maps of the coast, and appeared on most British, French and Spanish maps of

8787-493: The southern Gulf Islands, however, it was agreed that the border would swing south around that area. In 1849, the Colony of Vancouver Island was established. The Colony was leased to the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) for an annual fee of seven shillings; the company's responsibility in return was to increase the population by promoting colonization. The first independent settler arrived that year: Captain Walter Grant started

8888-497: The southernmost harbours frequented by American fur traders at 51 degrees north and 128 degrees west . He relates that since Captain Robert Gray of Tiverton, Rhode Island , had sailed the Columbia River in 1792, the trade of the northwest coast had been almost entirely in the hands of Boston merchants, so much so that the natives called all traders "Boston Men". A settlement was not successfully negotiated and ownership of

8989-502: The warmest days usually have a maximum of 28–33 °C (82–91 °F). The southeastern part of the island notably has a warm summer (Csb) Mediterranean climate with numerous vineyards . The rain shadow effect of the island's mountains, as well as the mountains of Washington's Olympic Peninsula , creates wide variation in precipitation. The west coast is considerably wetter than the east coast. Average annual precipitation ranges from 6,650 mm (262 in) at Hucuktlis Lake on

9090-538: The west coast (making it the wettest place in North America) to only 608 mm (23.9 in) at Victoria Gonzales, the driest recording station in the provincial capital of Victoria . Precipitation is heaviest in the autumn and winter. Snow is rare at low altitudes, but is common on the island's mountaintops in winter. Skiing is popular at Mount Washington in the mid-island, with an elevation of 1,588 m (5,210 ft). A notable feature of Vancouver Island

9191-411: The white man, "Do as the Indian does"? It is a strict law that bids us dance. It is a strict law that bids us distribute our property among our friends and neighbors. It is a good law. Let the white man observe his law; we shall observe ours. And now, if you come to forbid us dance, be gone. If not, you will be welcome to us. Eventually the Act was amended, expanded to prohibit guests from participating in

9292-557: Was Vancouver who made the suggestion of combining their names to designate some geographical feature. In 1792, the Spanish explorer Dionisio Alcalá Galiano and his crew were the first Europeans to circumnavigate Vancouver Island. On April 8, 1806, Captain John D'Wolf of Bristol, Rhode Island , sailed the Juno to Nahwitti (Newettee), a small inlet in the northwestern promontory of Vancouver's Island. The captain described Newettee as one of

9393-479: Was considered a wealthy and important man. Highly ranked members of the communities often have the Kwakʼwala word for "copper" as part of their names. Copper's importance as an indicator of status also led to its use in a Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw shaming ritual . The copper cutting ceremony involved breaking copper plaques. The act represents a challenge; if the target cannot break a plaque of equal or greater value, he or she

9494-410: Was considered prestigious for a buyer to purchase the same piece of copper at a higher price than it was previously sold, in their version of an art market. During potlatch, copper pieces would be brought out, and bids were placed on them by rival chiefs. The highest bidder would have the honour of buying said copper piece. If a host still held a surplus of copper after throwing an expensive potlatch, he

9595-707: Was established at Esquimalt in 1865 and eventually taken over by the Canadian military . Today, as CFB Esquimalt , it is the home port of the Maritime Forces Pacific and parts are designated as National Historic Sites of Canada . The economic situation of the colony declined following the Cariboo Gold Rush of 1861–1862, and pressure grew for amalgamation of the colony with the mainland colony of British Columbia (which had been established in 1858). The two colonies were merged in 1866 into

9696-465: Was given a special value amongst the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw, most likely for its ceremonial purposes. This copper was beaten into sheets or plates, and then painted with mythological figures. The sheets were used for decorating wooden carvings or kept for the sake of prestige. Individual pieces of copper were sometimes given names based on their value. The value of any given piece was defined by the number of wool blankets last traded for them. In this system, it

9797-473: Was inherited, and from these properties material wealth was collected and stored. A trade and barter subsistence economy formed the early stages of the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw economy. Trade was carried out between internal Kwakwakaʼwakw nations, as well as surrounding Indigenous nations such as the Tsimshian , Tlingit , the Nuu-chah-nulth and Coast Salish peoples. Over time, the potlatch tradition created

9898-411: Was prominently displayed and traded at potlatch ceremonies. These customs were the subject of extensive study by the anthropologist Franz Boas . In contrast to most non-native societies, wealth and status were not determined by how much you had, but by how much you had to give away. This act of giving away your wealth was one of the main acts in a potlatch. The first documented contact with Europeans

9999-502: Was the Queen when our God gave this land to my grandfather and told him, "This will be thine"? My father owned the land and was a mighty Chief; now it is mine. And when your man-of-war comes, let him destroy our houses. Do you see yon trees? Do you see yon woods? We shall cut them down and build new houses and live as our fathers did. We will dance when our laws command us to dance, and we will feast when our hearts desire to feast. Do we ask

10100-403: Was the preferred medium for sculpting and carving projects as it was readily available in the native Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw regions. Totems were carved with bold cuts, a relative degree of realism, and an emphatic use of paints. Masks make up a large portion of Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw art, as masks are important in the portrayal of the characters central to Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw dance ceremonies. Woven textiles included

10201-597: Was with Captain George Vancouver in 1792. Disease, which developed as a result of direct contact with European settlers along the West Coast of Canada, drastically reduced the Indigenous Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw population during the late 19th-early 20th century. Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw population dropped by 75% between 1830 and 1880. The 1862 Pacific Northwest smallpox epidemic alone killed over half of the people. Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw dancers from Vancouver Island performed at

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