The
Scw'exmx, meaning "people of the creek(s)" are a branch of the
Nlaka'pamuxThe Nlaka'pamux , commonly called "the Thompson", and also Thompson River Salish, Thompson Salish, Thompson River Indians or Thompson River people) are an indigenous First Nations/Native American people of the Interior Salish language group in southern British Columbia...
(Thompson) people in the
Nicola CountryThe Nicola Country, also known as the Nicola Valley and often referred to simply as The Nicola, and originally Nicolas' Country or Nicholas' Country, adapted to Nicola's Country and simplified since, is a region in the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada...
of the Canadian province of
British ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
("Scw'ex", meaning "creek", is the name of the
Nicola RiverThe Nicola River, originally French Rivière de Nicholas or Rivière de Nicolas, adapted to Nicolas River, Nicola's River in English, , is one of the major tributaries of the Thompson River in the Canadian province of British Columbia, entering the latter at the town of Spences Bridge...
in the
Nlaka'pamux languageThe Thompson language, properly known as Nlaka'pamuctsin or the Nlaka'pamux language, is an Interior Salishan language spoken in the Fraser Canyon, Thompson Canyon, Nicola Country of the Canadian province of British Columbia, and also in the North Cascades region of Whatcom and Chelan counties of...
}. Together with the neighbouring branch of the
Okanagan peopleThe Okanagan people, also spelled Okanogan, are a First Nations and Native American people whose traditional territory spans the U.S.-Canada boundary in Washington state and British Columbia...
the Spaxomin (usually Spahomin in English), who live in the upper, eastern reaches of the Nicola Valley, they are generally known in English as the Nicolas. They also share governmental institutions, and their alliance dates to before the time of
Chief NicolaNicola , also Nkwala or N'kwala, was an important First Nations political figure in the fur trade era of the British Columbia Interior as well as into the colonial period...
, for whom the river was named and whose father had led the Okanagan migration into the valley in the late 18th Century. The Scw'exmx intermarried with the Okanagans, and also with the
Stu'wixThe Nicola Athapaskans, also known as the Nicola people or Stuwix, were an Athabascan people who arrived in the in the migrated into the Nicola Country of what is now the Southern Interior of British Columbia from the north a few centuries ago but were slowly reduced in number by constant raiding...
, a now-extinct Athapaskan-speaking people who migrated into the valley in the 17th Century.
Language
The Scw'exmx speak the Scw'exmx dialect of Nle'kepmxcin, known in English as the
Thompson languageThe Thompson language, properly known as Nlaka'pamuctsin or the Nlaka'pamux language, is an Interior Salishan language spoken in the Fraser Canyon, Thompson Canyon, Nicola Country of the Canadian province of British Columbia, and also in the North Cascades region of Whatcom and Chelan counties of...
. The language is now nearly extinct but as with other indigenous languages in British Columbia efforts to educate new generations in the language show hope for survival.
Communities
The main Scw'exmx communities are:
- Shackan (Shackan First Nation
Shackan First Nation is a Nlaka'pamux First Nations government located in the Nicola Country of the Southern Interior region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is a member of the Nicola Tribal Association, which is one of three tribal councils of the Nlaka'pamux people...
- Shulus (Lower Nicola First Nation
Lower Nicola Indian Band is a Nlaka'pamux First Nations government located in the Central Interior region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is a member of the Nicola Tribal Association, which are two of three tribal councils of the Nlaka'pamux people...
)
- Nooaitch (Nooaitch First Nation
Nooaitch First Nation is a Nlaka'pamux First Nations government located in the Southern Interior region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is a member of the Nicola Tribal Association, which are two of three tribal councils of the Nlaka'pamux people...
)
- Ntsla'tko (Coldwater First Nation
Coldwater First Nation is a Nlaka'pamux First Nations government located in the Central Interior region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is a member of the Nicola Tribal Association, which are two of three tribal councils of the Nlaka'pamux people...
)
Government
Their tribal government is the
Nicola Tribal AssociationThe Nicola Tribal Association is the official name of what is also known as the Nicola Tribal Council and the Nicola Valley Tribal Council, is a First Nations Tribal Council composed of bands in the Nicola Valley, Thompson Canyon and Fraser Canyon areas of the Canadian province of British Columbia...
. Other than the four governments already listed the Nicola Tribal Association includes:
- Upper Nicola First Nation
The Upper Nicola Indian Band is a First Nations government in the Canadian province of British Columbia, located near the town of Merritt in the Nicola Country at Douglas Lake...
(aka the Spaxomin (Douglas Lake) who are also a member of the Okanagan Nation AllianceThe Okanagan Nation Alliance is a First Nations Tribal Council in the Canadian province of British Columbia, spanning the Nicola, Okanagan and Similkameen Districts of the Canadian province of British Columbia and also the Colville Indian Reservation in Washington state.-Member...
.
- Cook's Ferry First Nation
Cook's Ferry First Nation is a Nlaka'pamux First Nations government located in the Central Interior region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is a member of the Nicola Tribal Association, which are two of three tribal councils of the Nlaka'pamux people...
near Spences BridgeSpences Bridge is a community in the Canadian province of British Columbia, situated 23 miles north east of Lytton and 32 miles from Ashcroft. In 1892, the population included 32 people of European ancestry and 130 First Nations people. There were 5 general stores, 3 hotels, one Church of England...
- Nicomen First Nation
Nicomen First Nation is a Nlaka'pamux First Nations government located near Spuzzum, British Columbia. It is a member of the Fraser Canyon Indian Administration as well as of the Nicola Tribal Association, which are two of three tribal councils of the Nlaka'pamux people...
near LyttonLytton in British Columbia, Canada, sits at the confluence of the Thompson River and Fraser River on the east side of the Fraser. The location has been inhabited by the Nlaka'pamux people for over 10,000 years, and is one of the earliest locations settled by non-natives in the Southern Interior of...
- Siska First Nation
The Siska First Nation is a Nlaka'pamux First Nations government located in the Fraser Canyon region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is a member of the Nicola Tribal Association, which are two of three tribal councils of the Nlaka'pamux people...
, in the Fraser CanyonThe Fraser Canyon is an 84 km landform of the Fraser River where it descends rapidly through narrow rock gorges in the Coast Mountains en route from the Interior Plateau of British Columbia to the Fraser Valley...
south of LyttonLytton in British Columbia, Canada, sits at the confluence of the Thompson River and Fraser River on the east side of the Fraser. The location has been inhabited by the Nlaka'pamux people for over 10,000 years, and is one of the earliest locations settled by non-natives in the Southern Interior of...
Other Nlaka'pamux bands outside the Nicola region belong to two other tribal councils:
- Nlaka'pamux Nation Tribal Council
The Nlaka'pamux Nation Tribal Council, formerly the Fraser Thompson Indian Services Society, is a First Nations government Tribal Council comprising bands in the Fraser Canyon and Thompson Canyon areas of the Canadian province of British Columbia...
- Fraser Canyon Indian Administration
The Fraser Canyon Indian Administration is a First Nations tribal council government composed of five bands in the Fraser Canyon and Thompson Canyon areas of the Canadian province of British Columbia....