BC Hydroâ€”Acquisition from Teck Metals Ltd. of an Undivided One

BC Hydro—Acquisition from Teck Metals Ltd. of an Undivided One-third Interest in its Waneta Dam

and Associated Assets Project No. 3698565

WRITTEN EVIDENCE

OF

THE OKANAGAN NATION ALLIANCE

SUBMISSION DATE: NOVEMBER 13, 2009

C8-6

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INTRODUCTION

1. This written evidence has been compiled with limited resources and in an extremely short

time period due to deadlines imposed by the BC Utilities Commission. Consequently,

this evidence represents only a small portion of the available written and oral evidence

the Okanagan Nation Alliance (“ONA”) would be able to adduce regarding the history of

the Okanagan Nation, its use and occupation of the Pend d’Oreille River valley and the

adverse effects of the Waneta Dam on Okanagan Aboriginal title and rights if it were

given adequate resources and time.

2. ONA has done what it can within the time limits which BC Hydro has urged on the BC

Utilities Commission and which the Commission has accepted. However, the time limit

imposed upon it is highly prejudicial as there is much more information to gather and

present which could not be done within such a short period. Much is at stake and yet

ONA resources and time have been severely circumscribed by the expedited time frame

3. The ONA wishes to underscore that it is being prejudiced by the unreasonable time frame

imposed upon it and it wishes to reserve the right to add further evidence regarding its

Aboriginal title and rights including the adverse impact of the Waneta Dam on these

rights.

THE OKANAGAN (SYILX) NATION1

4. The ONA is a contemporary political organization representing the collective Aboriginal

title and rights of the Okanagan Nation. Six Okanagan Bands are members of the ONA:

Lower Similkameen, Okanagan, Osoyoos, Penticton, Upper Similkameen, Upper Nicola

and Westbank.

5. The Okanagan name for their language is nsyilxcen. The Okanagan name for themselves

is Syilx. For ease of use, this evidence will use Okanagan and Syilx interchangeably.

1 The following members Okanagan people were interviewed from November 4th to the 13th, 2009 in preparation of this written evidence: Jeannette Armstrong (Penticton Indian Band); Richard Armstrong (Penticton Indian Band); Delphine Derrickson (Westbank First Nation); Hazel Squakin (Upper Similkameen Indian Band); Arkie Andrews (Colvilled Confederated Tribes); Arnie Baptiste (Penticton Indian Band).

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6. While some non-Syilx anthropologists and ethnographers have postulated divisions

within the Okanagan Nation, the Okanagan Nation and its territory are one indivisible

entity. There is a unity of language, politics, culture, laws and social structures common

to all Syilx and throughout their territory.

7. The unity of Okanagan Nation is exemplified through the Okanagan language, nsyilxcen

which at the time of contact with the Europeans in the early 19th century was spoken by

all Okanagan people. While there were slight differences in pronunciation depending on

where in Okanagan territory the Okanagan people lived, the differences were not

significant and did not alter their status as members of the Okanagan Nation. Dr.

Anthony Mattina, a professional linguist and the leading non-Okanagan expert on the

Okanagan language describes the slight differences in two articles he has co-authored on

Okanagan kinship terms which are common to all Okanagan people (Appendix “A”, and

Appendix “B”).

8. Also common to all Okanagan people are the captikŸ¨, the stories and oral traditions

which tell of the importance of each part of creation. The captikŸ¨ are the creation stories

that hold the laws of the Okanagan.

9. A person who is taught the sacred stories and oral traditions of the Okanagan is a called a sxŸqŸa›qŸ›alulÂa›xŸ. Jeanette Armstrong, a member of the Penticton Indian Band, is a

present-day sxŸqŸa›qŸ›alulÂa›xŸ. Armstrong was taught by Okanagan Elders, including

her grandmother Christine Joseph who was also a sxŸqŸa›qŸ›alulÂa›xŸ. She has been

chosen and groomed by the elders to teach the oral history of the Okanagan people as set

out below.

10. The resources of the land, and the land itself, are intertwined within Okanagan laws. The

Okanagan word that most closely translates to Aboriginal title is “skcÂÅŸipla›” which is a

complex word with many layers of meanings. In the captikŸ¨ this is the word that is used

to refer to how the Okanagan people are to live on the land. SkcÂÅŸipla› is the discipline

given to the Okanagan people by the Creator which sets out the way that all creatures

relate to each other; it also teaches people how to live in relation with all other life.

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SkcÂÅŸipla› is a concept shared by all Okanagan people, including those referred to in the

ethnographic literature as the Lakes.

11. The Okanagan concept which translates as being closest to Aboriginal rights is “st¨ta¨t”

which refers to the abstract idea of the straightest and most exact line between two points.

Used in the context of their relationship with the land, st¨ta¨t refers to that kind of truth

which connects Okanagan skcÂÅŸipla› and the actions of Okanagan as people. The st¨ta¨t show people how to live in accordance with the skcÂÅŸipla›. Okanagan laws about the

land teach that no matter how small or insignificant any living thing may seem, each

should be respected because they are part of creation and have a purpose within the skcÂÅŸipla›. The st¨ta¨t is like a string or a thread which, when unravelled, leads straight

back to the skcÂÅŸipla›. Okanagan existence and actions on the land are how all

Okanagan exercise their Aboriginal rights or, put in another way, how the st¨ta¨t are

unravelled to lead back to Okanagan Aboriginal title. St¨ta¨t is a concept shared by all

Okanagan people, including those referred to in the ethnographic literature as the Lakes.

12. The Okanagan word which most closely translates to “ecology” is “tmixŸ”. TmixŸ includes everything alive – the land, water, insects, people, animals, plants, medicines.

Underneath all of the tmixŸ is “tmxŸulÂa›xŸ” which is the core spirit from which all of

creation arises and which unites everything. It is the Okanagan word for the land.

Okanagan laws all lead back, through the skcÂÅŸipla› (Aboriginal title) which disciplines

the people, taught and exercised through the st¨ta¨t (Aboriginal rights), to the core spirit

shared by all living things “tmxŸulÂa›xŸ”(the land or ecosystem). The concept of

“tmxŸulÂa›xŸ” is shared by all Okanagan people, including those referred to in the

ethnographic literature as the Lakes.

13. The laws and knowledge of the Okanagan people regulate the resources of their territory.

The Okanagan word which describes the process the Okanagan people follow in order to

come to decisions about resources is kÂ¤¨ÀacÂx¤n which is a complex word carrying

many meanings. One meaning is to “look underneath” the obvious. Underneath what is

here today, there is a long line of people, and creation, to be considered in the future. The

word also is used to refer to the process of tracking an animal and suggests the need to

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look beyond the immediate to see underneath their own tracks to see where the footprints

will lead. When Okanagan say kÂ¤¨ÀacÂx¤n this means that they always look underneath

their actions to see how their actions or the tracks that they leave are connected to the

future, to their grandchildren, to the continuation of all creation, and to the tracks that

they make on the land into the future. The concept of kÂ¤¨ÀacÂx¤n” is shared by all

Okanagan people, including those referred to in the ethnographic literature as living at the

Arrow Lakes.

14. Prior to and at of the date of assertion of Crown sovereignty in British Columbia, the

Okanagan Nation used, occupied and stewarded Okanagan territory. The word in

nsyilxcen that mostly closely resembles the English language spatial concept of ‘territory’

is isca?la?laqsc. In the east, the isca?la?laqsc of the Okanagan Nation extends to the

territory of the Ktunaxa Nation and includes the Columbia River watershed and its

tributaries from near Revelstoke in the north, south into present-day Washington State.

Waneta and the Pend d’Oreille River is part of the Okanagan Nation’s isca?la?laqsc.

15. The northern extent of Okanagan territory, or isca?la?laqsc, is near Revelstoke, the

eastern boundary is near Kootenay Lake, the southern boundary extends to the vicinity of

Wilbur, Washington, and the western boundary extends to the west of the Nicola Valley.

In Canada, the neighbouring nations to the Okanagan Nation are the Nlaka’pamux Nation

to the west, the Secwepmc Nation to the north and the Kutanxa Nation to the east.

16. Okanagan Nation Aboriginal title and rights have never been surrendered, extinguished

or ceded through Treaty or otherwise. Attached as Appendix “C” is a copy of the

Okanagan Nation Declaration by which the Chiefs of the Okanagan Nation affirmed and

declared the continuing existing of Okanagan Aboriginal title and rights, long before

these proceedings were initiated.

Arrow Lakes Band

17. The Okanagan used and occupied the Columbia River valley and its tributaries from near

present-day Revelstoke in the north, south into present-day Washington State. In

nsyilxcen this region of Okanagan territory is known as snʕaickst based on the Okanagan

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word for the dolly varden char found there. The Syilx people and members of the

Okanagan Nation who have always and continue to live in snʕaickst are known as the

s?alt’ik’wt.

18. The s?alt’ik’wt are not a distinct indigenous nation – they are part of the Okanagan

Nation and share Syilx culture, social structure and laws. They are no more distinct from

the rest of the Okanagan Nation than are the Okanagan who live in other parts of

Okanagan territory and became members of various Indian Bands in the late 19th

century. For example, the Okanagan head of Okanagan Lake (the area referred as

nk’mapl’qs in the Okanagan language) became members of the Okanagan Indian Band.

Similarly, the Okanagan at Osoyoos Lake, (the area referred to as nk̕mip in the Okanagan

language) became members of the Osoyoos Indian Band.

19. The Okanagan people of the Arrow Lakes were formed into the Arrow Lakes Indian

Band by the Canadian Department of Indian Affairs in the early 20th century. Due to

deaths, transfers to other Indian Bands and Canada’s questionable record keeping, by the

1950s there was only one living Okanagan person, Annie Joseph, left on the band list for

the Arrow Lakes Indian Band. When Annie Joseph died in 1953 on the Okanagan Indian

Band Reserve near Vernon, where she had moved to years earlier, there were no living

Okanagan people left on the band list for the Arrow Lakes Indian Band. In 1956 Canada

took the unprecedented step of declaring the Arrow Lakes Indian Band ‘extinct’ and

allowed the Arrow Lakes Indian Band’s reserve to revert to British Columbia.

20. The Okanagan people of the Arrow Lakes, including those who were members of the

Arrow Lakes Indian Band, are not ‘extinct.’ Their descendants are now, and have always

been, members of the various Okanagan Indian Bands represented by the ONA.

21. Annie Joseph is the ancestor of many members of the Okanagan, Osoyoos, Penticton, and

Westbank Indian Bands. For example, Annie Joseph is an ancestor of Jeanette

Armstrong, a present-day sxŸqŸa›qŸ›alulÂa›xŸ referred to above, and a member of the

Penticton Indian Band.

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22. Similarly, many of the informants and Okanagan people named and described as Lakes in

Appendix “D” have numerous descendants and relatives who are currently members of

Indian Bands within the ONA. In particular, Martin Louie, Albert Louie, Christine

Quintasket (Mourning Dove), Charlie Quintasket, and Julia Quintasket have an extensive

network of relatives in the Osoyoos Indian Band, the Penticton Indian Band, the Upper

Similkameen Indian Band, the Westbank Indian Band, and the Okanagan Indian Band.

23. Martin Louie was a maternal uncle of Jeannette Armstrong (mentioned above) and one of

the Okanagan Elders who passed on Okanagan history and laws to Armstrong. Martin

Louie’s Okanagan name was snpakcin and later nxilkulaxw. He was born near Chistina

Lake, B.C. at a place called akɬ mcakʷ (place of blackberries) and was raised at Kettle

Falls and Inchelium, Washington. Martin Louie was a member of the Colville

Confederated Tribe, as were his sister Lilly Louie, Jeannette Armstrong's mother, and his

brother Albert Louie. They are all direct descendants of Chief Gregoire through their

grandparents Theresa Quintasket and Louie. Martin Louie’s only daughter Irene Bryson

is an elder of the Osoyoos Indian Band.

24. Martin Louie gave Jeannette Armstrong several of the many Okanagan place names in

the Arrow Lakes area, including:

n’qwupitls meaning flood plain on the edge of the river around

Castlegar area

.n’cam’ at Christina Lake, referring to a bend in the lake

nk’mnltln meaning village site at the edge of the river – at Grand

Forks, BC

aklp’ina meaning having birch – climbing up toward summit

between Christina Lake and Rossland

akst’atk meaning having huckleberries – the summit between

Christina Lake and Rossland (part of summit is also known

as Blueberry Paulson Summit)

n’qwa?lila? meaning little delta; flood plain – at Waneta

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c’uwelxic’a meaning where you wash your hides – Trail, BC

smskekeli’um meaning where the river slows down – on the other side of

the Columbia River from Trail

k’iyamitp meaning old dead tees (probably flood plain) where the

City Nelson is now

nxaxacin meaning sacred at the edge of the river – on the other side

of the river from Nelson.

aktkekni meaning having Kokanee – Arrow Lakes fishing camp on

the Kootenay River.

Naxwspewulkin meaning fish trap, referring to a rock bar that goes out into

the water of Kootenay Lake.

qali’ at Trout Lake (north of Slocan)

qali’su? a creek between Trout Creek and Upper Arrow Lake .

csiauqsqali’su? where the stream actually joins Upper Arrow Lake

nakus on Upper Arrow Lake

plumei north of Castlegar near Deer Park; upriver from Brilliant,

the site of a village.

25. One of the most prominent Okanagan chiefs of the mid-19th century was Chief Gregoire

referred to in Appendix “D” at page b-26 where he is described as the leading Chief of

the Lakes. Chief Gregoire exercised influence throughout the Okanagan Nation and was

also recognized as Chief of the Okanagan at nkm’p, present-day Osoyoos. Chief

Gregoire descendants are members of the Okanagan Indian Bands represented by the

ONA.

26. There have always been slight differences in the material culture of the Okanagan based

on the land resources of the specific region of Okanagan territory. For example, the

Okanagan from the Arrow Lakes region built large pine bark canoes. In comparison, the

Okanagan who lived along Okanagan Lake built dugout canoes while the Okanagan of

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the Similkameen valley mostly moved through the mountains and so rarely built any

canoes. Regardless of these small differences in material culture, all Okanagan

throughout Okanagan territory, from Kootenay Lake in the east to the Similkameen and

Douglas Lake in the west were considered to be, and considered themselves, part of the

Okanagan Nation.

27. All Okanagan, including those of the Arrow Lakes, have in common the same language,

culture, social structure, ethics, religious beliefs, world view, and philosophy. All

Okanagan share the same ceremonies – including winter dances and summer feasts. For

example, the central animal in the Okanagan winter dance (the snixwnm) is the deer, no

matter what part of Okanagan territory the dance is held. At the snixwnm, the Okanagan

reaffirm their relation to their territory and all living things. All Okanagan are welcomed

to attend the snixwnm, no matter where it is held or what part of the territory they live in.

The snixwnm is integral to, and embodies the unity and identity of, the Okanagan people

as such.

28. Similarly, in the spring, the rock clapping ceremony called sc’ac’ksasxnm is held by

Okanagan at important fishing places throughout their territory when the river is high.

Through the ceremony, the Okanagan call the salmon back to the rivers and their homes.

Members of the Okanagan Nation in Canada, including members of the Penticton and

Osoyoos Bands regularly gather with their relatives at the annual sc’ac’ksasxnm held at

the Kettle Falls on the Columbia River in Washington State.

29. Similarly, the Okanagan salmon feast of snxaʔiwləm is held in September at Kettle Falls.

The feast is organized by descendants of Okanagan from the Arrow Lakes but Okanagan

from all across Okanagan territory are welcome to attend.

30. The Okanagan did not wage war among themselves, but did at times go to war with their

neighbours, including the Ktunaxa Nation. While the Okanagan living in the Arrow

Lakes region would be most directly involved in wars with the Ktunaxa, they could rely

on their fellow Okanagan from the south and west to fight with them against the Ktunaxa

when possible.

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31. From the mid-19th century onwards Okanagan presence in the Arrow Lakes and

Columbia River region was severely restricted by the international boundary which

discouraged and gradually prevented many Okanagan people from moving freely back

and forth through their territory.

32. Okanagan presence in the Arrow Lakes and Columbia River in the 20th century was

severely impaired by effect of Indian Residential Schools which discouraged and often

prevented Okanagan people from pursuing their traditional cultural and social activities

throughout their territory.

USE AND OCCUPATION OF WANETA AND PEND D’OREILLE RIVER VALLEY

33. The Syilx have used and occupied the upper Columbia River, and its tributaries, in

present-day Canada and south into the United States for thousands of years. The

Okanagan Nation’s use and occupation of the Columbia River, including the Arrow

Lakes, has been documented by numerous ethnographers.

34. In 2006 the ONA prepared a draft preliminary overview assessment of Okanagan use and

occupation of Waneta and the Pend d’Oreille River (Appendix “E”). Due to limited

funding and resources, to-date they have not been able to do further research.

35. The ethnographic evidence of Okanagan use and occupation of Waneta and the Pend

d’Oreille River has recently been summarized by Dorothy Bouchard and Randy Kennedy

in a report entitled “First Nations’ Aboriginal Interests and Traditional Use in the Waneta

Hydroelectric Expansion Project Area: A Summary and Analysis of Known and

Available Background Information,” (2004 (revised 2005)) (Appendix “D”). Much of

the interview evidence that forms the basis for this and similar reports written by

Bouchard and Kennedy comes from Okanagan (Colville) from the United States. Due to

ongoing differences between Bouchard and Kennedy and Okanagan Nation Alliance

member Bands over intellectual property rights and the use of oral history evidence,

important evidence on the commonalities of Okanagan culture and language and the

relationship between Okanagan people living in different regions of Okanagan territory is

missing from Bouchard and Kennedy’s reports. Specifically, Bouchard and Kennedy

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have not had the benefit of substantial oral history evidence from the Okanagan National

Alliance member Bands on the place of the ‘Lakes’ within the Okanagan Nation.

Nonetheless, Appendix “D” does include useful information on the history of the

Okanagan Nation’s use and occupation of Waneta and the Pend d’Oreille River

watershed.

36. As part of their occupation of the Columbia River and its tributaries, the Okanagan have

used, occupied and controlled the Pend d’Oreille River, including its confluence with the

Columbia River and surrounding lands, for thousands of years. The Waneta Dam is built

on top of an ancient Okanagan settlement known as nqʷaʔlilaʔ. This ancient settlement

was occupied by a large number of Okanagan at the time British Sovereignty was

asserted in British Columbia. Many Okanagan were buried in and around the settlement.

The Okanagan continued to occupy the settlement, to the extent possible, into the last half

of the 19th century.

37. The Okanagan also exercised various Aboriginal rights in the Pend d’Oreille Valley at

the time of contact with Europeans in the early 19th century and have continued to

exercise these rights, to the extent possible, ever since. The Aboriginal rights exercised

by the Okanagan Nation in the Pend d’Oreille Valley included, but are not limited to, the

right to hunt, fish, gather and harvest plants and food stuffs, as well as ceremonial and

cultural rights.

38. At the time of contact with Europeans in the early 19th century, the Okanagan harvested

a wide range of plants at the confluence of the Columbia and Pend d’Oreille Rivers and

throughout the Pend d’Oreille Valley. Some of the plants harvested by the Okanagan,

and their uses, are listed by Bouchard and Kennedy at pp. 32-36 of Appendix “D.”


a wide range of animals at the confluence of the Columbia and Pend d’Oreille Rivers and

throughout the Pend d’Oreille Valley. Some of the animals harvested by the Okanagan,

and their uses, are listed by Bouchard and Kennedy at pp. 38-39 of Appendix “D.”

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a wide range of fish species at the confluence of the Columbia and Pend d’Oreille Rivers

and throughout the Pend d’Oreille Valley. Some of the fish species harvested by the

Syilx, and their uses, are listed by Bouchard and Kennedy at pp. 42-44 of Appendix “D.”

THE FAILURE TO CONSULT REGARDING THE EXISTING WANETA DAM

41. Between 1951 and 1954 the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company (now known as

Teck Cominco “Teck”) constructed the Waneta Dam on the Pend d’Oreille River at the

site of the Okanagan village of nqʷaʔlilaʔ. The 250 ft concrete dam created a reservoir

approximately 6 km long. The original electric generating capacity of approximately 89

megawatts has since been increased to approximately 450 megawatts. The generated

electricity was intended for Teck’s operations in nearby Trail, but in recent years Teck

has sold a significant portion of the electricity generated at Waneta into the United States.

42. The Province of British Columbia did not consult with the Okanagan Nation concerning

the construction of the Waneta Dam, nor did it take any steps to accommodate the

Okanagan Nation in relation to the taking up and flooding of Okanagan Aboriginal title

lands for the Waneta Dam and reservoir, or the impacts on Okanagan Aboriginal title and

rights from the construction and operation of the Waneta Dam. The Okanagan Nation

was not provided with information concerning the project and its potential impacts to

Okanagan Aboriginal title and rights, and traditional uses, nor were they provided a

meaningful opportunity to provide input into the development, construction and operation

of the Waneta Dam.

43. The construction and operation of the Waneta Dam has, and continues to, severely affect

Okanagan aboriginal title. The Waneta Dam is built on Okanagan Nation title lands. The

Waneta reservoir floods Okanagan Nation title lands for approximately 6 kilometres

along the Pend d’Oreille River.

44. The operation of the Waneta Dam has severely affected the exercise of Okanagan

aboriginal rights above and below the dam. Below the dam, the waters flowing on the

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Pend d’Oreille and Columbia rivers have been adversely affected, as described below,

seriously and detrimentally affecting fish, animals, birds, plants and riparian habitat.

45. Above the dam, the Pend’ d’Oreille River has been turned into a hydroelectric reservoir

operated to maximize hydroelectric generation. The flooding of the Pend d’Oreille

Valley by the Waneta Dam has harmed and transformed the local ecosystem and

impaired the exercise of Okanagan aboriginal rights in the area. The adverse impacts

associated with the operation of the Waneta Dam have included:

• blockage of the river passage way and associated adverse effects on fish stocks

(including salmon, bull trout, rainbow trout, and white sturgeon) and habitat;

• changes in downstream water flows which negatively affect oxygen levels and

total gas pressure and associated adverse effects on fish;

• changes to flows of sediments and nutrients which creates adverse effects on fish

spawning and habitat areas;

• flooding of land above the dam with associated adverse effects on habitat, water

flows and Aboriginal title;

• interference with traditional hunting and plant harvesting areas; and

• interference with spiritual beliefs and practices associated with the water and its

free movement.

46. Before the construction of the Waneta Dam, the confluence of the Columbia and Pend

d’Oreille Rivers was an important location for the Okanagan to fish sturgeon. Catching,

harvesting and sharing sturgeon held important cultural and social significance for the

Okanagan.

47. When the Waneta Dam was built, many sturgeon were killed and the fishery was

decimated. The local newspaper, the Trail Times, printed photographs of sturgeon killed

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in the Pend d’Oreille River due to rock blasting for the building of the Waneta Dam

(Appendix “F”).

48. Before the Waneta Dam was built, the Pend d’Oreille Valley was an important location

for Okanagan to harvest medicinal plants. The flooding of the valley destroyed the

habitat of many of the plants harvested by the Okanagan.

CONSULTATION REGARDING BC HYDRO’S ASSET PURCHASE AGREEMENT

49. The ONA was notified of BC Hydro’s pending decision to enter into the Asset Purchase

Agreement (“Asset Purchase Decision”) for a one-third undivided interest in the Waneta

Dam by a June 17, 2009 letter from BC Hydro attached as Appendix “G.” The Master

Term Sheet was provided to the ONA by BC Hydro on June 19, 2009.

50. After reviewing the Master Term Sheet, the ONA wrote to BC Hydro on July 20, 2009

stating that given the existing and ongoing effects of the Waneta Dam on Okanagan

aboriginal title and rights, ‘deep consultation’ was required. The ONA specifically

suggested dates for a face-to-face meeting to discuss next steps (Appendix “H”).

51. At a meeting between the ONA and BC Hydro on August 10, 2009 the ONA again

informed BC Hydro that, as an agent of the Crown, its contemplation of the Asset

Purchase Decision triggered the Crown’s duty to consult and accommodate. The BC

Hydro representatives informed the ONA that BC Hydro had not yet decided whether the

duty to consult was triggered by the Asset Purchase Decision.

52. On September 3, 2009 the ONA received from BC Hydro a letter dated September 2,

2009 stating that it intended to decide whether or not to enter the Asset Purchase

Agreement on September 22, 2009 and requesting any further comments from the ONA

by September 15, 2009 (Appendix “I”)

53. On September 9, 2009 the ONA wrote to BC Hydro regarding funding provided by BC

Hydro to cover costs for reviewing the proposed transaction and to begin discussions

regarding the scope of required consultation and accommodation (Appendix “J”).

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54. On September 9, 2008 Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, on behalf of the ONA, wrote to Bob

Elton, President and CEO of BC Hydro, outlining the ONA’s concerns regarding BC

Hydro’s anticipated Asset Purchase Decision and the need for meaningful consultation

and accommodation regarding the decision (Appendix “K”).

55. On September 15, 2009 the ONA wrote to BC Hydro to advise them that given the short

notice provided by BC Hydro, it would be unable to provide further information

regarding the effects of the Asset Purchase Decision until September 18, 2009 (Appendix

“L”).

56. On September 18, 2009 the ONA again wrote to BC Hydro and outlined as requested

some of the physical and non-physical impacts due to the anticipated Asset Purchase

Decision (Appendix “M”).

57. On September 23, 2009 the ONA received a letter from BC Hydro of the same date

informing the ONA of its plans to proceed with the Selkirk Intertie Project (Appendix

“N”).

58. On September 30, 2009 the ONA received a letter from BC Hydro dated September 28,

2009 informing the ONA that BC Hydro had decided to enter into the Asset Purchase

Agreement with Teck (Appendix “O”).

59. On October 28, 2009 the ONA wrote to inform BC Hydro of the outcome of the recent

Okanagan Chiefs Executive Meeting regarding Waneta and to propose issues to discuss

at the planned meeting between the ONA and BCH on October 30, 2009 (Appendix “P”).

60. At the October 30, 2009 meeting with BC Hydro, the ONA again stressed that for over 50

years the Waneta Dam had severely affected Okanagan Aboriginal title and rights by

flooding Okanagan aboriginal title lands in the Pend d’Oreille valley and interfering with

Aboriginal rights, including fish, hunting and ceremonial rights. The ONA repeated that

in their view, BC Hydro’s consideration of purchasing a one-third interest in the Waneta

dam triggered the Crown’s duty to consult on the ongoing adverse impacts of the dam.

The ONA offered to expedite consultation and accommodation negotiations as much as

practicable to meet BC Hydro’s schedule for completing the transaction.

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61. The BC Hydro representatives at the October 30, 2009 meeting stated that based on BC

Hydro’s position that the Asset Purchase Decision did not affect the ongoing operation of

the Waneta Dam, there was no need to consult or accommodate the Okanagan Nation

regarding the ongoing impacts. They suggested that the ONA should take up this issue

with the provincial government instead. BC Hydro also suggested that issues raised by

the Asset Purchase Decision could be addressed as part of an overall protocol agreement

which the ONA had suggested to BC Hydro over a year previously. The ONA stated that

despite its best efforts, the protocol agreement had not yet been finalized and, regardless,

did not obviate BC Hydro’s requirement to consult and accommodate regarding the Asset

Purchase Agreement.

62. Despite the best efforts of the ONA, as of the date of this written evidence, BC Hydro has

not acknowledged that it has a legal duty to consult and accommodate regarding the

Asset Purchase Agreement. BC Hydro’s interaction with the ONA to date regarding the

Asset Purchase Agreement has been limited to providing the ONA with information and

soliciting responses from the ONA. Consequently, BC Hydro has not consulted or

accommodated the Okanagan Nation regarding the Asset Purchase Agreement.

Florence M. Voegelin Memorial Volume

1992

[Published July 19941

DELL HYMES 45

M. DALE KINKADE 84

PAUL V. KROSKRITY 104

DOROTHEA V. KASCHUBE 9

ERIC P. RAMP 15

1

CONTENTS

LANGUAGE IN CULTURE

ANTHROPOLOGICAL LINGUISTICS

Kinship Terminology in Upper Chehalisin a Historical Framework

Arizona Tewa Public Announcements:tForm, Function, and Linguistic Ideology

Ok~agan-Colville Kinship TermsANTHONY MATTINA AND CLARA JACK 117

HowLong Ago We Got Lost: A Warm Springs.Sahaptin Narrative VIRGINA HYMES AND HAZEL SUPPAH 73

ll¢len Sekaquaptewa's "Coyote and the Birds":. Rhetorical Analysis of a Hopi Coyote Story

You Can't Get There From Here: Southern Paiute Testimonyas Intercultural Communication

PAMELA BUNTE AND RoBERT FRANKLIN 19

Editors' Introduction

For Flo

.Remembering Flo

VOLUME 34, NUMBERS 1-4


Silverstein, Michael

1979 Language Structure and Lin . .'. gwstlc Ideology. In The Elements· A P .c.

Slon on Linguistic Units and Levels, edited by Paul Clyne Willi" araseand Carol H tb ' am

. ~ auer, 193-247. Chicago: Chicago Linguistics Societ U.verslty of Chicago. y,. .

Language and the Culture of Gender: at the Intersection of Stru .'Usage, and Ideology. In Semiotic Mediat· dited b' ctm-et.;d . lOn, e y Ehzabeth M' .an Richard Parmentier, 219-59 Orlando' Acad 'Pre ~""'"Tedlock., Dennis '. emle sa.

198

3 tThef~oken Wor~ and the Work of Interpretation. Philadelphia: UniVi .:y 0 .rennsylvanla Press. erSh

Voegelin, Carl F.

1960 Casual and Noncasual Utterances within Unified Structure L S .

Voegelin C LlaFnguadgeRo'ebdited by Thomas Sebeok, 57-£9. Cambridge; MIT ~ss~le ID;, ar ., an art C. Euler

1957 Introduction to Hopi Chants. Journal f Am' FVoth, Henry R a encan olklore 70:115--36.

1905a Oraibi Natal Customs and Cere . ., momes. Field Columbian Museum Publ'

tion no 97 Anthro 1 ' lea·., po oglcal Series vol 6 no 2 ChiHo i Pro . ,." . . cago.p . per Names. FIeld Columbian Museum Publ' t'

thro I . al ' Ica Ion no. 100 An-. po oglc Senes, vol. 6, no. 3. Chicago. '

Whiteley, Peter

1992 Hopitutungwn""H' N "• • 1. .OPI ames as Literature. In On the Translation of

Native Amencan LIterature edited b B' S .D . '. ' y nan wann, 208-27. Washingto

.C.. Smlthsoman Institution Press. n,

Okanagan~ColvilleKinship Terms

ANTHONY MATIINA

University of Montana and En'owkin Centre, Penticton, British Columbia

CLARA JACK

Okanagan Curriculum Project, Penticton, British Columbia

Abstract. We discuss the appellatives, or the address terms, of Okanagan·Colville (OK-CV), an interior Salish language continuum of southern BritishColumbia and north-central Washington State. Because the majority of OK-CVaddress terms are also kin reference tenns, we describe briefly the OK·CVkinship system. We also discuss the grammatical properties and the variousallomorphs of the tenns, calling particular attention to hypocoristic and babytalk forms, and to kin terms used to address unrelated individuals, phenomenathat must reflect certain facts of OK-CV social organization.

1. Introduction. The Okanagan are a Salish-speaking people of NorthAmerica whose territory extends north to south approximately from Revelstoke, British Columbia, to Grand Coulee Dam, Washington; and west to eastapproximately from the Nicola Valley of British Columbia to Kettle Falls,Washington. The basic unit of traditional Okanagan society is the extendedfamily, a group of relatives who live in close proximity or share living quarters.We avoid defining formally the limits of the kin group, but we aim to providecomprehensive lists of the Okanagan kin terms, together with a discussion oflinguistic features we deem salient, We include in our lists some terms (nicknames, and terms such as close friend) that are of interest because they areused as appellatives. Although we are not able to provide an account of howthe Okanagan kinship system fits in the overall organization of Okanagansociety, we draw attention to certain features that we feel aid in understandingOkanagan culture.

The general traits of the system can be swnmarized as follows.' In ego's~eneration OK-CV kinship terminology distinguishes siblings by sex and age,and these sibling terms are extended to cousins. Thus we have four terms:older sister or female cousin, younger sister or female cousin, older brother ormale cousin, and younger brother or male cousin.

In the first ascending generation the terms for ego's parents are distinguished by sex of ego: the term for a male's father differs from the term for a

---- -------~---~~

Table 1. Okanagan-Colville Kinship Terms

mother'sfather,mother'sparent's

brother,mother'sparent'smale cousin;

kGwa1'

hftipa2 father'sfather,father'sparent's

brother,father's

parent's

male cousin;

male's s~n's

child

oldman, oldwoman'shusband,elders,parents

old woman,oldman'swife,old women

great-greatgrandparent

I-child

tUpa2 great-grand-

parent/-child

old (person)

HYPOCOR. GLOSS

APPEL.

t'a2t'lipa2

k'ik'wa2

sidi;pa2

APPELLATIVE

ANmoNY MATIlNA AND CLARA JACK

/;a/;kYk'wa1'

PLURALREFERENCE

patpatw{na;eW

k'ik'wa1'

siciXpa? iaisXdipa2

th2t'Upa2 th.1't'upa1'

ANTInwPOLOGICAL LINGUISTICS118

female's father. Those terms do not extend to parent's (mother's Or fasiblings. Here the terminology reflects a bifurcate collateral system inuncles and aunts are distinguished by the sex of the parent: father'sbmother's brother, father's sister, and mother's sister are four different t _In the first descending generation ego's children are differentiated by sexare distinguished from ego's siblings' children. Thus we have terms for;daughter, and sibling's child.

In the second ascending generation ego's grandparents' generation.system distinguishes terms by parent's and grandparent's sex:: mother's er, mother's father, father's mother, and father's father are four diffeterms. While a speaker has four terms to refer to a grandparent, each dmined by the sex of the speaker's parent and grandparent, in the secondscending generation a speaker has only two terms to refer to a grandewhich are determined by the sex of the speaker and of the speaker's off(and not by the sex of the granchild). These terms are therefore reciprocfollows: mother's mother and woman's daughter's child (of either sex), motIlfather and man's daughter's child, father's mother and woman's son's c'father's father, and man's son's child.

In each of the generations above grandparent and below grandchildsingle reciprocal term refers to the kin relationship (great-grandpare,great-grandchild; great-great-grandparent =great-great-grandchild). T

efor kin beyond the fourth ascending or descending generations do notthough they might have in earlier times.3

No. REFERENCE PLURALAPPElLATIVE HYPOcoR, GLOSS

REF&RENCEAPPEL.

(1) sanqsilxW

sanqsilxW

(2) n:ra2cinn:ra?cin elder(s),

ancestor(s)!3) xa1'x?it xa·?:r.1'it xa?:r.?it elder,

ancestor

2. The basic data. We begin by listing the basic OK-CV forms, items ('(52), in table 1 below. The table provides: (a) reference term; (b) plureference term; (c) appellative form; and (d) hypocoristic appellative fofollowed by (e) English gloss.4

123AN'!'HONY MATTINA AND CLARA JACK34NO&ANTHRoPOwalCAL LINGUISTICS

No. REFERENCE PLURAL APPElLATIVE HYPocOR. GLOSS REFERENCE PLURAL APPElLATIVE HYPoCOR. GLOSS

REFERENCE APPEL. REFERENCE APPEL.

(25) lcac2Ups Ica7c2ups Icac7Ups 7Upa7 younger·cousin-

sister,in-law

female(derisive)

cousin"tafsXaid7 sXaid7 father-in-

siai<i7(26) sqaltmi:ro sq<Jlq<JltmixW lawman,

husbandtcick mother-in-

sqq<JltmUWt<Jtcick

man. lawhusband(derisive) male's

sister's(27) siflwi7 siciwlwil husband, hUsband;

sxa.xlwil husband wife's(slightly brotherderisive)

female's(28) tk<Jtmfl:ro tkatkatmtl:ro woman, wife brother's

tk<Jkt mlla7? woman, wife wife;(slightly husband'sderisive) sister

(29) ndX!"naif' wife, opposite sexsa7sa7stci.m

n'n'ax"'naif' wife sibling of(derisive) spouse

<30) smam2im women, .(husband's

wives'1D brother;

wife's(31 ) nq'Wic't<Jn nq,wci.c'q'Wac'tan widow's sister);

(deceased) opposite sex

husband's spouse of

brother; sibling

widower's (female's

(deceased) sister's

brother's husband;

wife," male's

nq,wci.c'tan widow(er)'s brother's

brother, wife);

sister, or

122

124 ANTHRoPOLOGICAL LINGUISTICS ' 34 NOS••ANTHONY MAITINA AND CLARA JACK ~/ 125

NO. REFERENCE PLURAL APPELLATIVE HYPOCOR. GLOSS REFERENCE PLURAL APPELLATIVE HYPOCOR. GLOSS.

REFERENCE APPEL. REFERENCE APPEL.

opposite sexsmall child,

spouse of sqWasq'"a2si2a sqWaqWs- children

spouse'sqWa 2si2a

sibling daughter,

(husband's st'at'amklz'lt littlesisters daughter

husband;wife's sn(k'wlxw daughter's

brothers husband

wife)," son's wifessalstam opposite sex sipan

young friend sHwilt shdwz'l·t sHwilt Hwilrs brother,

of one's sistel.'", or

spouse cousin's son

(37) nkwal'mut husbands of01.'" daughter

two sisters san2am2ima2t siJn2r:ma2t gl"andchild;

or cousins; brother,

wives of two sistel.'", or

brothers or cousin's

cousins'S gl"andchild

(a8) syumCiJn tatsylimCiJn syumcan buddy, close grandchild-

friend (male in-law;

to male) (spouse of

(39) sl'ait sl'ail'tiit sl'ait brothers,gl"Bndchild)

male sk'i2flp sk'ak'2z'la2p son or

cousins, daughter's

male widow(er)

friends;friends

son- or

(4°) santx"'J1s santax"'t,,"'ris

daughter-in-

santxWus female law's

cousins, parents

sisters,friends "(51) stm'lili2s

relatives,

sq"'silstatm'lili2s

relatives

(41 ) tatsqWs C2 sqWS i?4 son, (distant)

sqWaqWsil little son({)2) sanHamtcin

in-laws

Plurals of iul1erently reduplicated stems:

127

great_great_grand_ent!.cbildfather's brother, etc.father's sister, etc.

ANTHONY MATl'INA AND CLARA JAcK

/ /k-1iw.lx// / /k-1aw-1iw.1xI/" old (person)(4) old woman, etc.(6) //ptwinuw

// pat-patw(naxfIstepfather

(18) !wistan //lw-lwistn//female's fatherm'as-m'(stam

(19) m'istams-k,wy-k'wuy male's mother

(20) s-k'wuy female's mother(21) tum' tam'-tum'

man, husband(26) s-qaltmixw s-qal-qaltmit»

woman, wife (cf.(28) t_katmilxW t-koi-kat maxw

tak-taktmi~ in Cv)

(36) sa7stcim sa7-sa.?stam opposite sex sibling ofspouse, etc.

sl'ait s-l'ax-l'ciXtbrothers, male cousins,

(39) male friends; friends

s-an-txWus s-an-txW-traus female cousin, sisters,(40) friends

(43) s-t'amk2t'1t s_t'am_t'amk?ilt daughter

/ /s-tw-twil·t//brother, sister or cousin's

(46) s-twilt son or daughter (see alsosection 3.1.5)

(47) s-an-2imat? s-an-?am-2ima.?t grandchild; etc.

urals of complex unanalyzable forms:

One vowel-less reduplicative prefix:

018.02-

C.a1-

. Fourteen forms have a vowel-less reduplicative prefix:

iat-qwupsa?tat-smi?!!ai-sk,wuk'i2

;- .. . . f· min_ h ve identified the following complexIties m these stems. s- 0 s- ,Vfe ~ d • f' w 'ps-a? We are also aware that there may be a con·,wuk'i2 an -0" 0 q U • ) k'w • ther'• hetw n (16) tat-sk,wtik'i2 'father's sister' and (20 s- . ~y mo .on ee • k' • ther' then s-k,wuk (,2 would be a

If it is possible to reconstruct s- uy mo, and II b' 't. t ·th automatic rounding of k'before u, sy a ICI :y

Y.reduP~:~:alo:t: stop remaios to be accounted for (but cr. Shus;ap

uJy , ." ·th '. cf also the Thompson doublet k oz,uy'e 'parent's brother S WIle Wl . y, .

lD'uy'parent's sister or female COUSIn').

- -- Three patterns of C1C2 - reduplication of stem3.1.2. c.C.- reduplication.

efound:

father's father, ete.mother's father, ete.mother's sister, etc.mother's brother, etc.

ANTHROPOLOGICAL LINClliSTICS

t .t-siciipa2t.t-kYk'wa2iai-sw'a2w'tisa2ial-sasi2

3. Analysis of the basic data.

prefixation oftat- to the stemreduplication ofC1 C2- of stemlengthening of the unstressed stem vowelinfixation of -al-lengthening of a posttonic consonant

3.1.1. tat-. Prefixation of tat- is required to form the plural of seven stemOf these, four are inherently reduplicated; the remaining three are also COIIl~-\plex, but analyzable stems, consisting of more than a bare root and inciudin~Jmaterial that is presumed. arrIXal. These seven stems form a heterogeneous set;'without obvious phonological or semantic patterns.

3.1. Plurals. Five types of grammatical devices mark the plural of k'tenns:17

>26

In figure 1 below we represent graphically the kin reference terms as-;relate to female and male egos. The charts extend for four generationsand four generations below ego's. and. besides ego. include ten terms forgeneration. eight terms for the first generation above ego. five terms forfirst generation below ego. four terms each for the second ascending andscending generations, and one term each for the third and fourth generatiabove and below ego. Relationships that extend beyond those representedare referred to as ktmfcipla2 'no relationship'. We should note too thatcharts do not include forms that are not kin terms, i.e, forms (1)-{6), (38)-{4and (42). The charts also ignore (so) smam2im, a term that can be used toto multiple wives, and (18) t wistan 'stepfather'. Finally, we should note ththe charts do not cover the full range of several terms: for terms (9) siliXp'"father's parent's male cousin'. (10) kYk/wa2 'mother's parent's male cousi(11) qaqna2 "rather's parent's female cousin', and (12) stamt'ima2 'mothparent's female cousin' our charts show the parent's sibling, and not theent's cousin; for (a7) nkWal'mut 'husbands of two sisters or cousins; wives ofbrothers or cousins', our charts show only wife's sister's husband, and hband's brother's wife, but not wife's cousin's husband or husband's cousiwife.

36. sa?stcim37. nkwal'mut41 . sqlDsi?43. st'amka?i'lt44. snik'aix'"45. sipan46. sHwilt47. san?Cma?t48. nk'i?(lt49. sk'i?ilp50. ntCmtan

brother, sister or cousin'sson or daughter

small child

elder, ancestorgreat-grandparent;great-grandchild

male's fatheryounger sister, etc.

husbandwidow's (deceased)husband's brother, etc.

la?-l?iwf-ca?--c2ups

xa·J-xfitt'a·J-t'upaJ

s-iril-ialwi2n-q,wcic'-q,wac'tn

21. tum'22. iqaqcal23. ikikxal24. isiSanca?25. icacfups26. sqaltmix'"27. sxi'lwi?28. thai m£b!"29. ruiX'"naX"32. sXalid?33. rcick34. sc'ixt35. nskiw

ANTHONY MA'ITINA AND CLARA JACK

siuiwiH

xa2-xfCtt'a?-t'upa?

s-n7wiJn-q'lDic'tan

l?iw/ ji--e'lupsj/

R-TERMJ{EV:

(3)(8)

Two forms reduplicate with C,al-:

Two forms reduplicate with C,liC2-:

;;q"'upsaf't'aft'Upa2

siliipa2·kYk'wa2!q6qna2 .·:Stamtima?. sw'alw'tisa?smiJisad?sk'''uk'i2lJiwm'iStamsk'wuy

3.1.5. Lengthening of posttonic consonant. Along with C,C2

- reduplication (see section 3.1.2), one form lengthens posttonic l:

3.1.4. Infix -a2-. One form infixes -a2- before the C immediately precedingthe stressed vowel, and suffIxes -a:

~....3. Vowel length. Two forms, reduplicated in the singular, fonn the pIu. fal by lengthening the unstressed stem vowel a:

7

24 reference number of kin term35 (bold) term exclusive to the chart

o female ~f:::" male ~parents

o female egoA 1 ~ofTspring.as rna e ego

Figure 1. Okanagan kin reference terms.

sonsmall childdaughter . , da hterbrother, sister, or COUSin s son or ugson or daughter's widow(er)

ANTHONY MATl'INA AND CLARA JACK

f the diminutive adds derision:In five other orms

(4l.) s-qw-qwsi?(4

2) s-qw-qwsqwalsi?a

(43) s-t'a-t'amklat(46) t-twilt(49) s-lta-k'lilalp

. nce b the reduplicative k'-,Note that in (49) the diminutive is marked tWice, 0 Y

and again by the infix -a2-.

(8)(g)

I fi ~:rms diminutive affIxation (C,- prefixed3 3 3 Diminutive forms. n ve 0 ,

t~ ~t;m) achieves the hypocoristic effect:

(14) min « s-mili)

. . h ocoristic forms are simplexes.J Reconstructed simplexes. S~ yp terms with the phonological

. d reconstructed from the re erence ,ldonne or

indicated:

'1lS {s-} absolutive (see also note 14):

father's brother, cousin

, ·th d 1 ttalization of t, .ttinn:l « "'t'al-t'upal, Wl eg 0 f' "th h and pharYJlgeal mtru-r- ",' -:mn.l with replacement 0 x WI

hfcipal « s-xa-~- ,. n) d stem vowel and pha-

S10 • __ " .th reinstatement of a stresseqfana2 « qa--qlltW, WI

ryngeal intrllSion) -> ')

(12) t<ima.? « ·s-tam-tima.?, with ablla~. a tive), 1 « "'t-si-sanca1 where {i- mu

,,' (24) sUlea {l ~ with affixation of -al)," (25) ltipal « "'t-e--c-- u , .

,., ..... . 0 hology of the hypocoristic forms ISj It will be noted that whIle thew~thl"Pthe possible exception of (25), eachl;IUnpler than the ~eferent eorm~- sim lex-their phonology is not alwa~sh.··.ypocoristic word IS an underlymg h P"'t' - aJ trima:! may be simpler (a IS

h tU '1's simpler t an up ) t t ..'I Psimpler. Althoug pa 1 _ d 'I (of Jupa'l) is equivalen 0 u,marked than i?) than "t~ma2, anI. tUPd" than "'mpaJ and "'qcina2, respec-

. "comp lca e .' rhfdpa2 and qfanaJ seem more h t h""'''''geal and SImIlar voca lZa-ed to argue tap ~J'-tively, unless we M.e prepar hildhood (cf. also (69».tiona are typical of mfancy and early c arent complexity of these forms, we

Ifwe understood the reason fo~ the ~pp of haryngeals in such borrowedwould probably understand the ;tr,!"sl.O~eep~These are words that remin~items as kWftita 'quarteakr' andem c:~:: t~at includes a pharyngeal in C9 pOSI

Okanagan.colville spe ers 0 a

tion.


3.3.1. s- tnmcation. In one case word-initial s- is deleted, as though identi-

3.3. Hypocoristic forms. Twenty terms of address have special baby talkvariants, used both by children and adults. A variety of phonological operations applied to the reference terms yield these hypocoristics.

This is parallel to forms such as blka·x 'hands', based on a singular kiZx.

3.2. Appellative forms. Under nonna! circumstances neither the retiterm nor a specific appellative is used to address (4) elder; <5} old man; (6)woman; (26) man;husband; (28) woman/wife; (31) widow's (deceased)hband's brother, widower's (deceased) brother's wife; (36) opposite sex sibof spouse, opposite sex spouse of sibling, opposite sex spouse of spouse's sibI"(37) husband of one's wife's sister or wife of one's husband's brother; (42)child; (43) daughter; (48) spouse of grandchild; (50) son- or daughter-in-Iaparents. Other reference terms serve as terms of address.

Some 'of these address terms can be used to address not only personsactual or literal reference (ego's actual uncles, aunts, or grandfathers),other unrelated individuals who by reason of age and sex may be so addressThus an (unrelated) elderly male may be addressed as (:10) kYk'wa2 'mothfather, brother, cousin' or (15) sasi2 'mother's brother, cousin', and an eldefemale as (12) stamtima2 'mother's mother' or (13) 8w'a2w'asa2 'mother's siter, cousin; stepmother'.

A man may address a younger male as (25) sinca2 'younger brother, cous·and a woman may address a younger female as (25) 2upa2 'younger sist' .cousin'. Conversely, two terms without actual kin reference may be used tQaddress kin. 'rhus (39) sl'ait 'friend, partner' is used by males to address broth-.ers, or male cousins. and (40) santXVus 'friend, partner' is used by females taddress sisters or female cousins.

As terms of address these last two terms serve other functions: sl'ait may.be used by a male to address a female with whom he is intimate, and sont~Us:'

is a reserved or polite term of address between coeval members of the opposite,sex.

We might note that the generic address terms for unrelated elders are allterms that literally refer to ego's mother's (not father's) ascending relatives,and there is no term (parallel to sl'ait) with which a woman may address anintimate male. We take these facts to correlate with elements in an earlier .stage of the social organization of the Okanagan-Colvilles.'9 The inference wemake is that male terms are priviledged and reserved, and female terms lessmarked and open to extension. Analogous extensions apply to the terms fOl"younger brother, younger sister (less priviledged than older brother, oldersister), each referring to (generic) brother and sister, respectively, in reciprocalconstructions (see section 3"4)"~

Note that in (28) the diminutive is marked twice, as in (49),

4.1. Hypocoristics. Three such deserve mention:

133

step grandfather .adopted great.grandparentl-chlld .adopted great_great-grandparent/.childadopted female's fatheradopted female's motheradopted male's motheradopted male's father .adopted father's father, brother, COUSlI~

d ted mother's father, brother, cousma op .adopted father's brother, cousrn

old marethumb (girl's)little thumb (girl's)old horse (to males and females)

widow(er)pluri widow(er)want a husbandwanta wifetwinstwinstwins of nonhwnan littermarried woman's lovermarried man's loversweetheart

k'W"l'fk'a~'wa?k,w"l'f t'a1't'upa?k'W"Z'fqWupsa?k,wal'f m'ist"mk,waZ'Uum'k,1Dal't sk'wuyk''''al'HJiwk'wal'f sXtiipa?k,w"l'tk'ik'walk,wal'smilt

(70)61)(Tl)<73)(74)(75)(76)(77)(78)69)

ANrHONY MA.1'l'INA AND CLA.RAJACK ~

d I' simplex and suffIx..... .. ( ) N,pal, by the extraction of~~ e~~:I~~. ~5is roughly equivalent to EnglIsh. Juruor '

• Here we group ten items:. ;scellaneous Items.

6.), pU?X'lcil) puv.'ti:x!"t

(s8) nbZwltls(59) naX"'na£"{ls(60 ) sanlas"sfl-tfb) nlaslmiLt,(~2) n?asl{lt"_\ sak,w,,/in{w'tJ6;v n'-'"<Wciyal,(64) U'"

'0>5) s:imankciwa?

•...•.. ~ 11 ( 6)-(s7) pu(.?)= 'spouse',':analysis of the miscellaneous items is as ~l ow;:v:, --Jilw 'husband', "[nx"W

-.'dead. sg' x.'a~t 'dead pI:; (58)-(s9) n- oc)a ~ vw' '__..:&' -a'ya" 'pretend,. , " , , .d '. (64 "\Inx wue, - £, . .). r:k,Wt 'half across =tmw t Sl e,'; (63 "\IS '. r:. ' , 'k t' -awal '?'; (65) s- 'absolutive', "\Ixm-nk h e, wan , - . '

k Five such forms are:Pet names and nic names.

(66) sp"twinx'"sqciXal(67) tum'kst

'. (68) tam'kr'aka2stc/W(~9) sk'awlxsqaia?

_,~;'> ••(6) 'absolutive', ptwnxw 'old wom-1'4e analysis of these forms 1S,~s fol1;~.f6tu s-: 'female's mother'), =kst 'hand,

'.··.', •.....an..... :.. • =sqafu.?'horse'; (67) -..{tm thum ,ch' mI' dreduplicationofk~and"c':' ' , d dim'nutive' Wit unexp ame;,:fu1gers', =fakalst 'han, 1, '., -'k' -lx 'old', =sqciXa.l horse,•. ~:harYngealintrusion; (69) s- absolutlve, "II" w

~;4. Step forms. These are regular lexical compounds that translate into

JiWiish as 'adopted .. .', 'step, . .':

they are brothers'''they are sistersthey are marriedthey are sc'ixtthey are nskiwthey are so2stamthey are nkwal'mutthey are syumcanthey are sont:¥!"listhey are ntimtanthey are stm'dlilsthey are soniiamtdn

mother (male's and female's)father (male's and female's)youngest boy in the family

stepfatherhusbandwifewifebrother-, sister-, cousin·in-Iaw

mother

mamol'papal'wYta? ::: t"tw'it

tsis"nca? s"nc2iw'sicac2ups ca?psiw'snaX"nai"'iw'ssc'ixt c'"xtiw'snskiw nskawiw'sso?stcim sa?stamiw'snkw"l'mut nkwal'mtiw'ssyUmcan symconiw'ssontxWlis s"nt:t"siw'sntimt"n ntamtniw'sstm'tili?s stm'al?s{w'ssant:ramtcin niiamtniw's


t-iwistans-q-q"Umir"t-k-ktm {la?:¥!"n'-n'oi"'n"XWs-sa.?stam

(24)(25)(29)(34)(3s)(36)(37)(38)(40)(so)(s2)(53)

(20)

(18)(28)(28)(29)(36)

The terms mamal 'mother' and papal 'father' are used by males and females, and are borrowed. The term w'ital « "tat-.,[w'it) 'youngest boy' is

4. Other hypocoristics, miscellaneous. nicknames, and step forms.the spirit of sharing the richness of Okanagan-Colville vocabulary, hopingstimulate the compilation of similar lists in related languages, we offer th~:

following data and comments. ",

3.4. Reciprocal relationships. The following terms derive intransitive Y

forms that can be infiected in the plural with the meaning 'we/you pl./theyeach other's X: Again we note the extension of 'younger brother/sister''brothers/sisters', with the lesser status term serving as generic terms, alawith naxwnaxwiw's 'man and wife', This last, too, seems to fit the pattern .unmarked female terms (see also s"xWnamtiw's, discussed in note 16).

In contrast to the examples just given, another diminutive sounds endeing to the native ear:

. ----_.~..~.~_._..----

ANTHONY MATIINA AND CLARA JACK

scending generation (8 versus 3 terms for blood relatives).. Walters (1938:88) reports a term whose dialectal variants she transcribes'.1 ciimI'nm, tsiirni'n] and glosses 'the fifth generation removed'. We have been

to verify the existence of a cognate term. Another term, given as [yeRI and'the sixth generation removed and all preceding ancestors or succeeding descen~

eginning with great-great-great~great-grandparentsor great-great-great-great. dren', we have tentatively identified as related to contemporaty yafyaft 'ev-

The generalized inventory of OK-CV (both dialects represented) is as follows:stops: p: t: c: J;: k: k'w, q: q'Ul, plain stops: p, t, c, k, kUl, q, qW, 2; spirants: 8, t,

...:1;; f!", h; glottalized resonants: m: n: r: l: y: y, w: f', f'w, resonants: m, n, r, l, y,r. f"'; and vowels: i, u, a, a. The status of a is unclear. It is never stressed and it isetabl~ to the extent that it breaks up certain definable, consonant clusters and

as the peak of those phonologically defined syllables. It also occurs as the regrade of vowels that may be inferred to have lost their stress to a co-occurringerne of strong valence. In such cases its occurrence seems determined not bylogical factors (rules of syllabification), but by morphological factors. Thus weyet to find consistent (strictly phonological) syllabification rules that account for.dialectal variation as that in the term for 'woman', tkatmilx'" (OK dialect),aX" (Cv dialect). Because the plurals of the respective forms are tkatkatmaxW

max· (with C,C.- reduplication) (and bec,ause of related phenomena, the discus·which is beyond the scope of this paper), we take the occurrences of such [a]s as

s of the perceived morphological make-up of the word. Differently stated, we feelt syllabification of OK-CV words results from phonological rules that either include

hological information or are sensitive to morphological requirements.5. Walters (1.938:89) reports also 'father's wife other than one's own mother'.6. One speaker accepts the hypocoristic sasi?7. Walters (1938:89) also glosses this 'deceased parent's sibling', reflecting the

~~~lier practice of a man's adopting the family of a deceased brother. Walters gives no.~ndiCation that she found a term that refers to child of deceased sibling, and we have~ot found one. But see the step forms we give in section 4.4.. 8. A form qick is also in use, but it is rare north of Penticton.

9. Walters (1938:89) lists three variants [Hstsio'ps, cEsau'ps, sEsuo'ps} with the.'.i~OBS 'younger sister' and the annotation that this term and three others (tqciqcaJ,"t'kJkxn2, tsisanca2) 'in speaking to unrelated people ... are often used in place of the'term cEla't, Kfriend"'. This does not match our findings, as we explain in section 3.2.

10. In Walters (1938) we find neither (28) tkatmfu'" nor (ao) smam2im, We do findt4ree transcriptions [pocxTt, poqaiiu"us, poctiu'ut] glossed respectively 'first wife,middle wife, newest wife', These forms consi~t of the lexical prefix pul- and the stemsS%litx 'first', q'a?iw's 'middle', st2iwtx 'last'. pu?- is a productive prefix, so, e.g., pulpit'Pete's wife'. See also (56) and (57)..

13.. Walters gives two forms. One is transcribed (nqoitsten, nqoitstEn] andglossed 'brother's widow (man speaking), deceased husband's brother'. The second istranscribed [nqo'itstEm] and glossed 'brother's widow who has married another brother; husband's brother after the woman speaker has married deceased husband's brothel" (1938:90). The second is the verb form meaning 'become nq'Wic'tan'. The root vq'Wic'Jneans 'replace', n- is a locative prefix, -tn an instrumental suffix. nq'Wic'tan is oftentranslated informally as 'replacement spouse'.

12. Walters (3.938:90) reports that Kthe term eastern, directly correlated with thefunctioning of the levirate and sororate, is applied to wife's sister, woman's sister's

adopted male's motheradopted father's father brother ., ,cousm

~:lM'!'-;,f~<lSf7k,w;jZ'sk,wuk'i2k,waZ'sw'a2w'cisa2k'Wal'f;qaqca2k'wal'sisanca2k,wal'lcac2upsk'wal'santx"'lisk,wal'sl'ait

k'UJal'sqWsi2k,wal'stamk2atk'wal'san2ima2t

k'Wal'-t-sk'Uluyk'lDal'-l-sidipa2

(88)(89)(90)

adopted mother's broth .er, cousmadopted father's sister, cousinmother's sister cousin' ste th' ,pmo eradopted older brother, cousinadopted younger brothers, cousinsadopted younger sister, cousinadopted female cousina siste ~ dadopted b th ' ra, U"len s

. ro era, male cousins male ~frIends ' <1"1

adopted Sonadopted daughteradopted grandchild' brother . te . ..•.

grandchild ".' , SIS r or cousin'k'Ulal'f:qfana2 = Qciqna2 dk'UJal'stamtima2 a opted father's mother

adopted mother's mother

All these are compounds . t" ~ fi .....COOSIS Ing of -yk'wl' " .tor -t-, and a kin term If th kin make, do, the compound CO"~. '

. e term begi 'th .....does not occur, except in two cases, ns WI s-, the compound coonec

5. Conclusions. Okanagan~Col 'II tet . VI e rms of ret

Sen a nch system that correlate 'th erence and address repre. I . S WI a comple . I '.CIa Interest are the ri' h x SOCIa organIzatIOn Of s. c ness of morph I . al d . .

mtrusion of ph"........geal ,0OglC eVIces that mark plural th-J" resonants Into s I h ' ,

pIer baby talk forms and the r tr' t' evera ot erWIse morphologically Siln.' es IC IOns that I t h . ~

unrelated (nankin) individual A app y 0 t e rules for addressinpersonal reference that

St'tak

syet we ~ave not discovered any terms

canna e PosseSSIV hample, in Halkomelem (Suttles 8 b es, suc as those found, for ex."

19 28,1982 ). .,

Notes. Acknowledgments. The list of kin te

asslSta,'lce of Edna Jack Delph' B . rms was compiled by the authors Wl"th th··d ,me aptlste and M . e

an to the members of the Okana L ' arma Joe. We are grateful to th ...•••..helped. Reviewers' comments an:: an;uagehGroup of the En'owkin Centre, who ;:;

1, The most recent informal di gge? IOns ave been useful.(3.990), A chart of the Okanagan ex:~S:;;of.Okanagan kinship is included in Hudsonaffinal branches, can be found in th Okamrly, cleve~ly color-coded but excluding the

dEln:endor{'s (1961) study of Salish ~insh~pnatgan .Indlra~ Curriculum Project (J.982).enved from Walters (1938). ermlno ogres includes Okanagan data

2. Age is a determinant of presti e .late with two facts of the kin terminol~ r~ Ok~n~gan~ociety, and we see this to correyounge.r brother and sister; (2) the nu~~~1)slblmg km terms differentiate elder fromascending generation is greater than the n ofbtern;.s that refer to members of the first

urn er 0 terms that refer to members of the

137ANTHONY MATl'INA AND CLARA JACK

·es Wayne " . Musquearn Halkomelem. Ms., . Kinship Terms of Impersonal Relerence In

82a ch Type . Musqueam Halkomelem. Ms.. 82b Abnormal Spee s m

t;ers, L. V. W: 1 The Sinkaietk or Southern Okanagan of Washington,8 SOClal Structure. n . hro I no 6 Menasha,

,;],93 edited by Leslie Spier_ General Series m Ant po ogy . .

Wise.

References

Chance, David H.1973 Influences of the Hudson's Bay Co. on the Native Cultures of the Colville

District. Northwest Anthropological Research Notes, Memoir no. 2. Mos'cow, Idaho.

Elmendorf, William W.1961 System Change in Salish Kinship Tenninologies. Southwestern Journal of

Anthropology 17:365-82.

Hudson, Douglas1990 The Okanagan Indians of British Columbia. In Okanagan Sources, edited

by Jean Webber and the En'owkin Centre, 54-89. Pentieton, British Columbia: Theytus Books Ltd.

Okanagan Indian Curriculum Projectl.982 We Are the People: Grade Four Teacher/Student Resource Guide. Pen

tieton, B. C.: Okanagan Tribal Council.

ANTHRoPOLOGICAL LtNGUISTICS

husband, husband's brothel", man's brother's wife."13. One speaker accepts the hypocoristic qWsil.14. These forms are often diminutivi:l:ed, sHw'il't, siu2tw'z1't.15. Walters (1938:90) gloases (nkiiliimteocJ as 'reciprocal wives of cousins'"

infer nk"'l'"mtiw's 'they are in a nkwliJmut relationship' (see section 3.4).16. For- some speakers from spaxm8T/, (Douglas Lake, BC) sax"'ndmt repl

ntimtan with the meaning 'parent(s) of one's offspring's spouse', and the form has relar grammatical properties such as the derivation s83tf"namt(w's 'we are in a sax"'relationship'. For these speakers ntimtan means 'offspring's in-laws', but with the impcation that the offspring has taken up residence with them.

17. Of general and theoretical interest here is the fact that at first glancemarking of plural number seems to be an option of the nouns and verbs of the languRoughly speaking, plural number is reported to be optionally marked in Salish Ianes in general. But a closer look at the OK-CV facts shows that we have yet much to Ieahout this subject. spikst 'glove(s)' is the single word Okanagan has to refer to one oi,.more (pairs of) gloves, while sap'sip'ilxan refers to two or more moccasins, and sip'iJxattto one. The variety of special plurals one finds in kin terms matches not only the speci~·

ficity oflexical items (]i.'lal 'one dead', ,,"'a:t"t 'many dead'-it is difficult to argue supple!tion for such cases), but also the obligatoriness of several (seemmgly irregular) morpho:;logical processes (Jick;m 'one plays', Jicckan 'many play'; qWalqWilt 'one sounds ofe;qWa 2qlbJril'many sound off).

18. Double slashes enclose underlying forms, provided to clarify the morphology.The surface realizations of those forms are those given in section 2.

19- Cf. Chance (1973) for related discussion and references.20. Note that our findings match only in part Walters's report that (22), (23), (24);

(25) "in speaking to unrelated people . . . are often used in place of the term cEla't[sl'ait] 'friend»> (1938:89).

21. For some speakers this and the next term exclude the eldest and youngest of aset of brothers and sisters.

Penticton, B.C.Theytus Books Ltd.

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• oJ OJ !Theytus Books Ltd.

Edited and compiled by: Jean Webber andThe En'owkin Centre

Canadian Cataloguing in Publication Data

Okanagan Sources

ISBN 0-919441-33-5

1. Okanagan Indians 11' Jean Webber

E99-0350421988 970.004'97 C88-091595-1

copynght remains with the arnst ana/or aumor. NO poroan or IDlS

book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever withqut written.. ,.. r. , .r . UIC aUUIVl .......I·v• ............

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Table of Contents

I.'

roreworaiI

8 Our Culture Rebecca Dericksoni;

9 Fish Lisa Williams

10 Archaeological Research Concerningthe Origins of the Okanagan People James Baker

50 Turn of Fate Ben Able

" 53 The Okanagan Indians~

0

90 Covote and His Son T(arln Tfl1J;C:

91 The Clash of Cultures:1800 to 1858 Carol Abernath Mellows

- d

r-

I

-- Maria Baptiste10" '0

"""" '1"I...~1<'nvA' A

who fooled the CoyoteGeorgte NllCntm~

171 Red Falconand the Cock Pheasant

Clayton Clough

172 Why I like to be Indian Ronnie Demmers

173 Okanagan Education: CurriculumI Context Don Quaglia

i

~

1Q"'I T If.. I", the Gift of Wisdom Conrad George i,,

195 Index:

203 Notes on the Authors,

'.

~I':'

,,'

Okanagan Communication and Language1

A,("f/;"n ,,"rl rlnrfl TackVJ

We take language for granted. All physically able people, regardlessof their educational oacKgrounu:;, speaK '" ,;",v:r .conscious effort. For purposes of everyday communication words flow out01 uur !uvuw" w;'" . "0 ---- U. ~n 'cation and lanlJuage

happen?

In this brief essay we discuss, first in general, and then with spet:i1it:reference to Okanagan, .tw~ aspects of language: ,.

• "O~ in1) tne ...~

'"v

society;

2) the grammatical norms that underlie the linguisticutterances.

Let us begin with an analogy. Think of communication as-:. _ < ~< <> .,.,,,fror vehicle. TransDortation is

-.c ' 0 vregulated by norms such as Drive on the right side of the road, Give theright of wav to pedestrians, and so on, and involves the moving of peopleand cargo for all kinds of reasons: work, competition, '. I a,,;,"integration, and so on. Language similarly is used for varied reasons:

• .J ~~ ~_ "T ..".,o • . h",vp. f'nO'itraue, ;:>lUllY, PUvUY,'o " meswith complex mechanisms and functions, most of which we needn't

;n rorrlPT to drive lanQ:uages, similarly, have complexgrammatical requirements which we needn't be aware of m order tospeak. The analogy goes further: some people are great drivers, and others

I

are great poets and or.a1Ors; some~cupl~alv 1;;1 va, ',.J

I are great linguists. Finally, we are all entitled to our preferences in enginesI

-' -... -'. n< ...~ n_~ ;n "'nd linl!uistic exnressions1

.....~ vV'J 'J , •

i Let us return to communication. Communication norms are learnedafter extended exposure to their usage. we Know, IOr eX<1l1ljJlc, ii . '0

a direction to a landmark and encountering an elderly woman, not to say• ..i:. ~. II' h

to ner: 'ell me , VIU WVlllo.-IT, ..v'v t eperson as "old woman", while literally appropriate, is not socially

-r . .. . one would not address a man of the frock as "Mac".And very seldom would one answer "No. This is the ugliest baby 1 haveever seen," to a mother's prompt "Isn't my baby beautiful?" We come tolearn rules of commumcatlons wimin our l;IUUl" <1IlU ",,,,,vVJ ' . nn..l

survive in our social environment. When we find ourselves in an unfamiliar. . . _._ .fton<o, nhn ., "nd often discoverl.U."""',

the hard way that applying our own communication norms may not always

lThis essay was prepared to appear in Okanagan Indian Sourcebook for lay readership.We wish to acknowledge the helprul commems Inal Jell ':>l1IiUl t>

have made on earlier drafts of Ihis essay.

143

wor '. or examp e, In ICI YIt IS consIdered extremely rude to accept foodat the first offer. One is expected to be coy, as it were, until asked three

• n n •a

British Columbian, but the "game" is as natural to the Sicilians as it isridiculous to the Canadian. Notice then that communication whicmust assume that in most cases aims to convey some truth, often takes atortuous road thereto. Even though the communicative symbols (the

" , n y e In erpre ecorrectly in context. This is true at different levels: within a narrow

rofessional rou ru b .more broadly, in larger regional and national settings. Think of ourtransportation analogy: a stop sign in Canada means different things

Both with Ian a e and other communicative s terns we tend tobelieve that our own are the best, and other folks' inferior. It is a naturaltendency to prefer the familiar and distrust the unfamiliar. The ancient

in or ree ' ar an;the word in its modern English form "barbarians" has survived with theshifted meanin of uncouth uncivili ed .known pejorative connotations. The attitude implied in this sematic shiftis one of ethnocentrism, the perfectly natural (and unenlightened)

. w n ju ge e res 0 t e wor y one sown cu turalpersI?ective. It is .precisely the attitude' that has J?aintain.ed for a

also of the aborigines of Australia, New Guinea, Africa, etc.) areimpoverished tongues, with a· vocabula of a few hundred words andsoun system consIsting of a few grunts. Sometimes, when we manage tolearn something, even a very little, of another language, we express. . ,,' n urownposition in society (as preachers, teachers, politicians, etc.) we areinstrumental in diffusin t . .

i w , we are en 1 e 0 pre er or to oyotas, they are based onlittle more than whim. They are a sort of linguistic chauvinism. Consider. .

widespread notion that French is a language more melodious that English,or that German is a guttural language. While we are entitled to hold such

,attain a thorough education is to know either of these two languages,preferably both. At the be innin of eve school ear at the Universito Montana, posters all over campus arrogantly proclaim Latin the sinequa non of an educated person, thereby branding as uneducated all thosewho do not know the language. Taking another example closer to home,consider how some of us, thinking it elegant to speak "properly", substitute"I" where me is erfectl ramma' . .acceptable "They invited Bill and me" with the ungrammatical "Theyinvited Bill and I" can readily see.

144

The astute reader will have been able tel read between the lines thatwe are buildin u the a .the communicative norms in the sociolinguistic situation of theOkanagans, emphasizing that communication and language, while deeplyinterrelated, are also two different topics of study. We should also warnour. ~eaders t~at discussio?s of lingu~sticmatters very often spill in~o the

,concentrate on the two topics selected.

,Indian lands because they thought they could put them to better use thanthe Indians; they imposed on them the various brands of the Christianreligion, thinking them superior to the Indians' belief systems; and theyimposed on the Indians practically alIl of their cultural norms, including,

, ivi izing inva ers e at t e est c ance or

Almost two hundred years ago the newly arrived Europeansestab!ish~d permanent settle.ments in this part of North America.

the survival of the Indians was thier complete adaptation to the Europeanway. This syndrome extended to the language. Indian pupils were severelypunished for speaking their own languages and made to speak English. Ifthere hadn't been in the last thirty years a growing awareness that then ians 0 ave some ng ts, as III IV! ua s as well as nations, the process

of total assimilation of the Indians into the North American melting potcould be expected to have been completed in another century or so.Fortunately this process has been slowep down. The word chauvanism,which came into our everyday vocabula with the women's movementapp les to the majority's feelings of superiority towards all minorities,Indians included.

Like all other cultural groups the world over, the various Indianrou s have their own c " .

the Okanagan communicative norms is a very complex undertaking nodifferent in kind from describing the communicative norms of any othergroup narrowly or broadly defined, and would amount to a psycho-socialprofile of the Okanagans. Ethnographies are such descriptions of peoples,. . .is interesting to notice that the better we know a culture the fewercategorical statements we are willing to make about the culture. Rather,we wish to qualify and explain in detail our statements. Just imagine howa treatise on the communicative norms of British Columbians would read.

than in Japan, where people strike us as maniacs of the highway. Lines

u ure wou youinclude, what circumstances would you describe? Think of the enormousdifficulties you would run into if you tried to measure the BritishColumbians for extrovcrsion, or friendliness, openness, work-ethics, andso on. The most gencral statcments are also the most superficial. For

,i i no i ICU 0 say t at tra IC III . • ows more smoothly

t__14S

__

at the ticket windows In ts.C. are more oraeny Lilall lllU:;C ; .. ::;a"u;Food is eaten with less noise than in Malaysia. But what do these detailsleu u:; avv'" ;;,,, . ._1.. ~r ~ ;:~~;:1~?

Th~ diffucilties in trving to do justice to a topic as vast as the one

recognizes cultural diversity, accepting it without prejudice. More. . "'.. h.,,,.. In ~haracterize in some way the communicative

we are trying to address are enormous, and the chances are very gooa Inalour extrapolations are often gross misunderstandings. The ultimatemessage we want TO cunvey i:; Lila, <111 :0 • • :, ~~~ t1.~

framework-~ithinwhich the Okanagans operate.

The people who spoKe uKanagan once -r "V u" .L

westward up the Similkameen and Methow valleys, the south expanses ofthf' <::annoil and Kettle Rivers, and the area west of the Columbia River

expanse of the Okanagan valley from what is now Enderby through., , . , r\i;..~r, r'I,~..~~, f'oV" I .. Omak and Okanagan

as far as the bend near Wilbur. In the spnng the vanous DanOS muveufrom their wintering places to the camas flats, to the summer camps and

111 • .r. Th~. ~11

individuals under the age of 40 speak Okanagan, ana 00 su rarcly. !;I"Okanagans now reside year around in seven Reserves, surrounded by the

• • • , • •• _ C tho U;1.;,~o

:'present B.C. area, and an equal number south of the 49th parallel, fewerthan 2,000 remained in 196~.2 At the time of this writing very few

English. The Okanagans' neighbors, clod.-wise from the west, were theThompson, the Ullooet, the Shuswap, the Kootenay, the Pend Orielle-Kalispell-rlatneaO-~poKane, lfie '-A)CUI u ...,,, ..v, au':: •

Moses-Columbia. All these peoples, spoke mutually unintelligible but,.:,~;,,,.--:C . Ar .hp· 3 (1M OkanalJans who lived in the

Np.Mlv all of the material culture and social customs of theOkanagans are either no longer active or have undergone profounoacculturation (with regard to hunting, food, gathering, marriage customs,

imparted on how to view the world and how to llve In It. In Driel, lllCy

mirror Okanagan culture.

_1' ,~Vll -00'·0 '

transmitted orally generation after generation. These are OkanaganhistorY and ohilosoohv, doctrine and poetry. Through them instruction is

dwellings dress, etc0, and Okanagans m~ use VI all lll""

technological amenities. The traditions that are preserved best are thoselila t1.~ --_: , l~n~nrlc .,nrl "tnrip"" of the Okana!!an

2For further details and break-down by lribe and band, cf. Duff, Wilson. 1964. TheIndian History of British Columbia. Volume l. "The Impact of the White Man".Anthropology In tlntlsh cOlUmoai, ,,,"'v.. tv. -', ., . n. " :h' u ... o ..~Victoria.

146

~

f".~

The Okanagans form a close knit group with its own fully developedand operative communicative norms, but very often, when Indians and. .. . .IlUll-UIUlau" \NIH" lavv ,v la"", " 111 e;~VUP" VI lHV1" ,uau 'WV VI

three, it is soon obvious that communication is not as smooth as with ahomogenous group. The Okanagans and the Whites follow differentcommunicative strategies, each rooted in its own cultural background.Communication is all the more difficult for the Okanagans whose livesnave unuergone promunu lransmrmallons.

The problem of miscommunication is not restricted to OkanaganIndians, but applies to other Indians; U.S. Blacks also have had to copewith similar problems. Scholars such as the Scollons, studying several typesof miscommunication that occurs between Athapascan Indians and Anglos,have explained them as functions of different underlying culturalidentities?

Startin!! with the observation that "it is the wav ideas are puttogether into an argument, the way some emotional information aboutthe ideas is presented that causes miscommunication, "the Scollons havestudied four areas of discourse (or communication), concluding in eachcase that different expectations have contributed to the miscommunication,fostering the creation of stereotvned -'- Thev found thatwhere the Athapascans perceived Anglos as speaking in braggadicio, theAnglos perceived the Athapascans as speaking too timidly; where theAnglos perceived the Athapascans as speaking too little, the Athapascansperceived the Anglos as speaking and interrupting too much, and

. ,thp frm;{' nr . Tn", ,.. "len nntpn •

in the orianizati~n of subject matt~r. Anglos organize ideas in threes,Athapascans in fours. All of these factors contribute to the establishmentof stereotypes, all based on misunderstandings. The Athapascans are likelyto think of Whites as pUShy, as arrogant, while they will strike the Anglos. . ..a" .." 1..,", " allU

It must be realized that there are several possible sets and subsetsof setting and circumstances where communication will take place: as anall-Okanagan group, a mixed Indian group, an Okanagan-Anglo group,ele. i ne pli1l:e Ul encUUlller is also liKely 10 oe imponalll, wnelfier Ineprivate home of an Okanagan or a White, a meeting forum, and so on.Similarly the ages of the participants will influence the tenor and directionof the communication. To study inter-ethnic miscommunication thenmeans to reconstruct, or extrapolate, each ethnic group's communicativenorms and strategies. Contlicls (miscommunication) arise when these are

~onScollon and Suzanne B.K. Scollon have wrillen a considerable amount on this andrelated topics. In Ihis essay we quote from the October 1980 draft of their an~cle

"Athapascan-English Interethnic Communication." Centre for Cross-Cultural Studies,University of Alaska, Fairbanks.

147

'-

at odds with each other.

recur when miscommunication takes place. Therefore we have to limit our. orne of the strate ies of Okana an communication

as partials of a more complex network.

requires that if one party prematurely commits himself (by asking thewron uestion, or b ro osin some interaction, etc.), the other isobligated to reject the proffer outright. These norms are un erstoo ythe Okanagans, but not necessarily the Anglos. Consider the case of a~. • tt

speak Okanagan?", he might be answered "No," and later discover thate son does s eak the Ian ua e. If after considerable interaction, the

a en e ,smce e enia is nei er . ' ,but proper Okanagan behavior. The requestor had failed to pave the way

. . . unication.

person admits his fluency, the reversal causes the Indian noembarrassment; if the other party understands the strategy, he will not be

Or consider the case of an Indian crossing the U.S.-Canada border. Allthe officer's questions will seem to the Indian inappropriate invasions ofprivacy, while the Indian's laconic answers WI e mterprete asabstructi?ni~tic and possibly concea~i~g il~egal activio/..This sort. of

timing. Without trying to make too much of that, we offer the observationthat Okana ans have a keen sense of when it is the "ri ht" time or one's"turn" to do something. Just as one observes carefully the right time topropose some interaction, one awaits patiently the right time to speak oro erwise in erven . i '0'

consonant with Okanagan communicative behavior. When one holds the. . . . . w owever is

not frowned upon) This strategy of turn-taking has an interesting variantwhen it involves ridicule, which at times can be vicious. A ridiculed(usually younger) person who is being "plcke on IS expect not to 0 erresistance or retort. His turn will come sooner or later to be on the givingend, JIlOl e titan likely to a younger person.

The principle of patient timing may also be operating in another

makmg his pOlill as for the llllerlocutor to grasp the point 011 his OWII,

before it is finished making. Anglos in such situations are often impatient,. . . . a

situation, when a speaker seems to hover around a topic, in a sort ofholding pattern waiting, not so much for the right moment to finish

interrupted and quizzed, will question the sincerity of the Anglo's interestin the topic.

148

--------------------------------_....../

~. ;

~'~

'.~1 ne vKanagans reucence to InlHate commumcauon wnn f\nglOs,

,¥: or to respond quickly to Anglos' communicative overtures, has roots in thet..n~:"· -tl."t Tnn;"nc ·l."rh,..,r t",,,,,rn Wl.;'pc An",..,np ,,,l.,.., ;c ""pn

~ superficiallyfamiliar with the treatment that the Indians-'have had to sufferf,-at the hand of the invading Whites can readily appreciate this. 4 Undercertain circumstances the Indians give vent to their feelings of frustration.Very often at the completion of some ceremonial functions, from which.... • ., •• T~' ...

VYJU''-''> <"'" ""."U"J , "'''' ............" ".'" JVU"5 u ... un",

engage in a ritual that aims to reaffirm Indian identity and condemnWhite suoremacv. Thev be!!:in to sin!!: son!!:s that celebratin!!: somehistorical event, such as Custer's defeat, cast Whites in a negative light,through the powerful vehicle of derision. These songs, called "forty-niners",are sung in " UUl in lIluian (;(1uenU;; lO llle rnYUlm 01 llIe urums.The songs are sung in English because, unlike the tongues of their

t:'~nl:~h i<;: If) ~II f)f IhP.m .. in ~n .

setting, such as a visit with a majority of Indians and one or two whiteguests, the Indians will often steer the discussion toward the topic of theiroppressIOn at the hands of the Whites. The careful study of these andot~er patler~s ~ight lead to a better understanding of Anglo-Indian

Successful communication requires familiari tv with thecommunicative norms required by the circumstances. As the Scollons have?bserv~d, :aIthoug~ languages .use. gra,?-~ar as th.e system of express~ng

,"'"<1,,, ... • ." "." ")"""Ul wm""produces the greatest difficulty... 1}e grammatical system gives theme<;:saC1e while ihP. ., <;:v<;:ll"m IP.lk· hf)U If) . thl"The greatest of interethnic problems lies

..the area -ofcause m

understanding not what ~omeo}le says but why he is saying it." At the riskor overusmg analOgies, let us thIllk tor a moment that commumcatlOn IS

like chess: you have to know the pieces and how to move them; you have.~ I.n..o n 'hn' '01l~.~ ,,1.0 ~1. ,,,"', •

• J , .., -. ./:" --,

converge on an area of the board, etc.; and you have to have tactics thatdictate what the best immediate maneuvre is. As linguists we are moreinterested in the pieces and how they move. This is very simple in chess,but extremely complex in language. The sounds of the language combine10 IUrill , wnicn in turn comDine imo woros ana semences.Linguists study these functions and interrelations. Returning once againIf) thp _. '" vphil'!p f,.., clurh. -io f,.., 1,,1·1' "n"rt thp pn"inp

VJ • J • • v

of the language, understandmg the structure and functIOn of every nut,bolt, and part, and its relationship with other nuts, bolts, and parts. We

4 . .. ..n.' "'... """..... uw" ~VP''- ..uv " ...... '"'' lU~<v....a. ,a" 'v .u,-

magnitude of the cultural upheaval that the Indians have been subjected to. People whowish that the d!soriented Indian :-"ould "get in step" with White societal ~orms have never'Vl't' w ...."n .,v .~""'J "~'6:" .~.. <V U .un..."v ..... uv.u au au.." ... un".... •.,a"

outnumbering them 2,000 to 1, brings in undreamed-of changes.

149

"'-

cannot 0 into the sub'ect of Okana an rammar in any detail, but wehope that through the following discussion you will glean something ofhow linguistic analysis proceeds, and become stimulated to do furthers u yon .. .

u of sentences b s eakers who taketurns. For analysts who do not speak the language to understand what isbeing said, they have to know how the stream of speech is divided intowords, an w at t ese war mean III elr can e s. e rto that understanding is long and difficult. It is the road that children

,study it. While children learn subconsciously by listening, linguistsconsciousl com are structures to determine how they function. Analysis

manageable by first identifying the sounds of a language. We might think. . 'v si Ie task that consists of identi in an ob'ective

without writing is hardly imaginable, not only in European traditIOn, buteverywhere linguistic analysis has been done: Even though we learnangua .. . . ," .

reality by means of carefull observation. But it is not that simple. It maybe obvious and correct to say that the English word dog consists of threesoun , ut It IS no 0 VIOUS ow many soun m' u .Two is as good an answer as three. It may also seem obvious that cat is

.? ?

To explain how analysts approach a language is to warn readers thatto give an account of the Okanagan language IS a very ar ous as'complicated by the fact that once we' commit a language to writing we. . . ..Whereas the principle of alphabetic writing is simple (one symbol for one

nce a written tradition is established we tend to view the writtensymbol as primary. This causes all kinds of problems, from the attitudethat dictionaries tell us how to pronounce words5 to the attitude thatetters ave In eren soun associa e wi

are spoken, and analysts reduce them to writing for the purpose of. ., . ore

unwritten language will choose an orthography determined by the soundsof that Ian ua e. Phonological and orthographic systems vary significantlyfrom language to language, and while English, or examp e, as one -

51nstead of reporting bow we pronounce

English dialects where dawn is pronounced with a rounded "open 0", and don ispronounced with ,an unr~unded low [al.,.simil~r~, Pe?,liclon Okan~ganrl~as two pharyngeal

150

--

~'

;

;~

"

".' - .. - .. _. . . l ...>~

fliKe:; :;UUIIU, n'.., va"" "au • , ~

a "p'ina?" cedar bark basket that neither English nor Russian has. And~. ~n it an~~ T.:maual!es differ in their structure phonologically,Ji;

:~: morphologically, syntactically and lexically.~

The efl1nocentnc Illter tnrougn wnicn we . .. au

~ forms of behavior we observe, distorts also our perception of "foreign"• n'L_ ... h~o~ 0 - "mn;r! w~ match each

.. Fre~nch sound with the closest equivalent in our own English dialect; whenwe borrow the word, we adapt it to the English scheme of sounds, i.e. thephonetic system of English. Thus, for example, wnen saymg lne woragarage, most of us dispense with trying to imitate a French [r], and

• ~. . <_1. • • ~o,l .. oo .1.0 . . 'nf fh,.·LV'U ~"'l'J' ..

first [a] to a central vowel sound [<I], "g<lra3."

What words we have borrowed from Okanagan into English, havebeen similarly processed. For example, we pronounce Kelowna as. ." '.' ....,"k<llon<l ,(llVergmg nom lne 1I.11laW 11<1 . 15' ......J' )

in all of its vowels. Similarly, Penticton is the Okanagan w~rd "pintktn",• ~11 ••~o~ •. ,.,A\ h"t to th.. Fnolish nronunciation. The

stress has shifted, and all vowel~ have been changed, along with thesyllabication of the word. "k'<lrmiw's", a word which means cut across, hasbeen anglicized as Keremeos and pronouncea as we uO now. ! lIC

glottalization of the [k] (the popping sound that accompanies its release). ., . ' nf th,. un,.r!1" , "5

As we have already sU!H!ested, linguists attempt to study languagesin terms not of another "model" language (such as Greek, Latm, orEnglish), but in terms of general features. Subsequently they classify

• •••• .: l. ._"

languages 0Y!>CIICU,", ~IIVW "" ,~... 'J'J!'

(what sorts of sounds, morphologfcal and syntactic mechanisms they make1l~" nf\ ()t'O~OftO~ \..ol~~M tn th.. S~Ii<:han familv of lanQuages a family

"represented by more than 20 languages and many more dialects, rangingfrom as far north and west as Bella Coola, and as far south and west asTillamook, Oregon, to as far norm and east as Pend "Urel1le ana as rarsouth and east as Coeur d'Alene. Okanagan has a phonological system

• " ~. .' ~;"'h"'''~ypl'-<1"VI U'II<01 ,'0' oJ

in consonants than English (or French, or German), but with fewervowels. To discuss it in detail would mean to devote twenty or thirtytechnical pages to the task. We shall have to limit ourselves to giving thecharts of sound inventories of English and Okanagan. Those who want to

"~a7tm;)n" (yellow bell), and one giottaiized, as in "'.'an" (magpie), while closely relatedInchelium Colville Okanagan has four pharyngeal sounds, the two that also occur in

. T. f_A' fA_ A" ___" thp

of"s;mk'a~wm;)n"(church) is rounded. (Conversely, in Penticton Okanagan there is a sound[-g] that does not occur in Colville. Thus "c-gip", the PenticlOn pronunciation of the word

, . • r.,I..a "-:,,.:_:, ""A' :ThMP:. I for ...._~ n'". vp! ;n thp

Okanagan font, so I am using this one [-g]. M.B.)

151~,

'iii~

.

"

';:1-

study the matter furtheJ can consult a phonetics textbook alonl! with a ".

grammar or ulCanagan.

1\J'".i,." hr.. ' .l..,. "''' ~_~~. _''Co u.,e'v,..", ."',,"'..

in spelling English, because, as we are all aware, English spelling is not agood symbolization of the sounds of the lanp'uap'e. For examnle snellin~c

llkeread and bow conceal the fact that they each represent more than onepronunciation. Similarly, the spellings of many, many other English words. .. .... v auUfv. • lllCy uu nv. (eu us now (0 pronouncethe word"'they are supposed to represent. But the phonetic symbols thatwe shall use in the charts ar~ . -", ~:\l'h In "I"nrl" fnr" .. inn!"

unambigously. This is, after all, the purpose of writing lang~ag~.,

CHART I

THE CONSONANT PHONEMES OF ENGLISH

P t C k

0 <1 J g

f 6 ~ x ..v 6 z :3

m n I r y IJw

ill 1910 prepared a grammar of Head of (he Lakes Okanagan as a doctoral dissertation atthe university of Alberta; Anthony Mattina in 1973 prepared a grammar of Colville(southern Okanagan) as a doctoral dissertation at the University of Hawaii; and Randy

7At present no pedagogic grammars of Okanagan exist in print. We hope that soon sucha grammar will appear. However, several technical studies are available: Donald Watkins

Bouchard had prepared long Okanagan word lists as part oC his British Columbia IndianLanguages Project.Articles on grammatical topics have been printed in scholarly journals.

152

-

~.,

f

.,:t:-

~\' Chart II',1

THE CONSONANT PHONEMES OF OKANAGAN

p' t' C },,' k' k'w q' q'W ?

P t c k kW q qW

.., tv

:; 't X X ~ ;:..

m' n' r v r .J w ~

m n r y I 'Y w \'

f""kn~' TTT8

THE VOWEL PHONEMES OF ENGLISH AND OKANAGAN

English Okanagan

i u i uI Ue ~ 0 ~

e :>re a a

In addition to these brief comments on the phonology of Okanagan,we should now try to .give our readers an idea of the remammg parts otOkanagan grammar, The make-up of words, and its study, is called

.• r"" .L""'. '.L •• ..& .L"",' ~.'vu UOV 'V'~ A~'~ ~~." ~~, ., .,"

language we recognize it to consist of two morphemes:9 "kret" cat andf-sf (nluran, Momhemes often have more than one nhonetic shane as

I when, for example, the English plural morpheme is added to a word like[bag] bug. The plural of [bag] is not [bags],10 but it is rather [bagz]. An

~or a brief elaboration, explanation, and exemplification of these charts consult theappendix to this essay. '

9A morpheme is the smallest linQ"uistic unit with meanino 1Mk .nn r..l.t..n nAt;,,"•• r ..

discussed further in the appendix.

. 10An asterisk as used here indicates an incorrect form. To derive a word is to changeIt so as to make a noun from an adjective (good -+ goodness). a verb from another verb (do.... lInnn\ .nn." A"

,,~,

~~: 153

~>,

hand), "t~wc'plkst" broken amI or branch. In the construction "kt;:)rqlkst"

~"

analogous example in Okanagan involves the loss of [n], showing that invKanagan tne cnoice or eitner tne morp~lt;nt; Lill-J UI Li-J, UVlll '","my", depends on the sound with which the word to be modified begins.H il.p ",';:rrl ;"pnine ,,,;11. <>nt1 .,."nnrl pVf"pn' r~l nr f4.1 thl'n fin_l will he 1I~1'i1

-'" . .. ..otherwise rio] wiII be used.

qicq older brotTier mqlcq my older brotllerkilx hand inkilx my hand

, .n -", .-,- , .n ,./;. _,:~7,

p'''''' ""&5"'6 .. ,.:- "J '"00' "0

Contrast these forms with:

spu?fis heart ispu?fis my heart (not *inspu?Us). , .,:>la.<llll UUUl "".. rdUl tOy UVU, ~nv

i-qaqca? older brother iiqaqca? my older brother(nnt *;n4.nanr.Jl?i

In morphology we distinguish between inflectional and derivationalcategones. 10 mBect a word IS to moally It oy cnanglng ItS most oaslcreferences: person (e.g., I go but he goes), number (e.g., singular vs.• 1 ,1\ • __ ._ 1_ _ _ _____ • ••• &.. ~\ <><n"'" (p tT •• t1<

t :/ \ "0" t . ,-c '-0completed action), and so on. We have given some examples of inflection.Derivational morphological rules are harder to learn than inflectionalrules because, far from being applicable throughout the language, they areselective. Consider, for example, how'in English there is a morpheme [in-•. . r., P.,·.. .~, .J ~WJlll Lllll-_l-uTllj,·o vn HI" -'0 .:lVU '''') ,",".:lU]

identifiable as changing adjectives to their opposite:nossible· imnossiblecongruous incongruousreverent irreverentImltaOle ImmllaOledirect indirect

elegant inelegant

However, [in-] (meaning not), may not be prefixed to !!.!!X adjective. Thus(1) you cannot say *inencumbered, *ineducated, *ingood, etc. and (2). ... _.. .

lilt; _'" Vi lilt; UC;I, '"'' 'V1U 1.:l nu. VVl1a ]VU 'VU1U "hI'''''',

as in the case of different - indifferent. The morphological derivation ofII lanltualte is cantured in its dictionarY which soecificallvaims to reoor!not only the words of the language, but the derivational range of thelexical morphemes of the language. To be thoroughly familiar with theaenvatlonal morpnOlogy 01 a language amounts to oemg lluem in wallanguage. Okanagan derivational morphology is extremely rich. Here we

.u. '.. .. ~. .1. .. nj:'''~ r ;,.<.1. "J J '" -r • ,- 'J

baSically meaning hand, and by extension branch. It occurs in forms suchas "txw?ikst" many branches, "sca\ikst" {inf(ers (literally fringe of the,

154

winter dance, it loses its meaning. The word "t;)raam" TnP"n~ tn A, ,

<lnU illS oasea on a root with the meaning of kick (cf. "t;)rq;)ntin" kick it).Yet in the form "kt;)rqikst" whatever connection, if any, there might havehppn unth h., ,,01 ;~

Finallywe must sav a word abolll . ~ ..•.••the observation that in English a sentence is almost sure to be comprisedof a subject (usually a noun phrase), followed by a verb, in turn followed

incorporated in the verb, and is pronominal. Needless to say, both inEnglish and Okanagan we find several other sentence tvnetifor . ",h an r.ngusn sentence begins with a verb it's sure to be an imperativesentence); nevertheless we believe these generalizations to hold.

Languages follow the poli tical fortunes of theirspeakers. Conqueredpeoples usually lose their lan~uaQ'e and adont that nfthp;r • '~'. o· ...:

identity than through its language, proudly.

155

The symbols in the first two rows in Charts I and II represent the stops.llBoth languages have two series. English has a voiceless and a voiced

12

series (fp-iQ:l oil? vs. rbi~l big; [tern] tame vs. [dern] dame; [cip] cheap vs.[Jip] jeep; [k~t] cut vs. [g~t] gut); and Okanagan has a plam ~~OlCetesS)

series and a glottalized series, but not a voiced series. Glottalized stopsare sort of "popping" sounds made with a sudden release of glottalpressure. The differences between the pairs are as foUowsP

[P']: [P] p'ina? basket vs. pica? digging stick

[f]: [t] t'ina? ear vs. tinx sinew

f,..',. f~' rJ,,-l.1 rAT" V"-. cakW shouldl l

[k']: [k] k'ip~m pinch vs. kilx hand

[k'W]: [kW] k'wUl'~rn work vs. kWu·hm borrow

[q']: [q] q'ilt sick vs. qilt top

[q'W]: [qW] q,w'Iay black vs. qWay blue

- , .,~ ,....'. aPA f')l (nl"ffa1 <:1,,",14 "f~ 11<0 lWU "'lV' ."up" U. <Uv ~ '" 15" J ~o '.words like "?a?Usa?" egg, and lateral affricate [K] of words like"K~~K~p" parent.

The third and fourth rows in the chart of English consonants, and. .~

11Stops are sounds made by an occlusion in the vocal tract, followed by sudden release.

12Voiced sounds are produced with vibrating vocal cords. Place your fingertips on your, . ~nd nronounce [sl (make a long hissing sound). Then pronounce [z). You feel

the vibrations when pronouncing Iz), but not Is).

13we give examples of these sounds in word-initial position, where they are easier tohear.

"l"he glottal stop In r:.ng isn oc"ul~ill LU<; Lal'iu

where it replaces (t)t.

ISnis is a sort of t1 sound, with the tongue positioned to pronounce t, with lateralrelease of air, plus glollalization.

16pricatives are sounds produced by friction at various points in the mouth.

156

.. . ~ . -'-'-'SlOpS as , It mol:> lCWCl lllall '" • "'Uo""" Ila" ,,_.

and interdental fricatives that Okanagan lacks altogether ([fayn] fine vs,rv,,,,n1 ,,;np· r avl thiph v'C;. ri'favl thY) as well as the voiced alveolar and

woros lIke .bngllsh lS~I)J sung aI1Ofll~I)J hung, ana uKanagan -syups cui.and "hiwt" rat. But Okanagan also has five fricatives that English does

'- fol ~ ~w ~ ~Wl -"n.~~~ ~~•• _ ",.,." .. ;n ",,,,..ric lib. "J.{,Tn",n"

both the palatal fricatives [z,~, ] ([zon] zone, [sur] sure, [re ~r] azure)that Okanagan also lacks. both English and Okanagan have [s] and [h] in

UV , _l" , •• J'

spoon, "x?it"jirst, "xw?it" many, "~st" good, "~wilsts"he throws it away.l?

The fifth row in the English chart and the fourth and tilth rows mthe Okanagan chart represent the resonants. Okanagan has two series, one_., . '...... _,- . ~._1l"' .. 1.

Ul WI1l~1l ." ., 8"'''5'''''' un" HV ,

three nasals [m n 1)],1 while Okanagan has no [I)]; both languages haven " ..1 h,,;ntT nronnunced differently in the two lan!!ua!!es with Okana!!an

they gatherea. t-mally, ukanagan nas rYJ in wows liKe 'l')'min tJUW

bar, and· ·l-yap· he got speared.

The vowels of the two languages are exemplified as follows:

The ukanagan vowelS:[kilx] hand[i]

t') ~""J 11\""[e] [lek] lakerel flel!1 leI!

The English vowels:[i] [lik] leak;-; r••L; ,_,

[ee] [leek] lack[;)] [l;)k] luck

..

.vvuvv

17[f] is like an II), but voiceless, with air flowing along the sides. [~I is like French [r),but voiceless; [~wJ is the same sound but pronounced with the lips rounded. [x) and [xw) aretheir homologs, more forward III the mouth.

18n;< th~ fin~1 .""nn "f w"rrl. lib· sina ond lona. Notice that there is no fQl sound insinger, but there is a IgI in longer.

., ,

..u t' .

20phatyngeals are pronounced with in the pharanyx, which is above the larynx. hI isthe voiced counterpart of Ix), discussed earher.

21,....1..:" .. h .. f~..~ !" <' "w <,w,

22-rhe dot under a resonant signifies a syllable peak. CL English button Ib=:>ln] (dotUlJuer [n]) .,,,<;,<; "'" t"J . ." "'VI<; ~J .av.~.

157

a occurs only unstressed in Okanagan, usually to break up clusters ofconsonants, for example q 1 £lm song, IPX~ t ey were sqlllnnzng

around, "k'w~_k'Wyfuna?" small. In addition, each of these vowel sounds,

[q] or [l;C] precedes Ii], the vowel is pronounced lower than otherwise.Thus for exam Ie the vowel in" ilt" to is lower than the vowel of "kilx"

native Okanagan word that begins with [r]. [ ] is a rare sound in English,and [h] is a rare sound in Okanagan. When English [t] precedes [y] as in

how neighboring sounds affect one another. For example, there is no., . . . . e is

hand, approaching the quality of Ie]. Similarly [u] approaches the heightof [0] in analogous environments, as in "q'W6ct" fat. Other kinds of rulesm 0 anguages govern u . . ,

the utterance "not you, t e t ecomes ; an so on. er pone IC

modifications ~re predicated upon a~d a~e the co~sequence of

the morpheme [os] has variants: the plural of "roz" rose is neither "*rozs"nor "*rozz" but it is "rOzelz". Yet s eakers of English know that the [os] of"krets", the [-z] of "bagz" and the [-az] of "rOzaz" are all members 0 t esame English morpheme that signifies plural. To give another examplewhich will have analogs iII Okanagan, consider the faet that often thevowels of English words change according to where the stress falls in theword, which, in turn, is a function of morphological rules:

f6tagrMfatagrahfatagrafClr

photographphotographyph?togr~pher

The first, second, and third vowels of these words change along with theshifts in stress. In Okana an the rule of the language is that if s tress shiftsaway from a vowel, then this vowel is either lost or reduced to a. orexample, in "sqCllxWskWist" the word for Indian name, the [il of "sqilx

Wn

loss of [n] in Okanagan where the choice of either the morpheme [in-] or., und with which the word to bemodified begins. Similarly, the Okanagan morpheme that means his, her,its is either [os] or [c]. The first is used normally, and the second is usedwhen a word endS m [s] or I'l]:

iqaqca?kilx

older brothahand

-iqaqca?skilxs

his d.lJgr brallel'his hand

Contrast these forms with:

spu?6s Iteanspa?ai sore

spol'Usc his hemtspa?afc his sore

158

We have stated in our text that inflection is the ~rammatical coreof the language. Inflectional morphemes are usually few, but have a highfunctional load; that is, they are productive in the language. The.. ~ ~.. "

-.- Ul '-:"0"~1l al" l"'" U -", -L, ~dL.l lUI 1I1C pIUf<l1 VI

nouns; [-s, -Z, -:n] for the singular of verbs: [waks] walks, [ridz] reads,[was::lzl washes' f-t -d _<:>il1 f()-r Ih" n~~1 ()f v"rh,,· rt""nll t" ........Lul -r'",untll

fined, [pad::ld] padded), and a few others. Okanagan 'h~s a' Considerablylarger number of such grammatical markers, and these are suffIXes\morpnemes aHaCm::U at tne ena orwor~),prefIXes t~orpnemes attached ,at the beginning of words), infIxes (morphemes attached inside words), or

• 1~"" ,un..r1~ "'. ~_.:,:~o k ••

~suallydo not have a stress of their ·ow~). We will disc~ss a few Okan~ganinflectional categories to give some idea of how the language treats these.

Person. The persons marked in Okanagan are the same as those.1• ..1.,... .

... <>

I first person singularvou second ner~on

he, she, it third person singularwe first person pluralyvu secona person pluralthey third person plural

In English second person singular indistinguishable from second personplural, and in Okanagan it is the third person which is often unmarked forsmgular or plural. Whereas English distinguishes between subject andobject forms in a few words (I vs. me, she vs. her, etc.), Okanagan does~n • 1...... . •. _. ~

r ::"~ .~~, 'uuv,~ ""","" Ul

pronominal forms that fall into two major classes, intransitive andtransitive. In Okana~an, therefore the choice of person mornhemes iscorrelated with the choice of voice morphemes. Let us begin with a simpleexample.

"XWuy" means go. This is an intransitive form. To inflect it for person~ ",,1 ()f " "'. '"" .....,,,e.

bn as in k;)n xWfry I gok as m kWxWuy you sg. go8 as in xWuy he, she, it goes.W .W w· _1-- U A UJ , ... iH·.oV

p as in pxWuy you pI. goe as in xWuv-(h) they 20

"XWuy' may be transitivized, that is, it can be made to take objects beside• , illiU ill "U'-ll cases il means 10 laKe. 10 lranslllvize x uy we aaa

159

p g

~,""~

The hyphen after the [t], and the dots after take signify that this form isshll Incomplete. 10 maKe It a tuU wora we must aoo oDJect ano SUDJectpronouns. The full set of the pronouns is as follows:

-(i)n I subject with implied third person object_(l)xw you s~. subject " " " "-(i)s he, she, it subject " " " "-(i)m we subject " " " ". . . " . "-\I)p y.uu pl. "UUJ"'"

" " " "-(i)s-;}lx they subject

The entire paradigm is as fOllows:

cox uy-st-~n 1 toOK It ~tnere)

c_xwtiy_st_xW you sg. took it (there)~ w, ~,~ l.~ ~~a ;, ,~~1,' ('k~_a\

w? " \..,

cox uy-st-~m we took it (there)c-xwtiy-st-p you pI. took it (there)c-xwtiy-st-s-alx they took it (there)

Hr>. .'- .'- .. '- .1.' ~'T'L .C'nu. uvvu....., v • .,v. ~uVJvv,-vVJvv, , • nv.. v u. v '''U'')' v.

course, for example I took you, you took us, etc. We cannot give examplesfor all possible combinations but will !!ive a chart that contains allpossible combinations, and a few examples:

-SI araai m

Subj 23 lsp 2sp 3s 3p Obj. ~~ .

Is -st-(u)m-an -st-(i)n -st-(i)n-alx

2s kWu -st-(i)xW -st-(i)xW -st-(i)xW-~lx

3s kWu -st-(i)s -st-(u)m-s -st-(i)s -st-(i)s-alxi

Ip -st-(u)m-t .st-(i)m -st-(i)m-~lx !L.p K U -Sl-~I)P -Sl-~I)P -Sl-~I)S-~IX

1.... t,W" .ct_It\c_....lv .c t.r '.\",_c _.... lv _ct/nc_ .... lv .ct.rnc.....lv

" " -, , -,

Indef -st-(i)m -st-(i)m-~lx

I

Note that the chart includes all suffIXes, except kWu, a preposed particle.~ " . . .111" c I" pld""U U"IUI" 111" IUIIII, <1:' III lll" /:jIV"II.

2..1rhe abbreviations are: Subj = Subjects; s = singular; p = plural; Obj = Object; sp- ';nm.lor ~n" nl .. "~1

~

160

--

~

- - -- ~~.- _._-

f%:".,>

,

Also remember that the parenthesized elements occur when stressed, but• • ~ n'~

are oeleteo wneu :HIC:;:S 1:S La..."''' a vay ......v.... :lrw.. "_vW/,,,_r:.f_yw vfllt fnnk me (there)

c-xwily-st-m-~n I took you (there)c_xwily_st_xW you took him/her/it (there)

So far we have seen that an intransitive word (like "XWuy") can be- • • '. ~ '.~~. 0 .. + +~~.~ "' .... ",t 1..",d fhrl".e other ways to make a

word transitive, and the proper choice depends on the complex rules of.

the lanQ:ual!e. Without going into all the details, let us point out thatanother way to transitivize a form IS to aUG L-ntj to 11. InuS lUI .-:..,

"c'~wam" is promise, an intransitive form (where [om] has a definite. • • '.""___"".\ '1'" . . . . . fnrl

IUU\;UUIl, UUL u,,'" ""'-,, '''' _/ mand to add personal object and subject referents, we must first add [Ant)+~ thp rn"t ur;thout its full vowel as follows;

c'~w-,mt-in I promise itqW-~nt-lx you prumi:>e: ilc'xw-ant-is he, she, it promises it,-W ._+ ' \AlP it,·w ' YOI; pI. promise itc~ -ant-lpc'~w-~nt-is-~Ix they promise it

Notice that the personal subject pronoun endings are the same as those' .• , ., ••, . ' ~.of hm,; chifto "r r:.fr, d' .

u,,<ou WlLll L~' \ V,," -Jl~ ess can l110nthe presence or absence of vowels) What happens when we want to addfurther (obiecn oronoun reference? The set of object pronouns used with[Ant) is different from the set used with [-st), as follows:

Ant paradigm

Subj lsp 2s 3s 2p 3p Obj

is -nt-s-(i)n -(nt-i)n -i(Ul)rn-;m -(nt-i)n-;llx

- W ",. W _nt_(i'lxw -nt-(i)xw-;llx

3s kWu -(nt-i)s Antos-Cis) -(nl-i)s -i(Ul);>rn·s -(nt-i)s<llx

lp -nt-s-(I)t -nt-(i)rn -i(Ul)<lrn-t -nt-(l )rn<llX

.... .W.. -'.1" -nt-mp -nt-(ip)-;llx

3p kWu -(nt-l)s-;llx -nt-s(i)s-;>lx -(nt-i)s-<llx -i(Ul);>m-S<llx -(nt-i )s-;llx

lndef -nt-(i)m -nT-(lJrn-<l1X

161

~

Let us exemplify a few of these pronouns in actually occurring forms:

kWu c'l:Cw-~nt-is he promised mec'xw-~nt-s-in I promise youc'~w-~nt-s-ip you (pI) promise him/her

There are two other major transltlvlZlng attiXes In ukanagan, J-ttj ana [x(i)t]. These are added to word-stems just like [-nt] and lost], and withregard to their suffiXal requirements, [_·it] patterns with [-nt] (requires thesame affiXes as font]), while [-x(i)t] patters with lost). Both affiXes add yetanother person referent to the form-(and this is why they have been calledditransitive), [-x(i)t] adding the notion "on behalf of", and [oft] adding thenotion "so-and-so's". Without giving charts (which can be inferred), andwithout going into details, we exemplify the forms so as to give an idea oftheir force:

kWu c'l:Cw-:)~t-is i? bwap-skWumay-xit-s i? cawt-skWu may-Hots i? cawt-s

he promised me his horsehe told me his story (for my benefit)he told me his story

162

I---

,.

~.

.I\.In lerm l1S1 compuea oy f\nlfiony Mamna ana \..-Iara JaCK, wlln cunaJack, Delphine Baptiste, Marina Joe. Penticton B.C. June 1982.

Reference terms:s~nqsilxW One's people.nxa?cin Elder(s), ancestor(s).nxa?x?it Elder, ancestor.

~.llA<1 "AllL ....'U"li),qWiJpsa? Great great grand parent, child.t'a?t'Uoa? Great Qrand Darent child.s~a? Father's father, brothers, cousins.lals~a? Father's fathers, brothers, cousins.Ki",w<H IV1UlIICl :. lallier, UrOl1ler cousin.l~lk'ik'wa? Mother's fathers, brothers, cousins.o".,'?.J. P"thpr'o' rrmo,n

min (Occasionally used) Father's brother, cousin.lalsmi?l Father's brothers, cousins.sasl? Mother s brother, cousin.lalsasi? Mother's brothers, cousins.",.W~.",;", 'C••~ , .. , -- ._....J-~lskwUk'i? Father's sisters, cousins.swa?Wasa? Mother's sister, cousin' stepmotherJ-:;)J-swa?Wsa? Mother's sisters, cousins; stepmothersl?iw Man's father.fa nl1W IVHIll :s l<llnerS, orUlller:s, cuu:sins,!wistn StepfatherHwkfn ~ ~ -,' . ,

J-u!wiistn Stepfathers,~

m'ist~m Woman's father.m:;)smlst~m woman s ratners, tnelr orotners, COUSInS.sk'wuy Man's mother.oVW"l)W" 1'.,f.,n'o ., Iho;r <;<Ioro ~~ .e· ,e, --,/ , ,tum' Woman's mother.t~m'tfun' Woman's mothers, their sisters cousins.lqaqca? Older brother, cousin.l:;)lqaqca? Older brothers, cousins.1.1 1\,;1\. IVlall S Uluer UIUlllCI. ~!'\.(1le in renlil.,;lUll, VClllUn

o'nr>!?,

Okanagan)hr"thpr """oin

laJ-sisanca? Younger brothers, cousins.kac?iJps Younger sister, cousin.!ca?c?ups Younger sisters, cousins.sqaltmixw Man, husband.

". : .... T1~';'" .. ,

s~wi? Husband (slightly derisive).s~~~lwi? Husbands.tk~klmilxw Woman, wife.tkaklmHa?xw Woman, wife (slightly derisive).

163

l.........

~'"

na::cwna~w Wife.sma?m'/im women, WIves.nq,wic'tn Widow(er)'s brother, sister, or cousin in law.~~;.....::') l:;'~fj.,o~ ;n i~ ...

kick Mother in law.sa?stam Brother, sister, cousin in law' loosely. friend of

one's spouse.nkwalmut Husbands of two sisters or cousins; wives of two

orulficrs or (;ousins.sqWsi? Son."nW,.,nW"'? T:fflo "AnI' tv ' Sons.a./'sq Sl?sqWasqWsl? Small child.sq gsq a'/slya'/ enJwren.sqWaqWsqWa?slya7 Little children.~.'~~i,')~I-f

st'at'amk?ilt Little daughter.st'gmt'gmk?1lt Daughters.slwilt Brother, sister or cousin's son or daughter.s./'ulwHt Brother(s) sister(s) or cousin(s)' sons or daughters.

, - • • , _~~1.. 'U\ •.nv"'..... , ., •., ...... , v, ....vuo>... o> ........ Y •

san?ima?t Grandchild; brother, sister, or cousin's grandchild.sen?am?ima?t Brother(s) sister(s) cousin(sY I!randchild.nk'?llt Grandchild in law; (spouse of grandchild).

•

Hypocoristics:(1.."", """nn "",""n': 0,"",,1 """nn "h:ln,(moo? " ".Father~ fath~r.

. '" '"h~apa? = s~a?q\'ana? = qaqna? Father's mother.kawa? - KIKwa? Mother's lather.tama? = stamtima? Mother's mother.• l' ,') l.,r •• , ,

.•~ ..,~. v v.~.~ .k'wuy Male's mother (occasion use),mama? Mother (male and female's)sinca? = ./'slsanca? Younger brother.?fJpa? = kac?fJps Younger sister.w na( - {alW 1l Ioungesl DOy In ramuy.

AppelativestfJpa? = ra?t'Upa? Great grand parent addressing great grand child

or vice versa.h~apa = s~a? Male or female addressing father's father.'.'.n .'''.' n ~I r • ,""U' <U "" ..'" 'u. n",.." v. '"'H''',, '" 'HV'H,,' ., ,a,..",.kawa? = k'ik'wa? Male or female addressing elderly male.sasl? Male of female addressinl! mother's brother or

cousin.

164

~''!l

n~wn:;)~w Wife.srna?m?im Women, wives.nq,wic'tn Widow(er)'s brother, sister, or cousin in law,

... .i>~~ ~<1lU'" 111 1<1 ......

~cick Mother in law.~ o;.io;.ff'r ('nl1o;.;n in hu' lnno;.p.l frif'ntl nf

one's spouse..

nkw;;llmiit Husbands of two sisters or cousins; wives of twoorolners or COUSInS.

sqWsi? Son.~nw~nwo~? T ;111 .. ~"n

~~~sq\Ysl? Sons.sqW;;lsqWsl? Small child,sq :;)sq"a?slya? Children.sqW;;lqWsqWa?slya7 Little children.

, - '" ,." ......

st':;)t':;)mk?ilt Litt1~ dau·ghter.s(:;)mt':;)rnk?ilt DaUlJhters.shvilt Brother, sister or cousin's son or daughter.sfuhvllt Brother(s) sister(s) orcousin(s)' sons or daughters.{{WIn Drower, SISler, or COUSIn s CnIlU.s,m?ima?t Grandchild; brother, sister, or cousin's grandchild.. II mnf'TIS ~;.tpr(o\ ., .

nk'?llt Grandchild in law; (spouse of g~andchild).,.

Hypocoristics:r-' ~t} '",,'1'" .'l ... ~t.'

h"· ." ?. o'~ ,~ t' .~.. " 0' ~~. o'~"- ~....~.

<.'apa? = s~a Father's father.q<.'ana? = qaqna? Father's mother.kawa? = k'ik'wa? Mother's father.tama? = st:;)mtima? Mother's mother.

, ~ I .'=a, ",a, '=a lYlULl'v' " "'" 'v"

k'wuy Male's mother (occasion use)..,.",>.,.",,? Mnfh",r (".,,,1,,, <>ntl f",.,.""I",'o\

sinca? = fSIS:;)nca?,

Younger brother.?iipa? = fC:;)C?iipS Younger sister.wlta? - t:;)tWlt Youngest boy In family.

Appelativestupa? = ra?(iipa? Great grand parent addressing great grand child

or vice versa.h<.'apa = s~a? Male or female addressing father's father.

, ,.,. ,"awa£ "1" wa lYlalO;:; vI 100001I1alO;:; ~ 1I1vl£l<:;1 " lall£l;;I.

kawa? =k'ik'wa? Male or female addressing elderly male.s:;)si? Male of femllle . mother's or

cousin.

11>4

---

~-_---.:_-----------.;~

~:

""'''~? M"',, nr fA~~lA .. " ..1r1,.~1

tama? = st~mtima? Male or female addressing mother';-moth~r.tama? = st;)tima? Male or female addressing an elderly woman.wasa'{ - swa·twasa? Male or female addressing mother's sister.v/asa? = sv/a?Wasa? Male or female addressing elderly woman.w,,, C'

"'1. -~v ..

qW:;lsqwa?siya? Children.sinca? Male addressinl! a vounl!er male.?iipa? Female addressing younger female.M'apa =s~a? Male or female addressing father's father..u, .•"dUlA "" remale auuress10g coeval female; or coeval

addressing member of opposite sex.<:l'"yf MllJP. • ('"p""I' "",,,lp· f""",,I.,

-0 , . '"

coeval female or coeval intimate member ofopposite sex.

S;)nK ;)!'k"iJ.l" 1w10 (appellallve).

Miscellaneous:pu?1l~'1a1 Widow(er)pu?klaxWt Widow(s) or Widowers(s)k'w~],kik'wa? Step grand father.,lW_". W<n -'.. - "'1 ", •• • ",v"

~~lw?i1s Want a husband.n~xwn~xwils Want aJWif..ca?psiv/s Be sisters.n~~wn~~wiv/s Be married.s;)ncaS;)Sll lWIOS

n?aslmilt Twinsn?:l<:J111 T\11in< "f ,~" l. ..~~" I:......

Pet names and nicknames:sp~twmx sq~? Old mare.tfun'kst Thumb (girl's)

". , T • •.~ ... '" a"a,,,,, ",-,'u,., 'UUIJ1U ~l;III:')

papa? ? (girl's)

,.'u'"'

.,;....,

Sts-OQ1Jts/S yedzS- OoktutllkcJtinx

OKANAGAN NATIONDECLARATION

Yee~ w S-Ooltn~ilt:1(~ ~em~ sJzc4eJ/zdfarltItflzl4tdeltmintet kgd yoyart~1 SMUSlW- weepre-c. Oot;/zt 'yfJ!dzya~~~'

weI t4eO~ Nation~ t/zis decltnnthtt todoy 1M a sign for lWeA]J

generation to come-l4e1Yjin-e, we lzereby declare tI[at-:

Mneemtlzl-ret'yee'lz !{oo xaltcmos4cl[itwt, too ~ltclziw!z'uo~ yatlalz tetemwfto0la'Jp0If, yeil[ ~em~tet.Ute !Pre tlfe 1J4laYJUfUered abotighudp-eofJks of tftis land, our mo:tl}er;

Tellt klfool¥ntSl}{Uen .sw!titzerzxteryee'!z t<>onv~em1lter, !{snpeeeels'lpnen1tem4, kstxetden'IzUmq oot~l ~kgetlzlkclziw4en~t:emlt-

PIle ereaf<nr !tIM given lIJ owr mo-tftpr, to uyoy, to~ tl4Ui to protect;

J:elly meeoo~, 'YU1 koo xaJrtmaskeftilwlz toos rue'eewtx eeltcx>tn4temJttet-we, tltejirst in!zabiUunts, qtWe lived witlt awrmotlterfrom time UwmemorioJ:

feeq k.oo S-Dok!w~ yee~ tzo1c}zeursootMttet kPo xeeJp:ee4rtim !xookgeI yaya;rrpl[cJtwikstnwnrem an ftdzClStMl yee'4 teLi to-omlttMn'fttet-

OarO~ Iywe allowed u.s to sfyzre erua"y in t1ere&CW4UJ of 0tI/r~:LOfft pen'!tlda'!t ide xee'/ixee'lzxeex1llMUem yeeJt stet4Ltetltltet }eel[ {gelto-omlrte-niIt<tet, 'yeift~ toomlztem4 an lzehastantet, 'yee~txtde17plaJ,tentet 0tJt1i1 yee11ZOO1WWW~entet.1l7e /ywe rteVe/r given 1Jf our rig/tts to 0U1' mot¥r, ourm~J re&OWrCeJ,

ourgovtJ17wlUmlJ and our relig£on;

Lo-orpen'lt/&ili ,too tdeks ntzespoolawlzdilx- Peentl( ~t:ddipldlpztem'lt

'yee1 tel1 ttnmt~te1lZ~ an 4~tantet ~tnJ !(gel yayart, telk-'ygrfl11!!ltootltl tdesw~.uze -unit J4UVioe and conthwe to gotJM7l- owr 11UYflter ami Iter reJ<YU/rCeJ

for lite good~oll./or all time,

----------7"~~=--_f___ CHIEFS AND qOUNCIlPRS ----------

~ WESTBANK I n~~~~~~~~ Chief - Robert uie~~~~~ Councilors· Harold Derickson~~~

. Ra.lph Bent - Rose Derrickson ~~~..o:..-c'

. Pauline Terbasket , NICOLA INDIAN BANDOKANAGAN INDIAN BA / Chief - fred Holmes_~~~Chief. Murray Alexis ~ --I-- b ,)' Councilors· Harvey McLe.od---=~~~~Councilors - Gradin Alexis /LLCYC)i/.; Ct..-Y' - Walter Archac.han_~_

•Johnny (Tim) Alexis • Sharon Lindley _- Albert Saddleman • Richard McLeod _• Cecil Louis ----4"'-"~~-· Matthew Bonne j)• Molly Bonneau. . I.}~-~ ... ..L- •

- Herbert Simpson --jSUJ,'~~~

- Raymond Gregoire---f--- Daniel Wilson _

Indian Bands in the Okanagan Region, 1988(Source: Indian and Northern Affairs)

At present, there are six bands of Okanagan Indians in british Columbia:

Table 1

488

1129366541263295

37

Pqpulation<l988l

Okanagan BandWeslbank BandPenticton BandOsoyoos (lnkameep) BandLower Similkameen BandUpper Similkameen Band

Spallumcheen Band

ShuSWiij?

In addition, while not Okanagan, the Shuswap-speaking peopleof the Spallumcheen Band, in the Enderby area at the north end of theOkanagan have extensive social and cultural ties with their southernneighbours, and havebeen included here. IndianBands in the DouglasLake region of the Nicola Valley are also considered Okanagan.

One of the earliest scientific descriptions of Okanagan cultureis that by James Teit, published in 1930 but based on research doneabout 1906. However, Teit lived at Spences's Bridge, at the junction ofthe Nicola and Thompson Rivers, and based his writing on his extensiveknowledge of the Thompson Indians, a bias which is reflected in hiscursory presentation of many elements of Okanagan culture. TheOkanagan people themselves reject Teit's work, describing itas superficialand inaccurate. Charles Hill-Tout, another early anthropologist inBritish Columbia, also wrote on the Okanagans. His work was firstpublished in 1911 and reproduced in an edited version by Maud in1978. Unfortunately Hill-Tout mistakenly placed the Spallumcheenpeople of Enderby, who are Shuswap, in the Okanagan. Anotherweakness of the Hill-Tout material is that it is concerned mainly withstories; little is said that is strictly social or cultural.

In the 193Os, a substantial account of the southern OkanaganIndians, the Sinkaietk. of northern Washington appeared under thehand of W. aine and his associates (Oine et al., 1938). The studyincluded information drawn from an individual of the lnkameep(Osoyoos) Band. This collection of articles probably provides the bestintroduction to Okanagan culture, in spite of the fact that many of theactivitiesand beliefsdescribeddonotnecessarilyapplyto thenorthern

The Okanagan Indians of British Columbiaby Douglas R. Hudson, Ph.D.

1. Northern Okanagan-along upper Okanagan2. Similkameen Okanagan-along the Similkameen River3. Southern Okanagan-along the lower Okanagan River4. Methow Okanagan-along the Methow River (Washington)

54

Okana~

Colyille

The Okanagan Indians live in the valleys of the SimilkameenRiverand OkanaganLakeand River in southern British Columbia andnorthern Washington State. The Okanagan Indians living in Canadanumber about 2000, and like all native Indian populations in NorthAmerica, have undergone manychangessince the first EuropeansandCanadians penetrated the region.

The Indian people of the Okanagan and Similkameen regionuse the word "Okanagan" to refer to the themselves. However, theterm skiluxw, which in their language means "people", is also used.The word "Okanagan" seems to refer to a place, and not to the people.According toJamesTeitinTheSalishanTribes of the Western Plateaus(1930:198) the termisderived from the nameofa placenearOkanaganFalls, in the southern Okanagan, and means "head of the river", inreference to the farthest point that salmon ascended the system.Okanagan Falls was one of the most important salmon fishing sites inthe area and, indeed, was at the end of the salmon run. Whatever itsorigin, though, the term "Okanagan" has become the designation forthe Indian people whose ancestors occupied the Okanagan andSimilkameen watersheds-In 1906James Teit (1930:198, 203-204) includedas Okanagan not only those Indians living around Okanagan Lake,alongthe OkanaganRiver, and in theSimilkameenwatershed,butalsothe Sanpoil and Colville in the United States and the Indians of theArrow Lakes in British Columbia. A more detailed account was givenby Turner, Bouchard, and Kennedy in 1980, based on the linguisticresearchofBouchard. In this study,Okanagan is includedaspartoftheOkanagan-<:Olvillelanguagegroup, which iscomposedofseven majordialect divisions:

Introduction

5. Sanpoil.Nespelem-along the Columbia River6. Colville-along the Colville Valley7. Lakes-Columbia River, Arrow Lakes, Slocan Lake.

OkanagansNorman Lerman carried out research among the Okanagans

in 1952-1954, but he has published only a small part of his findings(Lerman, 1953). Unpublished material from Lerman and others hasbeen included in a number of books and articles by Bouchard andKennedy who themselves did research in the Okanagan during the19605 and 1970s.

Probably theaspectofOkanaganculture which has beenmostthoroughly studied and reported upon is that of ethnobotany, or thestudy of plant resources. Two books on the subject have appeared:Plant Foods of British Columbia Indians by N. Turner (1978) andEthnobotany of the Okanagan-Colville Indians of British Columbiaand Washingtonby Turner, Bouchard and Kennedy (1980). The readyavailabilityof thesebooksmakes them useful resources. The followingmaterial is drawn from the sources indicated above as well as fromresearch carried out by the author in 1979-1980.

Historical Sources

Inaddition to the ethnographic accounts, a numberof importanthistorical sources of information on the Okanagan Indians exist. Anearly settler in the Similkarneen Valley, Susan Allison, left a diary,giving an account of life in the 18605 and 18705. (Allison, 1976). Thejournal of a surveyor with the International Survey Commissioncovers the years 1858-1862 (Wilson, 1970). Reminiscences of earlysettlers have been presented in a special edition of Sound Heritage(1979), and vignettes of Okanagan history, usually from the perspectiveofsettlers and theirdescendants, are found in the annual reportsof theOkanagan Historical Society. All of these have been drawn upon tosome extent to form a picture of Okanagan culture. The ethnographicand historical material are woven together to try and understand thestructure of traditional Okanagan society and the kinds of changeswhich followed the incorporation of the Okanagan homeland into anexpandingCanadian societyand economy.Someaspects ofOkanagansociety and culture are common to all Indian groups in the interior ofBritish Columbia, and some are unique. Each village had slightlydifferent ways of doing things, but underlying these differences weresimilarities, or common cultural patterns for which we use the termInterior or Plateau Culture.

The Basis of Okanagan Culture and Society

Okanagan people interacted with each other, and with othergroups, on the basis of social rules and tradition in a variety ofactivities. Three main settings, or frameworks, for interactio~be

56

identified and described: (1) Economicactivities (2)Socialand politicalactivities (3) Religious and ceremonial activities.

The activities were not mutually exclusive. For example, anactivity such as salmon fishing in the autumn at Okanagan Falls waseconomic in that an important food source was being harvested andprepared for winter storage. It was social because a large number ofpeople gathered,played garnes, gossiped, looked for possiblespousesand carried on other informal activities. It was ceremonial because aspecial ritual was performed by a specialist to celebrate the return ofthe salmon.

Because of extensive movements by Okanagan people toparticipate in ongoing economic, social, and ceremonial activities, anetwork of relatives, friends, and acquaintances extended throughoutthe Okanagan and Similkarneen valleys. In a region with seasonalvariations in resources, such a system ensured that either people orfood resources were redistributed. It also ensured that the few keyfishing sites were available to a wide number of people. Ultimately,anyone speaking the same language could be considered a potentialfriend.

This network expanded in the period following World War IT,when substantial numbers of Okanagan people in Canada began tomigrate seasonally to work in the orchards and fields of the state ofWashington. This movement, however, slowed to a trickle in the196Os. This network represents a major feature of Okanagan societytraditional and contemporary. To understand how Okanagan societyworked-and continues to operate-we need to examine the economic,social and ceremonial basis of this network.

Okanagan Society: Economic Activities

The economic basis of Okanagan society depended on a few. key resources, the locations of which provided a reason for large. numbers of people to come together at specific times during the year.

The annual resource-use, or subsistence cycle, involved extensivemovements to plantgatheringand fishing sites in the summerand fall,while a more settled, and sedentary existence occurred dUring thewinter. Through hunting,gathering, and fishing enough food could beobtained during the summer to last the winter, when the importantceremonies took place. The key resource for many of the Okanagangroups was fish, especially salmon. Roots and berries also providedadditional food duringsalmon-fishingperiods. Edward Curtis in1916(Post 1938:11-12) described the Plateau subsistence cycle as follows:

All the Interior Salish subsisted largely on salmon, such roots ascamas and kouse, berries, especia1ly choke cherries and huckleberries.

Extensive game drives for deer were held in the falI...In the springroots were dug, and the people returned about June to the streamsand speared salmon...In July began the season of digging fresh camas, which continuedindefinitelyuntil asufficientsupplyhadbeenaccumulated.Mterthegreat fall hunt, the tribe disbanded (each small group of relatedfamilies building its long lodge in a sheltered place in the valley).

Fishing

Most Plateau groups had direct access to productive fishingsites. Creeksand lakes provided trout, sturgeon, suckers, kokaneeanda varietyofother fish. In the late summerand fall, salmonascended themajor river systems to spawn in small tributaries. Salmon ascendedthe Okanagan River as far as Okanagan Falls after starting their run atthe mouth of the Columbia River. The canyons through which thesalmon passed on their up-river journey became important fishingplaces where people from a large region congregated. The mostimportant salmon fishing locations were Shuswap Falls, OkanaganFalls and Kettle Falls. An account by the surveyor C. Wilson in 1865outlines the importance of these places (Wilson 1865:p. 297):

Salmon are taken in various ways during their run, the Okinagansand Shimilkamansget theirs from the Okinagan River, the 'Kalispelms','Spokans', 'Sketsui', 'Sweielps' and 'Sinnitskistux',fromthe Columbiaand Spokan Rivers. At the Oldnagan River a weir, constructed ofslight willow wands, was found, which extended right across thestream and at one end had an enclosure into whichseveral openingswere left; the remainder of the weir, being nearly, if not quite,impassable, all salmon passing up the river found their way into asort of 'cul-de-dac'., where the Indians were busily engaged inspearing them. At the Kettle Falls of the Columbia and great Falls ofthe Spokan, salmon are caught in a large wicker basket, suspendedfrom the rocks at one end of the falls, and projecting slightly into thewater. At the foot of the rock there is an eddy and the water comingdown with less force at this point, the salmon here make their chiefeffort to leap the falls, the greater number, however, fail to clear therock, many leap right into the basket, whilst others strike their nosesagainst the rock and fall back helplessly into the trap below.

As salmon did not ascend the Similkameen River, theSimilkameenOkanaganswereforced to exerciseoneofseveraloptions:they might fish on the Nicola River; they might fish at Okanagan orKettle Falls; or they could trade for dried salmon with the ThompsonIndians who were their neighbours to the west Also, because thesalmon reached only as far north as Okanagan Falls ip the OkanaganLake system, people living around the lake moved either to fiSliing

locations on the Okanagan River, or to the Salmon River or ShuswapFalls in the north.

Fishingdevices ofvarious kinds were used, depending on theriver conditions. Fence-like structures called weirs, crossed shallowstreams to block the passage of salmon, while basket traps, gaffs andnets were more extensively used in the canyons. At least two differenttypesofspears were used. Wilson's accounts from the 1860s give usanidea of the traditional Okanagan fishing technology:

The Indians at Okanagan have a very clever way of catching thesalmon runningat this time ingreat numbers; they makean artificialleap of wicker work right across the river over which the fish onlyjump to tumble into a basket or cradle ready for them on the otherside. (Wilson, atOsoyoos Lake, August 12,1860;Wilson 1970: p.llS)

In the northern Okanagan, some fishing was carried out atnight usingbuming torches toattract the fish tothesurface,where theywere speared.

Salmon fishing was controlled by a Salmon Chief, who directedthe construction of the traps and weirs and performed a ceremony tomark the capture of the first salmon. This ceremony, called the FirstSalmonCeremony, symbolized the dependenceon the salmonand theneed to maintain a proper relationship with this renewable resource.Under the guidance of the Salmon Chief, the first salmon caught wascooked and distributed to members of the assembled community. Thebones were returned to the river to maintain the cycle. Wilson (1865:298) has left us with an account which indicates something of the roleof the Salmon Chief:

One blow on the head from their practiced hands settles the accountofeachfish, which is then thrown outon the rocks and carried to thegeneral heap, from which they are portioned out to the differentfamilies everyeveningbya man known as the "SalmonChief', whenthe women take them in hand for splitting and drying. From 400 to500 salmon are taken daily in this manner; the number of fishascending the river is perfectly extraordinary, the water seemsperfectlyalive with them, and as manyas adozen have beencountedin the air at one time.

. A set of prohibiti~nsu~derscoredthe practical and symbolic1lIIportance of salmon. Swunmmg was banned upriver from the weir,andmenstruating womenand recent widowsand widowerscouldnotcome near the weir, nor partake in the consumption of salmon.

Men built the weir, often to the accompaniment of specialsongs to ensure success, but the processing of fish fell to the women.While a weir could collect thousands of fish, the availability of female

labour to cutand dry the salmon provided an upper limiton the actualnumber of fish which could be processed. Each family tried to obtainenoughsalmontoiastthe winter; someobtained asurplus whichcouldbe traded to neighbouring villages for other commodities.

, Salmon fishing time was also a social occasion. People frommilesaround gathered atthe relativelyfewcanyonsand weirlocations.The scene was festive. Friends played games such as Iahal (the stickgame), raced onhorsebackoronfoot, traded, talked,or looked aroundfor a potential mate. As the anthropologist L. Walters (1938:75) put it:

Youngmen...areapt to fishin friendly territoryinorderto see thegirlsof other places. Many marriages take place at salmon fishing time.

These gatherings could go on from June to October depending on thelocation and duration of the salmon run.

While salmon represented the most important fish on thePlateau, other fish had their place in the Indian economy. Kokanee, aland-locked salmon, were taken at numerous creeks throughout theOkanagan. For example, Eric Sismey (O.H.S.R. 1976:17) has writtenabout the Indian camp at Trepanier Creek, on the west side of OkanaganLake, at kokanee time "when horses, tents, with children and dogs,camp fires and smoke racks bordered the creek in pleasingconfusion."Mission Creek, near present-day Kelowna, and Trout Creek, nearSummerland, were also important kokanee-fishing streams whichattractedgroupsof familiesevery fall. SusanAllison (1976:3l) reportedthattheSimilkameenRiver,while lackingsalmon,supportedabundanttrout, DollyVarden and greyling. Other small lakes contained suckerswhich were trapped as they migrated from lake to lake in the spring.White sturgeon were caught in the Columbia River system, whichincluded Okanagan Lake, while ling or "devil fish" as they are calledlocally, were taken in the winter with lines dropped below the ice.

Gathering

Plants provided another important source of food for theOkanagan people. Roots, berries, and other plant parts were collectedin season from spring to fall and used for food, drinks and medicine.

Bitterroot, or Spit/em in the Okanagan language, was veryimportant. During April and May the women gathered the roots in thehighlands surrounding the river and lake basins.

One gathering area, for example, was located along TroutCreek, behind Summerland. In the southern Okanagan, a ceremony,called the First Root Ceremony, was held to celebrate the gathering ofthe first plants and to highlight the passage from winter to spring. Ata time when stored foods were likelyat their lowest level, theaddition

60

of fresh roots to the diet was most likely welcome.Turner (1978:27) provides a description of the First Roots

Ceremony among the Penticton Indians:

The traditional bitter-root digging grounds of the Penticton peopleare located upShingieCreek, west ofPenlicton, in twohigh flatlandslocally known as Pierre and Roddy Flats. Each year in May when thebitter-root flowerheads appeared, four of the purest maidens of thevillage were selected to go out huntingand fishing. At the same time,fourotherwomen werechosentopickthefirstSaskatoonberries,andfour young men selected to go out hunting and fishing. When thesefirst harvesters had collected enough roots, berries and game, a largefeast was held to thank the foods for returning once more for thebenefit of the people. After this feast, anyone in the village could goout to get bitter-root or Saskatoons.

As with fishing, the springharvestingofbitter-roots providedthe opportunity for people to meet, exchange stories and trade goodsafter the isolation of the winter months. April was called spitlemtarn or''bitter-root month."An account of the importance of plant foods in the 1860s is providedby Wilson (1865:296)

Food and the means of procoring it.-The 'Selish', or Flathead, liveprincipally on buffalo and other game, and they have an Indianagencyestablishedamongst them by theAmericans, whose businessit is to provide the means and teach them the way to raise corn, etc.The 'Kalispelms' and 'Spokans' also go to the buffalo plains, but agreat proportion of their food is obtained from the salmon fishery atColville, where in June,July and part of August, they assemble withthe 'Sketsui', 'Sweielps', and 'Siniutokistux', to lay up their winterstock. There are several kinds of roots eaten, of which the CammassOathkwa),madeintocakesofanotunpleasantflavour,isthebestandmost used. Ofberries, thatknownas the 'serviceberry' [saskatoon] isthe most common, and is gathered in August and September, whenitisdried inthe sunand putup inmatsfor winter use. Thewildcherryand a small white berry of a very bitter taste, called by the nativessteexchuxand growing ona bush something like the elder, are foundin great quantities in some districts. Hips and haws, angelica, theseeds of the Oregon sunflower, pounded into meal, and the berriesofthe kinnikinik, or 'uva urso', fried in grease, are also eaten. In timesofgreat scarcity, a dark brown kind of moss, like horse-hair, is eaten.It is boiled for two or three days and nights until reduced to a whitetasteless pulp, but does not seem to be very nutritious. (Wilson,1865:296)

Most Okanagan villages had access to bitter-root gatheringzones and to abundant saskatoon berries. For information about

harvesting these and other plant foods among the Okanagans, thereader might consult an article written by MaryJoe in the 45th Reportof the OkanaganHistorical Society(1981:72-73). In the southernOkanagan,particularly in the state ofWashington, camass was an importantfoodplant. In localities where the carnass was plentiful, people gathered,often coming from some distance.

Hunting

The Okanagan watershed contained a number of game animals,some large and some small, which were hunted or trapped.Knowledgeable and skilled hunters directed the collective activities.Success in hunting was seen as the outcome of knowledge and ofadherence to proper rituals. Hunts, for example,might be precededbyaperiod of "sweating"-preparingoneselfby spending time ina sweathut for purification. Largeanimals hunted included deer, elk,big-homsheep and bear. Smaller game animals also used for food includedrabbits, marmot and beaver. Teit (1930:243) wrote that the OkanaganIndians had four great hunts a year: in the spring for deer and sheep;in the late fall for deer, sheep, elk and bear; in the mid-winter for deer;and in the late winter for sheep.

Bear hunters were acknowledged as having special skills. Forexample, Chief Quinisco, "bear hunter", in the Similkameen in the18605 was described by Susan Allison in the following terms:

The tribe living at Chu-ehu-awa were under Quinisco, as the BearHunter, and numbered bearly [sic] two hundred....Quinisco gainedhis name as hunter from thecourageous wayhehunted and attackedgrizzly bears. He would go outquite alone armed withonly his knifeand follow them up until they stoodatbay. Then, without waitingforthem to charge, he would rush on them and plunge his knife intothem while they were hugging him. That is how his brother, Shlawha-Iak-an described his method. (Allison, 1976:27)

The Ashnola area of the Similkameen region was recognizedas an important mountain sheep habitat. Teit (1930: 243-45) recounts ahunting expedition one winter in which the Ashnola people invitedneighbouring Similkameen bands, and others from the Thompson,NicolaandColumbiaRivers and OkanaganLake to participate in theirhunt. An account of a Similkameen hunt, given by Teit (1930: 243-45):

Sheep were formerly very plentiful in the [Ashnola) district, andthe people of theband there decided to have a great sheep hunt onewinter, partly so that they might have an abundance of meat for afestival they weregoing tohold,and partlyto soow their guestswhata fine sheep-hunting ground they had, and give them a chance of

some excitingsport. This was inour grandmothers' days. The pe"t _invited the neighbouring Simi\kameenbands, and they invited theirfriends from the neighbouring tribes, so a great many came fromThompsonand Nicola Rivers, Okanagon Lake and Columbia River.Among them were some Shuswap. All gathered at Keremeos, andfrom there they proceeded to the hunting ground. Many womenjoined the party to act as drivers, and all were provided withsnowshoes. When they neared the place where they were going todrive, the hunting Chief took off his cap, made of the skin of a ewe'shead, and, waving it toward the cliffs where the sheep were, prayedto them as follows: "Please, sheep, go your usual way, and followeach other, so that we may eat your flesh and thus increase orlengthen our breath [life]! Pity us, and be driven easily to the placewhere we shall shoot you!" He then sent many men around to sit atthe heads oftwo gulches on top of the mountain and shoot the sheepwitharrowsas theycame up.The menpicked werethebest shots, andincluded most of the strangers. He then directed the drivers, a greatmany men and all the women, mostly Similkameen people, how toproceedand where to go. Most ofthem, in driving and following thesheep, had to pass a place where they had to jump over a cliff about3 or 4 meters in height, alighting on a bank of snow. All the menjumped, but some of the women were afraid, turned back and wentaround by a longer route. Thedrivers saw and started great numbersof sheep, but they failed to get them to take the top of the mountain.Instead the sheep congregated ona steep, inaccessible cliff below thetop, out of range from above or below, and stayed there. The pepleshoutedat them lustily, but they remained there, knowing that it wasa secure place. The great drive came to a standstill, and the huntingChief could see no way to get the sheep out.

Among the drivers was an Upper Thompson woman, thegrandmother of the narrator of the story, who was married to aSimilkameen man. She lived in Similkameen and was known to beresourceful and to have shamanistic powers. The mountain sheepwas one ofherguardianspirits, and onthis occasionshe waswearingacap madeoftheheadskinofanoldewe with horns attached, similarto that worn by the hunting Chief. The leading Simi\kameen peopleheld a consultation. They said, "All our friends willIaugh at us if wecan not get sheep for them." The Thompson woman said, "Yes, theycertainly will." The Chief then said to her, 'Well, you may knowsomething. I will give the leadership of this huntto you; you shall behunting Chief." She answered, ''Very well, but one thing you mustpromise." Then, pointing to the dog close to her side (a rather smalland vicious-looking animal, that all the people hated), shesaid, "Youmust promise never again to abuse my dog. I will drive the sheepalone with my dog, and you may sit down and watch me." Sheapproached the sheep, pointing first at them, then at the four pointsof the compass, but no one could hear what she said. Presently shegave a sharp ca11, and the sheep ran into a bunch, which she nowpointed out to the dog. She said to it, "Friend, go and drive your

63

fri"' so that they willall go up where the people want them." Thedog rushed off and drove the sheep fiercely. When any of themscattered, he rounded them up again. He was very intelligent,courageous, fleet of foot and long-winded. The womanfollowed asfast as she could, encouraging him. The dog drove all the sheep upand the men in waiting killed a great number.

The importance of hunting is reflected in several pictographsin the Okanagan. For example, one shows deer being driven into asurround, or corral (Corner 1968:59), and another portrays a huntingscene with a variety of animals (Corner 1968:69).

After the entry into the Okanagan country by trading companies,the trappingof fur-bearing animals became increasingly importantforsome. Susan Allison (1976:33) described a Simi1kameen Okanagantrapper who arrived at her place in March 1870:

About the middle of the month Cosotasket came from themountains with a quantity of furs-my husband said he had at leastfive hundred dollars worth. Some he traded with him, the rest hehungina tree tillhefe1tlikegoingto the Hudson's BayCompanypostatKeremeos.Cosotasi<etsaidthatthatyearheoniyhadafewmartensas his favourite trapping ground at the Skagit was spoiled by thefire...Cosotasket at that thne lived mostIy in the mountains and wasknown among the bibesmen as the MountainChief. (Allison, 1976:33)

Fishing,gatheringandhuntinglocationsprovidedfocal pointsfor group identity and territoriality. Each Okanagan group, or bandhad resource-use sites which were considered part of the group'sholdings. But, given the extensive social network which covered theOkanagan region, one was usually able to gain access to some othergroup's location through a relative or friend in the neighbouringvillage. Fishing and root-gathering sites were the most importantassets of a village group, while hunting tracts were more difficult todemarcate, although valleys and highlands were used on a regularbasis.

Men and women worked together in economic endeavours ina complementary way. In general terms, men built the fish weirs andhunted, while women processed resources and gathered plant androot foods. Stored food belonged to the women giving them effectivecontrol over the household economy and the exchange of food. Thevery nature of Okanagan social organization linked local productiongroups in a wide exchange system.

The Okanagan Indians at Osoyoos dug camas bulbs at KettleFallsand traded bitter-root,hemp(a fibrous plantused to make twine),and blankets to the Thompson and Shuswap Indians for salmon. Atubular shell, dentalia, from the west coast of Vancouver .Island,

64

passed up the Columbia River and Fraser River to the Okanagan,where it was displayed as a sign of wealth. The finding of a Nootkawhalebone club inKelowna duringthe 1930sindicates the extentoftheaboriginal trading network. (Nootka is on the west coastofVancouverIsland.)

Several locations became renowned as trading centres. At theDalles on the lower Columbia River, interior and coastal goods wereexchanged. From there, items were carried inland to trading centressuch as Kettle Falls and the mouth of the Okanagan River. Someinterior products became highly valued. For example, red ochre, usedas a pigmentforpaints, wasobtained near the junctionoftheTulameenand SimilkameenRiversand traded throughout the region. After FortHope was established, Similkameen Okanagans travelled over themountain passes to trade for European and coastal items.

While traditional economic activities remain important formany Okanagans, fundamental changes have taken place: OkanaganFaIlshasbeen dammed; Kettle Fallswas flooded by the constructionofthe Grand CouleeDamin the 1930sand the numberofsaImon reachingthe OkanaganRiver systemhasdiminished following the constructionof dams along the Columbia River. In addition, weirs and fish trapswere barred by the Canadian government around the tum of thecentury, and destroyed by fisheries wardens throughout the Okanagan.Also, urbanization and rerouting of streams has further diminishedfish production. Finally, recent court cases have upheld the authorityofprovincial fishand wildlife regulationsoverIndianfood fishing. Forexample, in 1973, two Penticton Indian band members wereconvictedin a British Columbia Provincial Court of killing deer out of seasonwithouta speciaI food hunting permit. An appeal to the CountyCourtresulted in an overturning of the original conviction, on the basis thata 1763 Royal Proclamation protected Indian hunting rights over andabove provincial or state regulations. A subsequent appeal of thatdecision by the B.C. government to the B.C. Court ofAppeal restoredthe original convictions, concluding that provisions of the Indian Actallowed provincial laws toapply to Indians. FinaIIy, in 1977,aftermoreappeals, the Supreme Court of Canada affirmed the original convictions.

As the Okanagan region became incorporated into an expandingCanadiansocietyandeconomy, Indianlabour becamemore importantin economc activities dominated by non-Indians including such activitiesas ranching, farming, logging and sawmilling.

During the late 18005, the economic, political and social activitiesof the Okanagan Indians and the Euro-Canadian immigrants becameintertwined, with a myriad of reciprocal exchanges. For example, inher account of life in the Similkameen Valley in the 18605 and 1870s,Allison (1976:32) wroteaboutanIndianmailcarrier,Indianhouseholdlabourers, Indian cattle driver, and the exchange of food between the

Allisoru. _ld Similkameen Okanagans. For example, Allison (1976:39)wrote:

The Indian women used to gather and dry saskatoons, so I did thesame and when they brought me trout which they caught by thehundreds in baskets they set in the One Mile Creek, I ~aid for.~emwith butter and then dried and smoked the trout, making delicIOUSkippers, for winter. (Allison, 1976:39)

Early writers point to closer relations between Indians andnon-Indians in the Okanagan, although ignoring the issue of~taldifferences of political power. For example, one a?thor d~bedrelations in Penticton in the early 1920s in the followmg tenns.

At that time we, of the town, lived much closer to our Indianneighbours than we do now. We knew eachother by name, stoppedtochaton the streetandwe played together. Wedependedonhaycutonthereserve or winter pasture for ourhorses. Weboughtwood andbuckskin gloves from them. (Sismey, 1976:19)

The Euro-Canadian settlers and their descendants createdtheir own version of Okanagan history, one whi~ talks about. thematerial exchanges, but sets aside the early social and rnamagerelations between Indians and non-Indians. The result has~ .a

rtain fabrication ofsocialdistancebetween two groups,one which IS

:adily accepted by more recent immigrants to the Okanagan ~?Oknow little or nothing of early settler history aside from the official

versions. 'cultural deveI tIndian labourbecame important in the agn . opmen

of the Okanagan. Indians· and non-Indians recall sto~es about theannual movementof the Nez Perces Indians from the Umted Statesupthe OkanaganValley to Vernon around the tum of thecentury~w~rk

in the Coldstreamhop fields. The 14th Report ofthe Okanaga~ HlSton~1

Society includes an account of the Nez Perces en route which says In

part:

The Coldstream Ranch nearVernon grew many acres.of hops inthose days and Indians were employed for the harve~t time (therewas a brewery in Vernon). Among these, was ~e ~tire Ne~ Percetribe, who came all the way from their reservation InWas~on

Slate about the middle of September each year and returned sometimeinOctober. Tous this wasoneofthehighlights oftheyear.~erewereabout 300 in aII, men, women and children all mount,eciWl~ severalhundred pack horses. The Nez Perceare all of the PlainsInd~.type:tall and handsome. In those days their dress was almost tradItional,

66

buckskin shirts, leggings and moccasins; much fine bead work wasin evidence, also on gloves, gun scabbords and cradle boards slungfrom the saddle horns. Some of the young men Were more modernand affected leather and angora chaps, cowboy boots and Mexicanspurs. All wore the type of COWboy hat that was fashionable at thetime with stiffbrimsand high crownsofblackor fawnfelt withfancybeadwork on metal studded bands. Their hair was WOrn in longbraids and bright coloured neckerchiefs were much in favour. Thewomen dressed more Simply but Were always colourful with theirbright head scarves and cotton dresses....Together with multi-coloured saddle b1anketsand many beautifulhorses the cavalcade creatEd a speclacle not easily forgotten. (OkanaganHistorical Society#14:110-122)

The method of payment to Indian hop pickers in the 1890sensured that all earnings remained with the employingcompany untilthe job was completed. Sound Heritage (Vol.8 #3:13) reports;

The Coldstream Ranch had a rather peculiar method of paying theIndians. They couldn't pay the Indians in dollars and cents, becausewhen they accumulatEd enough they would have left and gone offhuntingorsomethingand so, theyoperatedona systemofcards-theyhad 5 cent cards, 10 cent cards, 25 cent cards and dollar cards. Thentheyhad bluecards which were practically likechequesand couldbeworth anything up to a hundred dollars-all guaranteed by theColdstream Ranch. This is the way the store received their moneyfrom the Indians.

After World War II, Indian people from theOkanagan wenttothe United States to work, especially in the hop fields and orchards ofWashington State. For example, an individual who was born in theSalmon River Valley, at the northern end of the Okanagan, livedtwenty-five years in the United States, including seven years at Tonasket,Washington. A labour ''boss'' came up from Tonasket to pick upworkers in a truck and transport them south. Some Indians remainednear home, working in vegetable fields for produce companies orlogging. For example, the Indian Agent for the Okanagan Agencyreported that a drought in 1914 had reduced crops and, as a result,membersoftheOkanagan Band cut logs for local sawmills. (OkanaganAgency, Correspondence, RG-lO, VoI.4053)

The means of making a living adopted by the Okanagans, inaddition to hunting, fishingand gathering, now included wage labour,cattle and horse raising, along with the growing of garden produce.However, the transition from the old hunting and gathering economywas not withoutconflict. With the establishmentofreserves the nativepeople no longer had unrestricted access to the whole territory.Indians and immigrant ranchers and farmers vied for the same tracts

of land. Jften there were acrimonious debates over water rights andover the size of the holdings. Indian use of land was deprecated, andsettlers appealed to government officials to reduce the size of Indianholdings.

Okanagan Society: Social and Political Activities

With an understanding of the material basis of Okanagansociety, we can tum our attention to the social and political activitiesthat provided the framework within which production and exchangewere carried out.

Okanagan Communities

The basic residential unit ofOkanagan society was the village,a cluster of houses containing related people who used the area'sresources in common. Traditionally, a village was occupied primarilyduring the winter, with the rest of the year spent at seasonal hunting,fishing and gathering camps. The winter village sites were relativelyfixed, were usually located in a protected creek valley, and provideda focal point for group identity. People referred to themselves asoccupants of a particular winter village. In other words, the wintervillage was their address. The actual placement of houses, though,depended on the availability of firewood. Through the years a wintervillage might be moved up or down a particular creek as local woodsupplies were depleted. Looking west from Penticton towards theadjacent Indian Reserve, one can gain a sense of the location of atraditional winter village site with houses situated along the valleyfloor.

Thehouses were mostcommonlybuiltoveraslightexcavationof two or three feet and covered with mats made from reeds, or tuIes.Some of the tuIe-mat lodges resembled tipis, while others, housingseveralfamiIies,wereoblonginshape.Anotherstructure,lesscommonbut sti11 evident in the Okanagan, was the pit-house, a circular, semisubterranean lodge covered with willow mats, moss, and earth.

Inaddition to the main residential dwellings, a village containedseveralspecial-use structures. Ata shortdistance from themaincamp,small huts were constructed for menstruating women and for girlsentering puberty. Here women stayed for their menstrual period,away from direct interaction with the main camp. Several sweatlodges, small structures within which men and women went for ritualpurification and relaxation, might also be in evidence. There wereseparate sweat huts for men and women. Food was stored in raisedcaches or in pits dug into sandy ridges.

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Movements

The population of village sites in southern British Columbiaand northern Washington was not static. Several major migrations ofgroups of Indians are indicated in legends and oral history. With theintroduction of the horse into the Plateau by the early 18oos, groupsexpanded or contracted as movement across the highlands becamemore important than previous river and lake travel. However, themostimportantimpactonIndianpopulationwasthatmade bydisease.EpidemiCS swept British Columbia several times, decimating wholevillages and creating population vacuums. There were outbreaks ofsmallpox in the Arrow Lakes about 1800and in the Okanagan in 1832,1~, and 1857..~ est,nnated.one-third of the Indian population ofBntish ColumbIa dIed m a major smallpox epidemic in the 18605. Aninfluenza epidemic in 1918 further reduced the Indian population.Becauseoftheimpactof these epidemicsaboriginal populationfiguresin the late 1800s are likely to be much lower than in earlier times.

An 1877 census gave the following figures for the Okanaganregion (Indian Reserve Commission Correspondence, B.C. ProvincialArchives):

Table 2 Okanagan Indian Population, 1877

#of #ofBand Population Cattle Horses

Spallumcheen 118 14 74Head of Okanagan Lake 248 190 585Penticton 144 476 612Okanagan Mission 67 n/a n/aOsoyoos 117 57 382

Total 694 737+ 1653+

In 1865 Wilson 0865:292) wrote of the Shuswaps having apopulation of400, and the "Okinagan" and "ShimiIkameen" a populationof 300. H~wever, th~ ~gures cannot be accepted as anything butrough estimates. Telt, m 1895, described the replacement of anAthapaskan-speaking population in the Nicola Valley and SimiIkameenValley, first, by Thompson Indians and, then, by Okanagan people.~ term "Athapaskan" refers to Indian people whose primary residenceIS m central andno~ernBritishColumbia. Theirpresencesofarsouthhas often been attributed to the possible intrusion and settlement of awar party. Older SimiIkameen Okanagan people still talk about thenon-Qkanagan words in their vocabulary, words which areattributedto the Stuwihamuq, or Nicola Athapaskans.

The present line between Okanagan and Thompson speakers

<0

falls around Hedley, east ofPrinceton. But marriages between Thompsonand Okanagan people blur the distinction; the boundary could shiftdepending on who married whom. Some Okanagan people have kinthrough marriage in the LowerFraserValley, a resultofannual tradingtrips from the Similkameen to Hope.

Teit (1930) has also suggested that the Okanagan shiftednorthward into the Okanagan Lake region from a location near OkanaganFalls,graduallydisplacing theShuswap.The presentdivisionbetweenShuswap and Okanagan speakers is around Enderby and Armstrong,in the northern Okanagan. There are several accounts of battlesbetween the two populations, indicating conflict if not actualdisplacement. For example, at McIntyre Bluff near Oliver in theSouthern Okanagan, a Shuswap raiding party was said to have beendriven over the cliff. A similar account at Enderby suggests that anOkanagan war party was driven over a cliff by the Shuswap.

As there exists no evidence pointing to a specific aboriginalOkanagan homeland outside the watershed of the Okanagan Riversystem,wecanassume that, whileOkanaganFallswascertainly one ofthe most importantfishing sites in the valley, the whole lake and riverbasin represented aboriginal territory.

Population movements in recent years have slowed down forseveral reasons. The establishment of Indian reserves in the late 1800stied people to specific locations and made movements between reservesofdifferentbandsdifficult.Thealienationof large tractsofland to nonIndian settlers for ranching, townsites and other projects furtherhampered movements. For example, Indian cattlemen raised stock .alongside white ranchers on 24,000 acres ofcommon range (known tothisdayastheCommonage) southofVernonuntilaccesswascurtailed,largely due to pressure from the non-Indian ranchers. (For the legalhistory of this acreage see 22nd Report of OHS:159) Similarly, Indiancattlemen drove stock from Keremeos to Princeton for seasonal grazinguntil their use of "free range" was forbidden. The importance of theserestrictions to the Indians can be ascertained from the 1877 censusfigures above which show that most bands in the Okanagan raisedsubstantial numbers of cattle and horses.

Traditional Village Organization

Localvillageautonomy wasa feature ofPlateauculture.Whileseveral villages might be linked through commonlanguage and socialties, each village retained a measure of independence. For the Okanaganspecifically, several house groups, perhaps scattered in contiguoussett1ements, were seen as part of a community under the direction ofa chief. The chief, usually a man, derived his power from his status asa 'worthy' man from a high status family, his knowledge of village-'-

on

affairs, and his ability to gain the respect of others. A chief wasfollowed because ofhisattributes,butdid nothave theabsolute powerto force people to carry out his will. Because of the fact that extensive

. kinship ties linked most members of the community, a chief was alsoa person who had a largenumberof relatives upon whom hecould callfor assistance and support.

Chieftainship may have been inherited; the Okanagan placegreat emphasis on the order of birth and the first-born son of a chiefwas considered a prime candidate as a successor. However, the chiefdid not rule so much as guide; his status and knowledge wereimportant in maintaining community relations and ensuring thatcertain tasks, economicand ceremonial werecarried out for the benefitof the whole community. A council ofelders,drawn from the communityat large, advised the chief on relevant matters and helped choose asuccessor.

If the community consisted of more than one settlement, eachresidential clusterhad a headman who tookon some of the tasksof thechief. According to L. Walters, this headman "holds office through hisability to have dreams telling him where to direct the group forsuecesful hunting". (Walters 1938:98) Further, each house in a settlementhad a "house leader", usually the eldest male, who represented thehouse in dealings with the rest of the community.

In parts of the southern Okanagan the chief himself did notgiv~ orders, but directed messages through a spokesman. However,the Informality of daily living and the requined seasonal movementstended to discourage the establishment of formal administrative offices.The chief functioned in a variety of capacities while other leadersoperated duringspecific activities. Forexample, as indicated earlier,aSalmon Chief directed the construction and operation of a fish weirand, during the Winter Ceremonial, a Shaman, or Medicine Man,directed activities and performed curing or healing rites.

It is probably appropriate to view chieftainship not in anabsolute sense, but to see chiefs and headmen as managers of specificactivities-economic, social, political and ceremonial-for which theyhad both the required knowledge and the ability to lead others. Aschiefs had no armies under their command, their authority dependedon the extent to which the community would follow them. Therefore,leadership was institutional as well as personal. To bea chief, one hadto meet the moral and social requirements of the community and tobean exemplar of the values or standards of conduct of the community.The duty ofa chiefwas "to exemplify theethicalstandardsof thesocialunit, to exhort the people concerning these duties, and to advise themagainst getting into trouble". (Walters, 1938:94)

The essence of the Okanagan political systemisevidentin theobservations made by a fur trader in the early 18oos:

71

72

Anissue related to chieftainship was that of social class or thedivision of the society into groups which were socially differentiatedand ranked. The Okanagans did not have a rig~rous caste ~tem.However, there existed families, the members of which were~dere?to beofhigh statusand moralityand otherfamilieswho had 10st thenhistory," In other words, positions of authority were based partly onprestige which had been established originally by proper c:onductInstitutional factors also influenced the matterofwho was to.fi~on~ofthesepositionsaswesawin the~tanceofth.e~ldestsonrece>vmgfirstchance at succeeding his father mto a posItion. Those.who ~d ~ohistoryhadlost, throughaccidentorbad luck, their pla~em thekinshipsystem; and lacked relatives who would attest to the>r char~cte.-:.and

right to particular positions.The traditional system of leadership wasaltered by the imposition

of external political frameworks. First, Roman Catholic missionariesintroduced the Durieu system in British Columbia Indian villagessubject to their influence. Named for Bishop Durieu, this systemprovided for Indian church leaders in each village under the supervisionof the local priest. Each village had a leader called a "Church Chief'who had "Captains" under his command, all appointed by the priest.The Church Chief and the Captains enforced the priest's instructionsconcerning morality and conduct. The influence of this system waneddecades ago; one elderly Okanagan recalled that he had only heardabout the system, but had never seen it in operation.

A second important change in Indian politics occurred whenthe Department of Indian Mfairs exerted its authority over bandaffairs, establishing a system of selected Chiefs and councillors to runband affairs. Most of the Chiefs elected in this fashion were male, butin 1953 the first woman was elected to the Penticton Indian Bandcound!. Today, all of the Indianbands in the Similkameen and Okanaganhave elected Chiefs and coundllors.

Beyond theautonomous villages therewere noformal politicalorganizations. Unity was achieved through common language, culture,and extensive kinship ties, not through a hierarchical political structure.While several adjacent villages might be called a band, no tribalorganization linking all of the bands, or villages, existed in traditionalOkanagan culture. However, attempts have been made through theyears to achieve some sort of political unit to meet mutual concerns.

In the 1870s, frustrated with government inaction on Indianland claims, and faced with increasing alienation of Indian lands bysettlersand ranchers, someOkanaganand Shuswappeople argued forthe need for a cooperative venture. They believed that through armedforce and a possible association with Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce,then fighting theUS. government, a resolution ofoutstandinggrievancesmight be enforced. A meeting at the head of Okanagan lake in 1877resulted in the formation of a Shuswap-Okanagan Confederacy.

No armed resistance came, however, and as the historianRobin Fisher (1977:191-194) points out, the "nascent confederation"was effectivelybroken upby the efforts of the Indian ReserveCommissionand priests, who madeagreements with individualbandsand split themovement. For a time, however, there was great concern among thenon-Indian population in the interior that an armed uprising wasimmanentand thatalink with the Nez Perce was likely. To underscorethe importance of this movement, the Indian Reserve Commissionsubmitted the following report in 1877:

Okanagan Political SystemFigure 1

The government, or ruling power among the Oakit1a<!<ens(Sinkaietk) is simple yet effective, and is little more than an lde~

t of trol The Chieftainship descends from father to son: Itsys em con . . . . Theiris, however, merely a nominal 5upenonty In most cases.general maxim is, that Indians were born to be free, and that n~~nhas natural right to the obedience of another, except he be nch In

horses and have many wives; yet it is wonderful how well thevernment works for the general good, and without any coercive

~wer to back the will of the Chief, he is seldo~ disobeyed: thepeople submit without a murmur. (Walters, 1938:94)

The positionofchiefwas likely to be inherited bya close kin ofthe former chief. For example, Allison (1976:39) refers m the 1870s tothe late Similkameen chief, Quinisco, and his brother, Incownasket,who succeeded him. The relationship of the various leaders in Okanagansociety can be diagrammed as follows:

Therehasbeen,duringsummer,anattempttoconfederate the wholeShuswap and Okinagan tribes, and it is said that some commondecision was come to at the great Okinagan meeting. Possibly theattempt originated in personal ambition or in the desire of all toenforceuponthe whites thedemandsofthe Indians for lands,butthedelay in visiting the district by the commissioner, and the cutbackacross the line among tribes connected with the Okingans may havegiven the movement a more decided and unpleasant character.

RepresentativesofAmerican tribes werepresentat thelargemeeting,and since then it is reported that 20 or 30 ofour Indianshave crossedthe frontier to join the insurgentAmerican tribes. The learningofthisfact, if it is a fact, on international relations, will not escape yourattention.

The policy of the commissioners at present is to divide the ShuswapChiefs, and though itdoes notdo to be too hopeful, we think we maysay that we have to some extent already succeeded.

In assigning lands, we shall act as if the Indians were quiet, givingthem what we think they require. (Indian Reserve CommissionCorrespondem:e, Kamloops, July 10, 1877)

In 1916, several B.C. Indian bands formed the Allied IndianTribes of B.C. This organization included the "Okanagan Tribes,Similkameen Tribes, Inkameep Tribes, PentictonTribes, FairviewTribes and Nicola Valley Tribes." Narcisse Baptiste, from Osoyoos,represented the Okanagan Tribes at a meeting between the ExecutiveCommittee of the Allied Indian Tribes of B.C. with the DeputySuperintendent of Indian Mfairs in 1923.

The next tribal association appeared a few years ago. In the1970s, a majorityof the Indian bands in the Okanagan Valley joined toform the Okanagan Indian Tribal Council, with an office in Penticton.This in tum was part of the Central Interior Tribal Councils, representingB.C. Interior Indian bands and tribal organizations.

Because of the importance of land claims in past and presentlegal politicial conflicts, I shalldeal withownershipasaseparate topic.

Ownership

As described more fully in the next section, Okanagancommunitiesare kinship-based, and all rightsofownershipandaccesstoresources mustbe seen in lightof this fact. Propertycanbecorporealor incorporeal, and dealt with in different ways. Corporeal propertyrefers to tangible items like land and material objects; incorporealproperty includes songs, dances and other intangible things. Thegroup-kingroup, villageorband--Qwned resourceareas in fuesense

that its members maintained rights of access and control over thereso~a:s. Others could c~me and participate, but only with theperDUSSlOnoftheowner.Chiefsmanagedand, in thatsense,owned theresource areas, but the extensive ties which joined the Okanaganpeople together created a social universe of friends relatives andneighbours. Thus, it might be appropriate to see the Okanagan and~Valleys and tOOt: resources as owned by the total Okanaganand SImilkameen people, WIth local resources controlled by variouskinship and residential groups.

Incorporeal property, such as guardian spirits, songs anddances were owned by individuals in that they alone had the rights toperform a particular dance or song, However, there was also a socialor~~upas~to thisownership.Names were seen as the propertyoffamilies. Particular names were inherited or transmitted within kingroups. The possessor of a name could confer it on another forcompensation, but the name had to remain within a particular family.S~l songs and dances might also be transferred from a parent to achild. The social context of ownership should become clearer in thefollowing presentation of social Structure and ceremonies.

Kinship

An important aspect of Okanagan society was the extensivenetwork linking members ofvarious village groups. The network wasbased on tie;> of kinsJ.Up and marriage, or affinity, to use theanthropologicalterm. A child was mtroduced to a social world consisting of parentsand parents' kin-his father, mother, uncles and aunts to use theEng1ish,kinship terms. ~ child grew up playing with children of hisparents brothers and SIsters or, as we say in English, his cousins.

At the time of marriage, the individual acquired a new set ofrelatives, hisor her in-laws, who nonetheless were membersofa socialworld bounded by language and culture. In other words one marriedintoa family whose wayswere knownand who mayaIre;dy have beenone's parents' relatives through a common ancestor This was therea1i~ an? the securil},' of a small-scale society in ~hich all socialrelationships were defined in terms of interaction with relativesfriends and neighbours, all of whom were Okanagan. Thus, the socialworld of an Okanagan person was defined to a great extent by theboundaries of his or her kinship group, and one was enmeshed in aworld of people who spoke the same language and had the samevalues. The rules of kinship, described in more detail below ensuredthat one was never socially isolated. like other societies theO~developed theirown rules as to who was or was not cl~sekin. In otherwords~ there were ways ofdividing the social world into those whomone mtght marry and those whom one Inight not marry.

Okanagan Kinship Terms

. SomerelevantfeaturesofOkanagan kinship termscannowbedISCussed.

S1bUngtmn...... ....

Male Ego

S!bllngtmn..........

Female Ego(same terms as for Male ego, except as noted)

Okanagan kinship terms reflected some basic differences inconcept from those of the larger Canadian society. The terms used are~dicated in the following diagrams. To draw a genealogy, as thesedIagramsarecalled,a reference person, called EGO, is used. To use thediagrams, imagine thatyouare EGO, and the terms thenare whatyou,as E~O, would call ,:ario~s relatives. The relationships of variousrelatives to EGO are gIven m brackets, using English kinship terms.

Figure 3

Figure 4

Types of Social Units

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Okanagan Kinship Group

The basic social unit in Okanagan society was the extendedfamily, a unit fonned around related people who often lived in thesame dwelling. In a house one might have found two brothers andtheir wives and children; or an older couple with their marriedchildren;or"cousins" living with their families. Somefamilygroups werefonned around a man who had more than one wife. However, such apolygamous unit presupposed substantial wealth as only a rich mancould support such a group. The nuclear family, consisting of onehusband and wife with their children common in the largerCanadiansociety, existed in traditional Okanagan societybutwas submerged inthe widerextended family whichcarried outbasiceconomicandsocialactivities as a unit. The extended family was the primary unit ofproduction and consumption.

Beyond the extended family one had multiple connectionswithotherpeoplethroughone'sfatherand mother.Thecategoryofkintraced outthrough both parents (bilateral kinship) was called a kindred,and included parents, parents' siblings ("uncles" and "aunts"), theirchildren ("cousins")and possibly more distant relatives. The kindredprovided security and protection; in the neighbouring villages, onecould usually find someone belonging to one's kindred, "relatives".

In addition to the kindred, another category of kin existed.Descendants of a set of grandparents or great grandparents were felttohave a special relationship toeachother. The membersof this groupare saidto belong to the KaLof a particularancestor. Forexample, twopeoplewho were descendants ofQuinisco would consider themselveswith special obligations of mutual respect and support. Membershipin a KaLwas traced through both male and female lines. A Ka1 can bediagrammed in the following way (darkened symbols indicate membersof the KaLof A):Figure 2

L DiffereL.. terms were used by male and female speakers. Therefore, the sexof the speaker (or EGO) was importa':'t. Males and. f~ales defined socialre1ationsin different ways, as reflectedm the use of kinship terms. Notal1 theterms were different, though, just ones for very close kin.

2. Different terms were used for older and younger siblings (brothers andsisters),indicating thatage was important <Recal1 that the eldest son was mostlikely to inherit his fathers' position).

3. Sibling terms are extended to cover children of parents'..sib~ ~in otherwords, a person whom an English speaker would ca1! cou~m IS .cal1<:d"brother" or "sister" in Okanagan). This reflects the social baSIS of kinshipterms' in al1 societies parents' siblings' children are in the same kindred asEGO ~nd therefore";e cal\ed bya term which reflects common membershipina";";algroupand isbest translated as"personof mygenerationinmy socialgroup".

The Okanagan kinship system was based on a different principlefrom that of European society. Okanagan kinship terms reflected therelevant social units operative in Okanagan society, and itisnecessaryto keep this in mind, as kinship terms reflected social, not bi~logical,relationships. By calling father's brother's son by a term which wasalso applied to brother, membership in the same social group wasbeing identified. .

In order to find a suitable spouse it was essential that theyoungpersonand his family understand justwhodid notbelong to thekindred and therefore might be a possible husband or wife. In a smallscale society based on kinship such a task might not be as easy as in alarge, industrialized SOCiety full of strangers. .

In the past, marriages were arranged by the parents of the girland boy. This helped to ensure that marriages took place betweenfamilies of similar social standing. Marriage was the concern of thecommunity, and while individual initiative was important, the interestsof the collective group counted.

Co-parents-in-law (parents of the future bride and groom)initiated the proceedings with a series of small exchanges, some ofwhich pre-dated the actual marriage. Exchanges ~ht contiI.',:,e foryears after. These economic exchanges gave the marnage stabilItybyemphasizing that marriage was the concern of the group. As oneconcern was ensuring that the prospective bride and groom were nottoo closely related, ancestral connections were a topic of extendeddiscussions. As one person commented when asked about who couldmarry whom:

FIrSt and second cousins are skuit, just like your own brother andsister. You can't marry them. Perhaps you can marry a thirdco~~

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The connections in the Okanagan social world are revealed to theindividualas heorshegrows up,orgoes through whatiscalled thelifecycle.

Life Cycle

Thr~ughoutan individual's life, certain stages and changeswere recognized by the community as important and, in some casesspecial rituals or rites were performed to mark the passage betwee~~tages.Birth, puberty. marriage and death were all marked in some way~O~gancU!ture.Inaddition,specialeventssuchasaboyobtaininghis first deer Inlght call for a distribution of goods and food betweenclose relatives. All of these events were part of an individual's lifecy~le~~d.throughceremo~alrecognition theimportanceofparticulara~Vl.tiesInOkanagan SOCIety was recognized. Through rituals whichhig~hghted the passage of status, particularly from childhood, thesocia1 rules of Okanagan society were learned and reinforced.

Birth

The birth of a child was attended by a midwife. The motherthen kept the baby in seclusion for a few days after which the motherand child were welCOmed back into the community by the elders. Insome cases, a few relatives and close friends gave an informal feast.For the next few years, the baby was carried around in a cradle. Theinfant received a temporary name during the first year, then anancestral name was conferred, usually by a grandparent. The namehad to be purchased ifa person with it was still alive. The name couldcome from either the mother's or the father's side. Boys often receivednames of animals, and girls of plants. Wilson described childbirth inthe 18605:

After childbirth,.the women have to live apart for about thirty days,frequently washing .themselves, and, before joining the others, theyhad to wash all th",r clothes and undergo general purification. Asm,,? lodge is er~tee: about ten or twelve paces from the large orfamily one, and m this the woman lives during the period of herseclusion, ~h!ch is kept ,,:ith great strictness, notwithstanding theclose proXllrllty of her friends and relations. When the time ofchild.birth is fel,t to be app,:,,",ching, the woman goes out and plucksa spngof the wild rose, whichshe places uprightin the groundofthe~",!gea~ fixes her eyes upon it during the pangs of labour, which,It IS believed, are alleviated by this ceremony. The rattles of arattlesnake are also frequently used as a medicine to procure ease inthe same cases. <WIlson, 1865:294)

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Otildhood

During childhood, boys and girls gradually learned thedistinctions between male and female roles. Boys learned to hunt andfight; their first animal kill went to the elders for distribution, reinforcingthe power of the group over the individual. Girls learned the techniquesof gathering and storing. Education was largley informal, knowledgebeing passed on from the elders through oral history, explanation andcounselling. Folktales conveyed messages about the importance ofproperconduct towardsotherhumansand towards the natural world.Toys emulated the adult world; children played with miniature fishweirs, for example. Adults forced the children to take early morningswims in icy water and sweats in sweat huts to build their characterand prepare them for the change from childhood to adulthood, whichwas signalled by the guardian spirit quest.

Guardian Spirit Quest

Just prior to the onsetof puberty, boys went into the countrysideto obtain a guardian spirit, which would.come in a vision. This questsought the transfer of power from the natural to the social world, andif successful, a boy had a spirit helper for the rest of his life. Boysprepared for the quest by fasting, sweating and physical exercise. Forexample, a large rock, Standing Rock, west of Keremeos, was used astraining for the quest. Teit provided a description of its importance:

At a place called "Standing Rock" (or "where the stone sticks out") inSimilkameen Valley, youths undergoing their training congregatedto test themselves. A large, steep rock about seven meters high risesabruptly near the trail at this place. The young men try to run up tothe top along the sloping side and then slide down. A man called(Kwe1tesqet) ("red cloud" or "emptying cloud") is the only one nowliving who has accomplished this feat. (1930:284-285)

After the preparation, a boy went to an isolated area andsoughtfordays the vision ofa guardian spirit. Oneman, as a boy,doveto the bottom of a lake .every day for three days, without achieving a .vision. On the fourth day, a human figure appeared, announcing thatit wasa particularanimal, and from that day on the boy would be ableto draw on its power in times of need. This power, or sumix as it wascalled in the Okanagan language, had to be sought and obtained priorto or at puberty. After puberty, the search would prove fruitless. Notall who sought a guardian spirit found one, though, and even thosewho obtained one did not become fully aware of its power until laterin life. Thus, the quest for a guardian spirit came at an importantjuncture in the life of a male, at the transition from boyhood to--

80

manhood. Some portrayed their guardian spirits in pictographs.

Marriage

Marriage marked the next significant change in status. Asindicated earlier, parents may have arranged the future marriages oftheir children,and entered into the reciprocal exchanges.Tosymbolizethe upcoming marriage, parents of the boy may have given fish andmeat (symbolic ofmaleactivities) to the parentsofthe girl, who in turngave roots and berries, foods traditionally associated with femaleactivities.

After marriage, the couple usually lived in the village of thehusband and his kin, although the social network provided for otherresidential options. One of the earliest descriptions of marriage practicesamong the Okanagan is provided by Wilson who wrote:

Marriage is contracted by consent of the brides parents, to whompresentsaregivenbythebridegroom,whoreceives anequivalentgiftfrom theparents on his wedding-day. Alargemusterofre1ationsandfriends, who come to smoke and wish the young couple joy, seemsthe onlyceremony. Polygamydoes not exist among the "Selish",andthe wives, when not in the neigh- borhood ofa white settlement, arefaithful to their husbands and affectionate mothers. Many of theIndians are now regularly married by the priests according to theRoman Catholic rite. (1865: 296)

Wilson's 1865 accountpoints to the importance ofexchangeofgoods between the parents of the bride and groom. In other words, anexchange relationship is created between a set of co-parent&-in-law,emphasizing the collective interests of members of the 1argercommunityin the marriages of its members.It was during adulthood that the power of a man's guardian spirit~an to reveal itself, requiring the man to "dance out the power" at aWInter ceremony, (See the description in the following section). Itcould be argued that social maturation, as reflected in adulthood andmarriage,was paralleled by spiritual maturation. A guardian spiritwas acquired at the onset of adulthood, but only used when one waswell into adulthood. Thus marriage and participation in winterceremonies marked the complete transition from childhood to adulthood.

Death

Death brought an obvious end to a person's direct participationinOkanagan society,butnamesborne by the deceased remained in thekindred orextended family and were transferred to descendants. Thisdeliberate re-use of names reinforced a world view in which the past

81

was merged with the present in a common sphere.The deceased wereburied in talusslopes (rock pilesat the foot

of slides). Special objects, such as copper pendants or dentalia, wereincluded in the grave.

Changes in Okanagan Society

After Euro-Canadian penetration of the Okanagan, much ofthe responsibility for services shifted to non-o~aninsti~tio~,and itbecame difficult to retain many cultural practices. The reSIdentialschools played an important part in undennining the teachilll? oftraditional culture. Children began to spend most of the year In aresidential school at some distance from their home village. Childrenwent to one ofseveral residential schools in the interior. Most went tothe I<am1oops Indian Residential School, others to St. Eugene, at FortSteele north of Cranbrook, and a few - especially those in the Simi1kameen_atte~ed one in Omak, Washington. Forbidden to speak their ownlanguages, the children became isolated from the teachings of theirparents and elders. Older Okanagan people retain the memory ofresidential school life: cooking, washing clothes, splitting firewood ,growing crops and being instructed in a foreign language (English).Perhaps with the best intentions, the residential schools operated onthe premise that the Indianneeded to be sep<!Iated from hisorher ownIndian traditions,and that physical separationfor mostof the yearandcurtailment of speaking one's own language were necessary.

Male-Female Relations

Children were born into well-defined male female roles and,by the onset of puberty, had a reasonable notion of their place i~ theactivities of Okanagan society. While the kinship system emphasizedthe importance of tracing relatives through both the father's and themother's side, a tendency to stress male relationsexisted. This 'patrilateralbias' is reflected in residence patterns, the newly-married coupleusually going to live in the village of the husband. In the politicalsphere chiefs were usually males. Women, however, did controlstored food and this custom gave bargaining power. The relationshipbetween males and females in Okanagan society was expressed assimilar to two fir trees growing up beside each other: one, a male tree,was tall, with few limbs; the other, a female, was low, with heavylimbs.

Okanagan Society: The Ceremonial Framework

The relationship between the rights of the individuaLand

82

those of the collective group, ran as a constant theme through OkanaganSociety. This was perhaps best expressed in Okanagan concepts ofspiritual power, sumix, and in the ceremonies in which power wasused. Through the guardian spirit quest, an individual acquiredspiritual power, but the community, under the direction of a ritualspecialist, guided the individual to use the power for the benefitof thecommunity.

While spiritual power was a dominant aspect of many Okanaganceremonies, other, more secular concerns had their place. Under thegeneral category of ceremonies, the following types of activities havebeen identified:

1. Renewal ceremonies, emphasizing the continuation of importanteconomic resources. These include First Salmon and First RootCeremonies.

2.Secular, redistributive ceremonies, in which goods are distributedto members of a community. This includes distributions at namingceremonies and more elaborate distributions called potlatches werealso held.

3. Power or spiritual ceremonies, in which spiritual power wasdanced out, or used in some way. The most important of these wasthe Winter Dance, in which people danced out the power of theirguardianspirits.AnotheruseofpowerwasindicatedintheMedicineDance, or ritual used by medicine men or Indian doctors to cure theill.

As renewal ceremonies have already been discussed (see thesectionon resource use), the following material will emphasize potJatchingand power ceremonies.

The ceremonial redistribution of collected goods and food tocommemoratea special social event, suchas the inheritanceofa familyname, has usuallybeencalled a potlatch. The term potlatch comes froma trade language, Chinook jargon, and means "to give". While morecommonlyassociated with Indian groups in the Northwest Coast, theterm itself and ceremonies which have a redistributive function have

j been reported for the Okanagan and other Interior Salish groups.'0 However, it should be kept in mind that potlatch is a generic term,'covering a wide range ofceremonies which aresuperficially similar in; that they have redistributive function. Also, most ceremonies among) the InteriorSaiish involved someredistributionofgoodsand food, but>labelling all such ceremonies as potlatches reduces the utility of the0;, term. Carried out mainly among the Similkameen, Okanagan andnorthern Okanagan, potlatches involved a gathering of a substantial,amount of goods and food, the invitation by the host community of a

number of neighooring villages, the distribution of goods, food andhorses and the enjoyment of a variety of social activities.

One Sirnilkameen Okanagan indicated that this type of event,which he called a cultus potlatch, was introduce by the ThompsonIndians,butisnowonIyamemory.FewaccountsofspecificOkanaganpotlatches exist, partly because it appears to have been a borrowedtenn and also because redistributive activities were part of moreformal Okanagan events, such as the Winter Dance.

Perhapspotlatch isa tennbestreservedfor the formalexchangeceremonies on the Northwest Coast, while recognizing that the Okanaganredistributed goods and food ata number of social occasions, none ofwhich areactually called potlatches. It also appears that those Okanaganwho recalled potlatching saw it as somethingperipheral to traditionalOkanagan culture, but part of the culture of the Thompson andShuswap Indians. Teit wrote that the Okanagan had hardly anypotlatches, or wau'em,ashecalled them,and these were introduced bythe Thompson. (1930:277)

Power Ceremonies

The most important Okanagan ceremony, and the one inwhich spiritual power was a key element, was the Winter Dance,held,as the name suggests, when the people were gathered in their wintervillages.

Through the guardian spirit quest at the time of puberty,power was acquired. As an adult, one learned that the power must bedanced out, primarily in the winter. In otherwords, the potentialspiritpower acquired at puberty was actualized by an adult at a winterdance.Participationin the dances represented notonlya declarationofpower by the individual, but also an affirmation of the need forcollective action, because goods were distributed by the dancer to theobservers.Tobepoorwas to lackspiritualpower. One'ssocial positionreflected one's spiritual power and vice versa.

To perfonn at a winterdance required several steps. A neophytehad a power dream in which the guardian spirit sought a dance. Thepotential dancer then must seek the service of a ritual expert (shamanor medicine man) who would act as the master of ceremonies. Acentral post was erected in the dance lodge and, in some cases, thelodge was ceremonially swept to pUrify it. The neophyte then dancedbefore the assembled group,giving away material items at the conclusionof his perfonnance. Other people then got up to dance their power.

According to the Okanagan view of the world, the power orsumix which one acquired through the guardian spirit quest requireddancing, or else the possessor would die. Power itself was not equallydistributed among the population. Only the males obtained guardian

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spirit power, and that power had two levels: first, power which couldbe used to protect oneself and second, power which could be used tohelp, or hurt others. Not everyone had this second kind of power, butthere were those whopossessedpower to hann. Sickness, for example,might be attributed to natural causes or to the direct actions of amalevolent shaman. The distinctions between the two main types ofspiritual powerwere reflected in the Okanagan terms cucin and sumix.Cucin, which translates as "voice" or "whisper", meant that a voicecame to a person during the guardian spirit quest, giving that persona supernatural heIper or guardian spirit. However that person had noreal sumix or power, just a guardian spirit heIper. Sumix, or "realpower"camewhena personwasolder, usuallywhenone's hair turnedwhite.

ThefollowingaccountgivenbyanOkanaganwoman indicatesthe power of dreams and singing:

One day, my husband's aunt died. Lots of people went to pay theirrespects. My husband went over in March. On the way, he camped.While sleeping by the fire, he could see a black figure in a fog goingsouth (death goes south). My husband tried to stop it, but missedwhen someone (his uncle) kicked his leg and woke him. Thensomeone cameup - it was my husband's friend. Eightdays after, thefriend died. Ifmyhusband had notbeen woken, hecould havesavedhis friend in the dream. Thafs whyIndians let peoplesing uninterrupted.If you wake the person, the singer could die. If drunk, one losespower - it movesawayfrom you. Ifyou then go toa medicinedance,then others can move between you and your power and kill you.

Different animals conferred different kinds of power. Mostpower came from the grizzly bear, cougar, blue jay, rattlesnake andeagle - all of which gave the possessor the power to cure. Bluejayalsogave the power to find drowned or lost people

Medicine Dance

The Medicine Dance was given by a medicine man(shaman,lndian doctor). Medicine men had powers beyond that ofthose who had only acquired a guardian spirit. The power could beused to affectothers, positively and negatively. As one person commented:

When you'rean Indiandoctor, your power has no friends. Ifyou getmad, your powercankill. Ifyou take careofpoweryou'll havea longlife. If not, someone with better power will get you.

Suppreb.ion of Spirit Power

ThecontinuationofWinter Dances, guardian spiritquestsandother activities associated with spirit power was anathema to themissionaries who moved into the Okanagan Valley. Adherents ofspirit power were at one time forbidden to attend church and winterceremonies were condemned. Given the Okanagan belief that powerhad tobe danced oul, the result ofbanning spiritdances was predictable.Without the traditional form of releasing power, people were felt tohave died because of pent-up pressures. Few guardian spirit questshavebeencarriedoutduringrecentdecades,althoughthebeliefisstillheld that the power exists as a force beyond human control. Theguardianspiritquestwasaculturally recognized meansoftransferringpower from the natural and supernatural worlds to the human world,where it became, in a way, social. In the old Indian world a balancebetween spirit power possessed by humans and the untapped powerin the natural and supernatural worlds existed. For the Indian thatbalance has been broken by the suppression of spirit dances. Thus, anoverabundance of power exists outside of human control. In recentyears there has been a resurgence of winter dances, butan analysis ofthat activity is beyond the scope of this paper.

Summary

The continued operation of traditional Okanagan society andculture required a successful and efficient technology and flexible andefficientsocialsystemwhichenabled people to gatheringreatnumbersat appropriate times, yet facilitated the movement of people betweendifferent areas and villages. Traditional Okanagan society was heldtogether in a variety of ways. Through a multitude of social ties,primarily based on kinship, most people in the Simi1kameen andOkanagan Valleys were linked. Special relationships could be activatedfor particular purposes. Collaborative activities, such as deer huntingor sa1mon fishing, facilitated intergroup exchanges. Participation inceremonies such as the winter dance which involved large groups ofpeople, provided a strongbasisfor collective identityand regional ties.

TheOkanagans did notoperate their society in a vacuum. Theentry of Europeans, Americans and Canadians into the region createdtremendous changes. The fortunes of Okanagan people soon becameinextricably meshed with those of the people who came to farm,colonize and govern.

Until the 18605, the Okanagan region represented to thewhitemana meansofgettingsomewhereelse, a passageway to distantgoldfields or a route for shipping furs and trade goods to distantmarkets. Many individualswho passed through the regionleftw.ritten

86

accounts of their observations and activities: Alexander Ross in theSimilkameen in 1813; American prospectors in mid-<entury (See Akriggand Akrigg, 1977: 123-27, for an account of massacre of OkanaganIndiansby a party ofminers); lieutenantH.S. Palmer in the Similkameenin 1859. A gold rush at Rock Creek, east of the Okanagan Valley, in1859-1862 attracted more people, most of whom were stopping onlybriefly. However, some stayed.

An Oblate priest, Father Pandosy, founded a Mission in 1859near present-day Kelowna. The Hudson's Bay Companyestablished atrading post at Keremeos which operated from 1860 until 1872.

The 1860s brought prospectors, ranchers and a governmentpresence. A custom's post was established at Osoyoos in 1861; atrading post and store were opened at Penticton in 1866; land was preempted by ranchersand settlers. The pressuregrewonthegovemmentto restrict the movements and land holdings of the Indians in theregion. What had been Indian territory became parcels of land ownedby Euro-Canadiansexcept for those sections surveyed and designatedas Indian reserves, a process which took years to complete because ofconflicts between the Government of British Columbia and that ofCanada. (Cail1974;Fisher1977) Manyof the keyelements ofOkanaganculture were changed by 1900. The suppression of winter dances andthe guardian spirit quest removed the religious focal point for groupsolidarity. Church assemblies, horse races and baseball games becameimportant gathering places. The rodeo emerged as another importantevent for the Okanagan people. Residential school further eroded the

',! traditional culture by removing children from their parents andgrandparents. The construction of massive hydro-electric projects

", along the Columbia River system flooded important fishing places, or%' decreased the numberofsalmon running up the streams. In spite ofall!' these factors, the Okanagan Indians exist, probably in as great a., number as at any time in their history.,I;

"

'Akrigg, G. H.,,~ British Columbia Otronicle. 1847-1871. Discovery, Vancouver 1977\A1Ilson,S.

A Pioneer Gentlewoman in British Columbia: The RecoUections ofSusan Allison£Edited by M. Onnsby. University of British Columbia. Vancouver 1976

Bou,F.. TheShuswap. British AssOciation for the Advancement,", of Science, 60:632-647. 1890

ouchard. R. D. Kennedy" SIJvswop Stories. British Columbia Indian Language Projecl Victoria, British

Columbia, Government of 1913-1915

87

WANETA EXPANSION PROJECT

ABORIGINAL INTEREST & USE STUDY (AIUS)

May 2006

Prepared for Columbia Power Corporation

Prepared by Okanagan Nation Alliance

OKANAGANNATIONALLIANCE

May 2006 DRAFT Waneta Dam Aboriginal Interest & Use Study

WITHOUT PREJUDICE

The participation of the Okanagan Nation Alliance in this project is without prejudice to theaboriginal rights of the Okanagan Nation or the aboriginal rights of any Okanagan Band or anymembers thereof.

The information contained in this report is the property of the Okanagan Nation. Furthermore, thisinformation in this report is not representative of the entire knowledge of this location or area. TheOkanagan words that appear in bold in this document are spelled phonetically as the Okanaganpracticed an Oral tradition and did not have an alphabet.



Table of Contents

1.0 Introduction2.0 Okanagan Aboriginal Interest & Use Study3.0 Project Area Description4.0 Historic Record5.0 Ethnographic Record6.0 Field Reconnaissance7.0 Site Visit8.0 Recommendations

Appendix A - List of participantsAppendix B - List of participants



Okanagan Nation Aboriginal Interest and Use Study

The collective territory of the Okanagan Nation is far reaching and extends over approximately69,000 square kilometres. The northern area of this territory is close to the area of Mica Creek, justnorth of modern day Revelstoke BC, and the eastern boundary is near Kootenay Lake. Thesouthern boundary extends to the vicinity of Wilbur Washington and the western border reachesinto the Nicola Valley. Please refer to Appendice 1 for a map of Okanagan territory.

The central administrative body of the Nation is the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA). It isgoverned under the jurisdiction of the Chiefs Executive Council, comprised of all elected memberBand Chiefs. The Chiefs Executive Council has the responsibility of representing the interests andconcerns of the Nation on the traditional territory. The ONA has a policy of requiring earlyinvolvement in studies and reports pertinent to the interests of the Nation.

The ONA places a high regard on the protection of traditional resource information withinOkanagan territory. As the keepers of this territory, sustainable resource management based onOkanagan oral tradition is practiced and promoted. Therefore, when outside industry plans toextract resources or alter the landscape we feel that we are in the best position to be involved and tointegrate our traditional knowledge and special relationship to the land and resources.

The primary purpose of this study is the protection and preservation of the natural resources,ecology, culture and history of the Okanagan Nation. Furthermore, the information collected willserve as resource information for present and future generations.

The goal of the Waneta Aboriginal Interest and Use Study (AIUS) is to identify and record as muchinformation as possible of Okanagan activities and interest in the defined study area.

This AIUS integrates oral history along with historical and archaeological record into understandingthe traditional and contemporary use of land and resources in Okanagan territory. This process isextremely important because it allows us to record and archive our own information. At the requestof the Elders, the information in this report does not provide the full details in regards to Okanagantraditional knowledge. This information is culturally sensitive and kept confidential and archived atthe office of the ONA.

A Traditional Use Site is a specific geographically defmed location on land or water used traditionallyfor some type of activity. These sites may lack the physical evidence of human-made artifacts orstructures; yet maintain cultural significance to a living community of people since many traditionaluse sites are living landscapes. These locations hold significance to the Okanagan Nation andpossibly relate to on-going ceremonial and sustenance activities or they may mark areas of previousoccupancy or land-use activities.

Objectives & Scope oEWork

The prime objective of the AIUS is the protection and preservation of the heritage value resourcesof the Nation. The work involved the following components:

• A review of historical information for the area• Interviews with Elders and knowledgeable community members




• Site Visit with Elders to become familiar with the site area and scope of the Waneta DamExpansion

• Archaeological Predictive Model

Project Area Description

The Waneta Hydroelectric Expansion Project is adjacent to Waneta Dam on the lower Pendd'Oreille River just upstream of it's confluence with the Columbia River. Waneta is 14ktn south ofthe city of Trail and is adjacent to the Canadian-United States border.

The Pend d'Oreille River flows from Pend d'Oreille Lake, Idaho into Washington and then north tothe Boundary Dam. The River makes a 24ktn south-west loop through BC then joins the ColumbiaRiver near the US border. The Pend d'Oreille Valley is located in the Southern Columbia MountainsEcosystem.'

The study area is fairly large primarily due to the construction of a 10 ktn long transmission lineadjacent to an existing line from Waneta to the Selkirk Substation. The largest impacts, however, willbe on a small area near the confluence of the Pend d'Oreille and Columbia Rivers adjacent to theexisting Waneta Dam. This area has already been significandy impacted by the construction andmaintenance of the Waneta Dam, the Highway as well as the train track and bridge. Much of thishistoric development in the study area was driven by mining and the generation of power for bothmining activities and for sale.

The study area lies within the Interior Cedar-Hemlock (ICH) Biogeoclimatic zone. The majority ofthe study area lies within the Very Dry Warm sub-zone. This subzone occupies a small area west ofthe Columbia River, north to Columbia Gardens and along a good section of the north side of thePend d' Oreille River. The ICH zone is considered to be the most projective forests of BritishColumbia's Interior and contains more species than any other ecological zone in the Province(Ministry of Forests). As this is the dries of the ICH zone fire occurs naturally and frequendy thuscreating a natural mosaic of older and younger trees (ibid). Due to deep snowfall in winter this zoneis not likely an area for animals to winter over and most ungulates spend spring until fall in this zoneand migrate to the Interior Douglas Fir (IDF) zone during the winter where there is less snow (ibid).

Historic Record

Although Fort Shepherd is located outside of the study area its location is in close enough proximityto be of value to this study.

During the time of the Oregon Treaty (1846) which officially declared the 49"' parallel to be theboundary between Canada and the United States. The Oregon Treaty gready influenced local historyin the southern interior of Be. Because of the newly created border the Hudson's Bay Companyneeded to establish Canadian forts in order to avoid paying customs and duties on all goods passing

1 Marlene Machmer and Christoph Steeger. Terrestrial Environmental Impact Assessment for the Waneta ExpansionProject. September 2004. p.9.

~~



north or south. Fort Shepherd (originally named Fort Pend d'Oreille) was established on the westside of the Columbia River opposite the mouth of the Pend d'Oreille River. Fort Shepherd wasdetermined to be three quarters of a mile north of the 49'" parallel (RBCM).

The Pend d'Oreille River appears to have been an advantageous route for early historic travelers andexplorers, however, the information obtained seems to post date the opening of Fort Shepherd in1856. Palliser explored up the Pend d'Oreille River searching for a route to the Selkirks and thisroute was thereafter used by the Hudson's Bay Company from then on (RBCM). This may have alsobeen the route followed by Haynes in 1864. In 1865 Edgar Dewdney extended the route from RockCreek to Wild Horse Canyon using a route along the Pend d'Oreille River (ibid). For a portion of itsshort existence (1856-1872 when it burned down) Fort Shepherd was head of its own district whichincluded Similkameen (ibid). Fort Shepherd was closed in 1870, the buildings emptied and left in thecare of the local Indian Chief (ibid). A name has not yet been located for this Indian Chief. As such,it seems that the Fort Shepherd area has explicit historic ties with the Okanagan and Similkameen. Itwas also noted during the interviews that a number of Similkameen packers for the Hudson's BayCompany traveled between Fort Hope and Fort Shepherd on a regular basis. More research into theactivities of the First Nation traders and the Hudson's Bay Company posts needs to be researched.

Ethnographic Information

The Okanagan People have occupied their traditional territory and have made reference to theiroccupation of the land and its resources since time immemorial. This territory covers an area whichextends over approximately 69 000 square kilometres. The northern area of this territory is close tothe area of Mica Creek, just north of modern day Revelstoke, BC, and the eastern boundary isKootenay Lake. The southern boundary extends to the vicinity of Wilbur, Washington and thewestern border extends into the Nicola Valley.

Okanagan people utilized a wide variety of plants and animal species for their livelihood. TheOkanagan People's sustenance was dependent on the vegetation and animals as a resource for food,medicine, and materials. Plant foods provided the majority of dietary needs and land animals and fishcompleted the balance.' The gathering of this food followed a seasonal food quest. In Mayor earlyJune, early salmon runs would begin to appear, root digging would take place in the late spring andearly summer, berries and seeds would be gathered throughout the summer and early fall and uplandhunting would take place in the fall.'

Not only do Okanagan people use a wide variety of plants and animals but these resources weretraditionally managed without destruction and depletion through the use of traditional knowledge.This traditional knowledge was handed down through generations by oral tradition. These storiesemphasize the laws that govern the Okanagan people and are a record of what it means to beOkanagan. The value of combining Okanagan traditional knowledge with western science is ofincreasing significance in the management of environmental systems today.

The following is a list of the some of the natural vegetation, animal resources and land uses that willbe impacted and affected by the Waneta Dam project:

'Ernst, A. Pingston Creek Aboriginal Interests Study (Westbank: Okanagan Nation Alliance, 1998),33.3 Grabert, Garland F. "Okanagan archaeology: 1966-67," Syesis 7 (1974): 8.

~).

~


e lei nmecakW

s eetlum

x"asx"'as

nt'it'nul' s

x"'asx"'as

Tamerack to 5 st'ikwl' w

Ground 'wU

Basalm bark

Chocolate ti 5. ,

atw

Black mossFall Hazelnut

, 'xwa?

Chokecherries

Snowberries

Chocolate lilies

Thimbleberries

Devil's dub

Huckleberries st'xat

Spring

Summer


May 2006

Weasels

Moose

Pheasant

DucksWild turke

Lake trout

Kokanee

Stur eon

White fish

Lin cod

Suckers

Eels

Fresh water clams

S uaw fish

Chum salmon

Socke e

Steelhead

S rin salmon

Rainbow trout

Field Reconnaissance

DRAFT Waneta Dam Aboriginal Interest & Use Study

Field Reconnaissance was undertaken on Tuesday, December 6th, 2005 following a meeting with

Columbia Power Corporation representative, Bill Freeman, and Terrestrial Plant and Fisheriesconsultants.

The entire study area was blanketed in snow and it was a crisp sunny December day. Temperatureswere well below freezing. Due to the snow cover there was no reconnaissance of the proposedpower line location. In any event the group drove to the Selkirk Substation located above the SevenMile Dam. The substation is located next to private land in a wide and gende upland valley. Thearea surrounding the substation and private land was heavily forested. No other vegetation wasobserved due to snow cover.


, .


In the previous archaeological study only two well-developed terrace landforms near thepowerhouse end of the transmission line corridor were considered to have any potential forcontaining archaeological evidence of past aboriginal land-use. Stops were made along the roadwhere the power line crosses one of the large terrace landforms (identified as Terrace #2 in the AIAconducted by Simonsen) (Simonsen 2004). An additional stop was made just above the existingDam Site (identified as Terrace #1 in the AIA)(ibid). It was obvious that the negative results of theprevious AIA may have been as a result of the historic impacts to the landscape, especially the smallterrace located just above the darn.

None of the 7 ancillary areas (spoil areas) were reviewed during the field reconnaissance.

Site Visit

Okanagan Nation Elders made a site visit trip on December 5-6, 2005. The group was met by BillFreeman, Marlene and Dana. This group provided a brief overview of the Waneta Expansionproject and later a guided tour of the area. Unfortunately, due to the time of year there was snowcover and not much could be seen by the Elders. However, at the suggestion of Bill, the Eldersshould make a spring trip to see the new plant life and area.

Recommendations

Upon completion of this A.I.U.S. the ONA will recommend the following:

I. A further recommendation based on the results of the elder interviews and various meetingsheld is to host a camp in the area during the late spring, early summer season for the purposeof verifying and collecting traditional use plants as well as undertaking a field reconnaissanceof areas identified as a result of the predictive modeling exercise.

II. epe to support the ONA in conducting a monitoring program as the site is being restored


May2006

Project Team:

DRAFT Waneta Dam AboriginalInterest & Use Study

Elders:

Adrienne Vedan, Project CoordinatorBrenda Gould, ArchaeologistNancy Allison, InterviewerMike Allison, Field Assistant

Mary LouieEd LouieTony QualtierPierre KrugerJack KrugerAndrew McGinnisLeon LouisBarbara AllisonHenry AllisonJane StelkiaCoyote HallJeanetre ArmstrongRichard ArmstrongMichael Allison

InterviewInterviewSite VisitInterviewInterviewInterview, Site VisitInterview, Site VisitInterview, Site VisitInterview, Site VisitInterviewInterviewInterviewInterviewInterview


BGhiJdro m'FOR GENERATIONS

4,05PM B~DRO ABORIGINAL RELATIONS No, 1982 p, 1

[ffi~©@:DW~©

JUN 17 2009Keith VorlimdBO Hydro Aboriginal Relations & Negotiations6911 Soulhpolnt DriveBurnaby, BC V3N 4XS

June 17,2009

'Pauline TerbaskelExecutive DirectorOkanagan Nation Alliance32550 Shannon Lake Road.Weslbank, BC. V4T 1V4

• and·

ChIef Dennis, Lower Simlkameen·First NallonChiefAlexis. Okanagan Indian Plrst NationChief Louie, Osoyoos Indian First NationChief Kruger, pentlcton Indian Firlit NationChief Manuel, Upper Nicola First NationChief Holmes, Upper Simikameen First NationChIef Louie, Westbank First NatIon

Dear Ms. Terbasket and Chiefs

OKANAGAN NATION AlliANCE

Re: Waneta.Dam

British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority ("BO Hydroj Wishes 10 purchase from TeckMelals limited ("Teck") a1/S undivided inlereat in Teck'a Waneta Dam on the Pendc1'Orellle River In south eastern British Columbia. BO Hydro and reck Intend Ihat thecapacIty and energy available from the Waneta Dam would be allocated between themon a1:2 basle and that operation of the facility would contillue to be undertakenpursuant to Instructions pr,ovlded by BO Hydro to an operating company (currently,Fortis, Inc.) In the same manner that It Is currently operated. BO Hydro has todayentered Into II non-bIndIng Term Sheet with Teck which sets oUlthe proposed details ofthe contemplated transaction. We will be providing you, by courier, with a copy of theTerm Sheet. We,wllI be providing you, by courier, with a copy ofthe Term Sheet along

L

'IlYancouvar %010Q5{9

BGhUdrOmFQA G~N!"ATIONS

OFFOCIALsUPPORlEII

llrltl'h ColumbIa Hydro & Power AuthorItY. 6~1l SOUlhpoilll DrIVe (816). Bum!lby. Be V3N 4X8

BChudro mFOR GENERATIONS

4:05PM B~DRO ABORIGINAL RELATIONS..~

No, 1982 p, 2

with a Confidentiality Agreement, whlcl1 we would apprecIate If you could sign and returnto us.

We weloome any comments you wIsh to provide to us WIth respeot to this potential .transaction. We can also advIse you tha! we will be filing an expenditure schedule withthe British Columbia Utilities Commission ("BCUC") In connElctlon with thEl transaotlon.The BCUe will then have an opportunIty to determine if thesa expenditures are In thepUblic interest. We anticipate you also will be able to bring forward any Issues, concernsor oomments YOU may have with respect to the transaotion before that Independentregulatory t~ibunal. '

The Waneta Dam has been owned by Teck (or its predecessors) since the early 1950'sand has been operated by Fortis, Ina. (or Its predecessors) under the directIon of BeHydro since 1912. If eC Hydro aoes decide to purchase a 1/3 inferest in thE! WanetaDam, the manner In Whlah the dam Is operated, Including the patterns' ofwater I"Elleasedthrough It, wfll remain.unchanged. It Is, therefore, our expectation that the purchase of a1/3 Interest In the faollity by BO Hydro will be neutral from a practioal poInt of vIew andwfll have f)o !ldverse effeat on any Interests ofWhiah we are aware.

It is our 'ntentlon thElt a definitIVe agreement wfll be entered Into by August 2009 and thatIf the transaotlon proceeds, It will be comp'eted before the end of 2009. Any definitiveagreemant would be subject to the acuc approving the expenditure associated wlth.lhetransaollon on the besis that It would be in the public -Interest. If you have any·commentsor conoerns that you believe should be taken Into E1aaount in connection with thistransaction prior to the definitive agreement being executed, please direct thosecomments to Ms. Roxanne Scott at 604·296·2820. '

zrtW·Kelth VcrlandSenior Manager, Consultation and NegotiationsAborIGinal RelatIons and Negollatlons

,Bilhydro mFOR CilItNERATIONS

OFfICIAL. 5UPI'ORTER

llriii.h ColumblnHydro /I(, PoWer AutbodlY. 6911 SoUtllpointDrivo (E16), BUrnaby, BC V3N 4X8

OI<ANAGAN NATION ALLIANCE3255 C Shannon Lake Road, Westbank, BC V4T 1V4

Phone 250-707-0095 Toll Free 1-866-662-9609 Fax 250-707-0166 www.syilx.org

July 20, 2009

Via Fax: (604) 528-8390

Consultation and NegotiationAboriginal Relations and NegotiationsBC Hydro & Power Authority6911 Southpoint Drive (E16)Burnaby BC V3N 4X8

Attention:

Dear Sirs:

Keith Vorland, Senior Manager

RE: Waneta Dam

We write in response to your letter of June 17, 2009 notifying us of BC Hydro's intention to purchase a1/3rd interest in the Waneta Dam from Teck Metals Limited and your June 18th letter which enclosed theMaster Term Sheet for the proposed sale.

As para. 10 of the Term Sheet acknowledges, the proposed purchase triggers the duty to consult andaccommodate with affected First Nations. Given the existing and ongoing impact of the Waneta Dam onOkanagan Title and Rights we expect that BC Hydro, on behalf of the Province, will commit to a processof 'deep consultation' with the Okanagan Nation on this matter and that to facilitate meaningfulconsultation sufficient capacity funding will be made available.

We look fOlward to meeting with you on these important matters at an early date to discuss the capacityfunding and the framework for these meaningful consultation and accommodation processes. Given thesummer vacation schedules, the earliest dates we are currently available are August 11th to the 14th

, 2009.You can contact me directly at our office at (250) 707-0095 or on my cell at (250) 878-6242.

Sincerely,

OKANAGAN NATION ALLIANCE

cc. ONA Chiefs Executive Council

I

BChydro mFOR GENERATlm~S

2 September 2009

Pauline TerbasketExecutive DirectorOkanagan Nation Alliance3255C Shannon Lake RoadWestbank, BC V4T 1V4

Dear Ms. Terbasket:

Re: First Nations Comments on the Waneta Dam Transaction

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We write further to our letters to you dated June 171h, 2009, June 18th

, 2009 and July171h

, 2009, in which we advised you that British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority(BC Hydro) wishes to purchase from Teck Metals Limited ("Teck") a 1/3 undividedinterest in Teck's Waneta Dam on the Pend d'Oreilie River in south eastern BritishColumbia.

In those letters (and the documents they enclosed), BC Hydro provided you with detailsof the Waneta Dam purchase and requested that you provide us with any comments orconcerns you may have in connection with the proposed transaction. We write to informyou that BC Hydro is currentiy planning to make a decision regarding the whether or notto proceed with the Definitive Agreement with Teck on August 22, 2009. If you wish toprovide any further input or information t.hat you wish BC Hydro to consider regardingany potential adverse effects, including any physical or non-physical impacts, arisingfrom the proposed transaction, please provide it by September 15, 2009. Suchinformation may include past or current use-specific to aboriginal rights, relevantecological knowledge from use of the Waneta Dam area or adjacent areas, details onwhether and how the proposed transaction potentially Impacts the uses identified aboveand proposed measures that could be used to avoid or reduce potential impacts to theabove-identified uses,

Again, if you wish to make further input, we would appreciate receiving this informationby September 15, 2009. Any input submitted by this date will be considered by BCHydro in further defining the details of the transaction and in determining whether toenter into a Definitive Agreement with Teck, as contemplated by the Term Sheet (whichwas provided to you on June 18, 2009), This information will also assist BC Hydro indetermining whether entering into the agreement with Teck is consistent with the honourof the Crown and ultimately in determining whether to proceed with the asset purchase.

British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority6911 Southpolnt DrIve, Burnaby, Be V3N 4XBbchydro.com

-.,vancouver 2010

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vancouver 20101rM.~~~

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BChydro mOFFICIAL SUPPORTER

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If you have any questions regarding the proposed Waneta Dam purchase, pleasecontact Roxanne Scott at 604-296-2820.

Sincerely,

Keith VorlandSenior Manager, Consultation and NegotiationsAboriginal 'Relations and Negotiations



September 9, 2009

BC Hydro Aboriginal Relations & Negotiations6911 Southpoint DriveBurnaby, B.C. V3N 4X8 FAX: (604) 528-2822

Attention: Mr. Keith VorlandSenior Manager, Consultation & NegotiationsAboriginal Relations & Negotiations

Dear Mr. Vorland:

Re: Waneta Dam Transaction

We have your letter of August 19, 2009 enclosing a cheque for $20,000 regarding the Wanetatransaction. As we made clear at our meeting on August 10, 2009, the ONA has determined thatOkanagan Title and Rights will be adversely affected by the proposed Waneta transaction. As BCHydro is well aware, the existing and ongoing adverse effects of the continued operation of the WanetaDam include the flooding of Okanagan territory and the downstream effects on fish, wildlife andhabitat due to the regulation of water flows on the Pend d'Oreille River.

We accept the capacity funding from BC Hydro to cover our start up costs for reviewing the proposedtransaction and begin discussions with BC Hydro regarding the scope of required consultation andaccommodation. We look f01ward to meeting with BC Hydro again at an early date to initiate ameaningful process of consultation including the identification of required capacity funding. Pleasecontact me to schedule our next meeting.

Yours truly,


Pauline TerbasketExecutive Director

Attach.

OKANAGAN NATION ALLIANCE3255 C Shannon Lake Road, Wetllbank, Be V4T IV4

Phone 250-707-0095 'Ibll Pree 1·866·662-9609 Fox 25l1-7lJ7-0166 www.syilx.org

(

I

I

I!

British Coluulbja Hydro and Power AUthOl-ity18th Floor - 333 Dun_uk StreetVancouvcJ:, Be V6B 4R3

Attention: Bob Elton, P1esident and CEO

Dear Sits/Mesda1nes:

FAX: (604) 528-2822

OnJU11e 17th 2009 you siglled a Te1m Sheet on behalf'ofBe Hydro with 1'cck ResOU1"CeB Limited andTech 1I4etal. Ltd, (collectively "Tech") which describes the key terlI1S and conditions for a pote11tiallW.'llngemeilt whereby Be HydJ:o would obtain by purchase an ulldivided 1/3 interest in the WanetaDaln which generates power to lneet the industrial load requkemellts ofTeck's smelter located at Trail.British Columbia lUul for sale to th e United States (the "proposed ttansacti011.'~.

We are pleased to read in the Master Term Agreemcut th.t BCH acknowledged and igi..ed that it doe.not conte1uplate entering into definitive agL..ernents to complete dris proposed purchase unill BeHydro has been satisfied thst "to do so would be consistent with llliliutau1ing the honour of theCrown." We are also pleased to read that there is a COmmitlUeilt by Be Hydl'O and Tech that they will"negotiate in good faith with each other to appropriately adcll...s issues in the definitive agreements thatmay arise through such consultAtion or accommodation processes."

We are writing to confirm our willingness to engage in good faith with BC Hydto in • cOOliultntion andacco=odation process tegatding the prOPOlled tl'Qnsaction. WIrlIe we have taken steps to protect ourlegal interests And intel"Vene in your application befo,:e the BCUe, it is our view that consulta.tion a.ndaccommodation should occur directly with BC Hydro using a pl'OCesS we have mutually Agl'ccd uponthat is appropclately L..souL'Ced (human and finIlncia1) so that We can achieve" meaningful and ceJ:lainre.ult hl a timely manner.

It is our underSlanding that the Waneta DlUn was built from 1951 - 1954 by Tech to service its miningoperations in Trail. The dam is 76 meters tall (250 ft) and create. a reservoir 6 Jan (3.7 mi) long. Itsgenerating capacity has been expanded over the years and cun..ntly it generates 450 megawatts a year.appateutly enough to power a city of 250.000 people for a year. MOL'" recently, Teck has sold powerfL'01n the Dam into the United States at a considerAble profit. It h.... been operating for 55 yeats withinOkanagan TClutmy WitilOUt 11l1y regard fOJ: Okanagan Aboriginal Tilfe and Rights, including any.ueaningful consultation alld acconll11odation regarding its footprint and on-going impacls. [n all tWstime. there has been .10 serious consideration of Okanagan interests or dil..ct benefits to the Okanaganpeople frOM tWa Dam'. use of our water and ils impacts on our Territory. It would he disllOnorablefor Be Hydl'O. a provulcial Crown agent, to bec01ue an ownel: of this facility widlout accomModatingOkanagan Aboriginal Title and rights. Thi5 would simply capitalize on and perpetuate injustice andcreate significant uncertainty for this proposed transaction.

f

IIII

I

.. ..)

Proposed Waneta Pam T,:ansaction

W.ter i. the .lifeblood of. o,u:..Tl'Citory.,_snd. the use of it fox hydro.lectric pUi'po.es has c1ta,~~tic...impacts, inci,uIi1>g for 'xaluple the on-going flooding of our lands, the on-going effects on esl" wildlif.811d habitat and the on-goiltg appropriation l>f water fo,: hydroelectric pU1pO.... All of these havecultural, sp.iI:itual, env1t'Ownental and economic ..amificatiOllS for our conununities.

We understand that BC Hyclto is contemplating both an acquisition agrean.nt and an operationsagl:.elllellt with Tech. We Ol1ticipate that thJ:ough both of these agreanents and a direct agree,nentwith the Okanagan Nation Alliance, BC Hydro can achieve the ac<:01Dmodatiolls which will beneces.aty to address ow: legitlmate concerns in a manner that meet.s the honour of the Crown. Wecautiol! agailtst any finalization of the legal attangenle11ts witl! Tech \mti! we have clearly identified theaccommodations wlUch will be necessaty for this proposed tiM.sction.

We also understand that it may be BC Hydro's view that the Crown has no obllgation to consult andaccowmodate the Okanllgat1 Nation regarding' tllis ti-an..aeti0l1 bemus.. from BC Hydro's perspective,there are no new physical impacts resulting nutll BC Hydro's acquisition of a 1/3 interest iIt Waneta.Such an assessment of BC Hydro's legal obligations would be in ettor and would jeopa,:dize, from thevel:y outset, any possibility of BC Hydro mainmitriltg the honor of the Crown in this matter. It is'shocldng' that there has been 'so' little engagement and that we connnence on the correct foow>g forWet.., to be any possibility of nn expeditious and sntisfactory resolution.

We ~equi:L.., your im1nediate confumation that BC Hydt'O will engage in a meaningful consultationprocess with the gos.! of fulfilling the Crown's Iegal obllgation to consult and accotllModnte regal-dit!gthe proposed Waneta tl:lInsaction. Given the complexities associated with reaching a substantiveagreement, and Out understandiltg that you wish to conclude this proposed ll:lI11saction by the eud of2009. we suggest the use of a third palty facilitator to assist us in l..,sching a timely resolution.

We welcome the opportunity to reach a resolution wid, BC Hydro in a manner that builds thenecessRiy tJ:Ust and new relationship wblch we are all seeking for our futore gene:L-ations. Please contsctPauline Terbasket at (250) 707·0095 ond via email: clli:eetw:@!iWx,rn;gupon l..,ceipC of this letter so weeau discuss I,ow best to move f01",..d 011 this matter.

Yours tl:uly,


%?1(~Grand ChiefS ew JillipChair

Cc: Premier Campbell, Premier ofB.C.Minister Blair Leksti'Om. MiIlister of Ene1-gy. MiI,es IU1d Petroleum Re'ource,Okanogan Chiefs Executive CouncilMal1dell Pinder

OKANAGAN NATION AJJLIANCB325.') CShm,n0l1 Lake Road, W~tbank. Be V4T 1V4 Phone (250) 'i'07·0095 Fax (250) 707·C}'t66 www.syUx.org

o nagan Nation Alliance

FxPhone: (250) 707-0095Fax: (250) 707-0166www.syilx.org

3255 C Shannon Lake Road, Westbank, BC V4T 1V4

TO: Keith Vorland FROM: Carol Roberts/Financial Administrator

FAX: 604.528.2822 PAGES 2

PHONE: DATE: September 15, 2009

Mandell PinderRE: Letter dated September 2nd

, 2009 cc: 604.681.0959

o URGENT o PLEASE REPLY o PLEASE COMMENT o FOR REVIEW

Please see attached letter

Sin~re1Y

ca~l Roberts250.707.0095 ext 112

OKANAGAN NATION ALLIANCE3255 C Shannon Lake Road, Westbank, BC V4T IV4

Phone: (250) 707-0095 Fax (250) 707-0166 www.syilx.org

September 15,2009

British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority6911 Southpoint DriveBurnaby, BC V3N 4X8

FAX: 604-528-2822

Attention: Keith Vorland, Senior Manager, Consultation and Negotiation, AboriginalRelations and Negotiations

Dear Mr. Vorland:

We write to advise you that the Okanagan Nation Alliance ("ONA") intends to reply to your letter datedSeptember 2,2009, in which you request that the ONA provide you with further information regardingthe physical and non-physical impacts arising from BC Hydro's proposed purchase from Tech MetalsLimited ("Tech") of an undivided 1/3 interest in the Waneta Dam.

Given the short notice, the ONA is unable to reply to your letter by September 15,2009 as requested.The earliest date on which we will be able to provide you with a letter including a preliminaryidentification of the physical and non-physical impacts related to the Waneta Dam is Friday, September18,2009.

Yours truly,

OKANAGA.__~_TIONALALLIANCE

Executive Director

cc. Bruce Stadfeld and Brenda Gaertner, Mandell Pinder

3255 C Shannon Lake Road, Westbank, BC V4T 1V4Phone 250-707-0095 Toll Free 1-866-662-9609 Fax 250-707-0166 wvvw.syilx.org

September 18, 2009

British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority6911 Southpoint DriveBurnaby, BC V3N 4X8FAX: 604-528-2822

Attention: Keith Vorland? Senior Manager? Consultation and Negotiation?Aboriginal Relations and Negotiations

Dear Mr. Vorland:

I am writing in response to your letters of September 2, 2009 and September 1Olh. In your September2nd letter, you request that the Okanagan National Alliance ("ONA") provide you with fmiherinformation regarding the physical and non-physical impacts arising from BC Hydro's proposedpurchase from Teck Metals Limited ("Teck") of an undivided 1/3 interest in the Waneta Dam ("theproposed transaction").

I attach for your immediate reference Grand Chief Stewmi Phillip's letter of September 9,2009 to BobElton in which he generally outlines the ONA's concerns related to the proposed transaction. TheWaneta Dam was built and has been operating for 55 years within Okanagan Territory without anyregard for Okanagan Aboriginal Title and Rights. Unquestionably the Dam affects the Okanagan andour Tenitory. There are both physical and non-physical impacts of the Waneta Dam and the proposedtransaction which trigger the Crown obligation to consult and accommodate our Title and Rights priorto entering into this proposed transaction. These include, but are not limited to, the following:

<!lI blockage of the river passage way and associated adverse effects on fish stocks (includingsalmon, bull trout, rainbow trout, and white sturgeon) and habitat;

<!lI changes in downstream water flows which negatively affect oxygen levels and total gas pressureand associated adverse effects on fish;

<!lI changes to flows of sediments and nutrients which creates adverse effects on fish spawning andhabitat areas;

<!lI flooding of land above the dam with associated adverse effects on habitat, water flows andAboriginal title;

<!lI interference with traditional hunting and plant harvesting areas;<!lI interference with spiritual beliefs and practices associated with the water and its fioee movement;

- 2 -

<TIl changes to the objective and use of the Waneta Dam, including what appears to be a clearintention by BC Hydro to generate and transmit power for export purposes;

@ changes to the management, operation, and governance structure of the Waneta Dam, includingchanges to the processes for environmental management; andchanges which affect the flexibility to regulate the release of water for the next 25 years andbeyond.

By letter oftoday's date we are requesting our initial list of the due diligence documents we willneed in order to more fully understand the Master Term Sheet. We have had neither adequateresourcing nor time to review the Waneta Dam system, understand the proposed transaction andcompile a definitive list of all the ongoing impacts and infringements. As previously advised,September 24th is the first sitting of the Okanagan Chiefs Executive since receiving the MasterTerm Sheet from BCH. Unquestionably, we require the opportunity to speak to the Chiefs andget the necessary direction on tIllS impOliant matter. Under these circumstances, we have doneour best to begin to aliiculate our concerns and trust that on this basis the above list will behelpful to you.

We are concerned, as confirmed by your letter of September 10th, that BCH is considering

entering into the Definitive Agreements as soon as September 22,2009. As you are aware, therehas been no substantive consultation between BCH and the ONA regmding the proposedtransaction, let alone a discussion of the possible and necessary acconnnodation measures. Wehave not seen the Definitive Agreements and have had no oppOliunity to mealllngfully engagewith BC Hydro, the Crown agent in this transaction, regarding the content of those agreementsand how they might be finalized to provide for meaningful acconm10dation. We have notreached any agreement whatsoever with BC Hydro regarding the consultation process that willbe used and do not know the relationsillp between the Definitive Agreements al1d the completionof the proposed transaction.

ShOlily after receiving the Master Term Sheet we advised you that the proposed transactiontriggered the duty to consult and acconnnodate and that we required a conm1itment to a processof deep consultation. We have not received BC Hydro's connnitment in that regard andunderstand that BC Hydro has not even decided whether its duty to consult has even beentriggered by the proposed Waneta transaction. Weare concerned that finalizing and executingDefillltive Agreements under these circumstances has the real potential to preclude or foreclosemealllngful acconm10dation measures before we even enter into consultation. Such a set ofcircumstances would not uphold the honour of the Crown.

We continue to seek mealllngful engagement on the potential impacts and infringements of theproposed transaction on Okanagan title and rights and the requisite scope of consultation andacconm10dation.

OKANAGAN NATION ALLIANCEBCH - Keith VorBillffi C Sham-lOn Lake Road, Westbank, BC V4T IV4 Phone (250) 707-0095 Fax (250) 707-0166 www.syilx.org

- 3 -

Sincerely,


cc: Okanagan Nation ChiefsMandell PinderDonald Lindsay, President - Ted: Resources LimitedNorman Keevil, Chairman - Teck Metals Ltd.

attach: ONA correspondence, September 9,2009

OKANAGAN NATION ALLIANCEBCH - Keith VorJ¥@ C Shmmon Lake Road, Westbank, BC V4T 1V4 Phone (250) 707-0095 Fax (250) 707-0166 www.syilx.org



British Colul1.1.bia Hydro and Power Authority'18th Floo:r - 333 DUnSilluir StteetVancouver, BC V6B 4R3 FAX: (604) 528-2822

Attention: Bob Elton, President and CEO

Dear Sits/Mesdames:

On JU11.e 17th 2009 you signed a Tetn1. Sheet on behalf of BC Hyd:ro with Teck Resources Limited andTech Metals Ltd. (collectively "Tech") which describes the key tetn1.S and conditions for a potentialarrangement whereby BC Hydro would obtain by purchase an undivided 1/3 interest in the WanetaDam, which generates power to meet the industtialload requirements of Teck's smelter located at Trail,British Columbia and for sale to the United States (the "proposed transaction").

We are pleased to read in the Master Term Agreement that BCH acknowledged and agreed that it doesnot contemplate entering into definitive agreements to cOl1.1..plete this proposed purchase until BCHydw has been satisfied that "to do so would be consistent with maintaining the honOl:rt of theCrown." We are also pleased to read that there is a commitment by BC Hydro al1.d Tech that they will"negotiate in good faith with each other to appropriately add:ress issues in the definitive agreements thatmay arise through such consultation or acc011liTIodation processes."

We are writing to confirm our willingness to engage in good faith with BC Hyd:ro in a consultation andaccomn1.odation process regarding the proposed ttansaction. While we have taken steps to protect ourlegal interests and inte1vene in your application before the BCUC, it is our view that consultation andacconu1.lodatiol1. should occur directly with BC Hyd:ro using a process we have mutually agreed uponthat is appropriately resourced (human and financial) so tllat we can achieve a meaningful and certainresult in a timely manner.

It is our understanding that the Waneta Dam was built from 1951 -1954 by Tech to service its miningoperations in Trail. The dam is 76 meters tall (250 ft) and creates a rese1voit 6 km (3.7 mi) long. Itsgenerating capacity has been expanded over dle years and currently it generates 450 megawatts a year,apparently enough to power a city of 250,000 people for a year. More recently, Teck has sold powerfrom. d1.e Dam into tl1.e United States at a considerable profit. It has been operating for 55 yeats withinOkanagan Territoi)' without any regard for Okanagan Abo:riginal Tide and Rights, including anymeaningful consultation and accommodation regarding its footpr:intand on-going impacts. In all thistin1.e, tl1.ere has been no serious consideration of Okanagan interests or direct benefits to the Okanaganpeople from dns Dam's use of our water and its impacts on our Territo:ry. It would be dishonorablefor Be Hyd:ro, a provincial Crown agent, to become an owner of this facility witl1.out accommodatingOkanagan Aboriginal Title and rights. TIns would simply capitalize on and perpetuate injustice andcreate sigtnficant uncertainty for tl'lis proposed transaction.

Proposed Waneta Dalu Transaction

Water lstl'le lifeblood of our Ter:ritoq, and the use of it for hydtoelect:ric plUposes has d:ranlaticimpacts, llKluding for exanlple the on-going £loocling of our lands, the on-goll'lg effects on fish, wildlifeand habitat and d'le on-goll'lg appropriation of water for hych'oe1ectric p'lU'poses. All of these havecultural, sp:i:ritual, envitomnental and economic ramifications for our COlIl1'llunities.

We understand that BC Hydto is contemplating both an acquisition agteeiTlent and an operationsagreement with Tech. We anticipate that tluough both of these agreements and a direct agreementwidl the Okanagan Nation Alliance, BC Hydto can achieve d'le accommodations which will benecessaty to addtess ow: legitin'late concerns ll'l a n'lanne:t that iueets the honour of the Crown. Wecaution agalllst any finalization of the legal arrangements with Tech until we have clea:rly identified theaccommodations which will be necessaty for tllis proposed transaction.

We also understand that it may be BC Hydto's view tllat the Crown has no obligation to consult andaccoiumodate the Okanagan Nation regardlllg this transaction because, from BC Hydro's perspective,there are no new physical impacts resulting f:rom BC Hydto's acquisition of a 1/3 interest in Waneta.Such an assessment of BC Hydto's legal obligations would be in. errol: and would jeopardize, from d'leveq outset, any possibility of BC Hydto mainta.uung the honor of the Crown in tlus matter. It is'shocking' that there has been 'so' little engagement and that we conUllence on tl'le co:t:tect footing forthere to be any possibility of an expeclitious and satisfactmy resolution.

We requ:i1:e yow: untnecliate confirrnation tllat BC Hydro will engage Ul a meaningful consultationprocess with the goal of fulfilling tlle Crown's legal obligation to consult and acconunodate regardingthe proposed Waneta transaction. Given the complexities associated witll reaclnng a substantiveagreement, and ow: understandhlg tllat you wish to conclude tlus p:roposed transaction by tlle end of2009, we suggest tlle use of a third party facilitator to assist us III reaching a timely resolution.

We welcome tlle opportunity to reach a resolution witll BC Hydro 1n a manner tllat builds tllenecessaty trust and new relationship which we are all seeking for our future generations. Please contactPauline Terbasket at (250) 707-0095 and via email: [email protected] upon receipt of this letter so wecan cliscuss how best to inove fOi'ward on tlus matter.

Yours ttuly,


Cc: Premier Campbell, Premier ofB.e.Minister Blait Lekstroin, Minister of Energy, Mines and Pet.roleum ResourcesOkanagan Cluefs Executive CouncilMandell Pinder

OKANAGAN NATION AJ..JLIANCE3255 C Shannon Lake Road, Westbank, BC V4T 1V4 Phone (250) 707-0095 Fax (250) 707-0166 www.syilx.org

Sep. '230 2009 2: IOPM B ,VDRO A80RIGINAL RELATIONS

BGhgdro mFOR GENERATIONS

Keith VorlandAbo~gln.1 Relaliona and NagollelllonaPhone; (604) 6:lll-2331FlIlO ~4) li:lll-2112~ .&nl*li: 1UI11h.varllllldllDbcllydro.com

23' September, 2000

ND.4428 P. 1/4

1ffi~©~DW~[o)

SEP 232009UKANAGAN NAllON ALLIANCE

Pauline Terbasl<etExecutive DirectorOkanagan NatIon Alilanca32660 Sllllnnon lake RolldWeslbank, Be V4T 1V43

VIA FAX: 260707 0166

Dear Ms. TerbaBke~

Be: Selkirk Intert!e Project

As mendoned In my September 17, 2009 Ietler (regard/ng three f18W sotMI/ea in theCo/umb/a River Area), the Brillsh Columbia Transmission Corporation (BCTC), the

.Crown-owned corporaliQn that pl"ms, bullde, operates ",nd mainteins BC's publicly- , ,owned electrical transmleslon system, Is studying the feaslblllty of upgrades to theSelkirk Subetatfon southeaet of,Trail, 8.C. and construction of a ntw double clrcuft500 kV transmission line. The transmissIon line would travel f)'om the substetlon,approximately 1I) to 20 kilometres to the OMada-U.S. bQrder (the Selkirk Ir¢erlie Project(SIP». . ... ' '

The 8r1aah Columbla Hydro and Power Authority (BC Hydro) Is Initiating consultationwlth- Firat Nalions regarding this JiroJecl. BO. Hydro. and BCTe are partie, 10 anagreement In whloh BO Hydro has the role to oommunloale and consult with First'Nations wIth reepecl to the Transml8slon System. Thelwo Crown corporationa will work

. together with Flral Nations, the publlo and regulators during the ooneultatlol1, projectdevelopment, regulatory proce8& and poseible oonstructlon Of the Project .

BO Hydro Wiehes to seak l!srly InP1,lt from First'Nations regarding how they would like tobe consulted. SUbject to your Input, we_ believe thla Ie best Initiated by engaging indleoussiona and information sharing to develop a meaningfUl consullatlon program andto determine th, desired level of involvement In associated reguilltory !!nd environmental'assessment proeesees. Splielflcally, Be HYclro would appreclata an' opportunity 10discuss In the near future with you and/or your representatives the foRewing:

, -

IJlI1lIll OnlllIlIbio t1Yd.. ond _orAuUtn~1y6811 aoulllpDrntDI1~ BUlflny, 80VJH<4XtJIJdiYdro.aam

,Sep,23. 2009 2: 10PM B\, ,,~DRO ABORIGINAL RELATIONS No, 4428 p, 2/4

• Th$ current process, where we ara alln Ihls process and proposed Ilmalinas forthe prajsct ass88srnsnl and review;

• Tha known.projecl optlone \lind Ihe a'ternatl\leS'oon~ldllred:• Applllachss Ihat will sllhanoe mulual understanding of the potenllal iStluSl!.

Impael8 and Interests; ," The appropriate entity (e.g, Band anc/lor nibal Council or other organislilllon) to

engage wIlh althe various stage. of the consultation process; .• The proCIl8B for consultation. oommunicalioiJ and Information sharlnll: and• Capaolty funding requirements to support your partlolpatlon In the consultation

and the J".!'Qullilory and environmental revIew processes.

Be Hydro Is commItted to consult wlth those First Nations that have potential aboriginalInlerests in the area of the project. or whose rights or Interesls may be potentiallyaffect$cl by the Project. Specifically, Be Hydro is prePared to consult with the OkanaganNation Alliance through you and lor your designated representatiVe to ensure that Be'Hydro underslSnde the scope and nature of potential Impaote on asserted aboriginalrights, Iitle and to ldentlry appropriate mealls 10 lil'Void, manage; mitigate andloraccommodate polendal adverse effects on your Flret Natlon'e Inlel'$sl8.

In an effort to inRllle consultetlon and discussions as per yourexpreaeed level of Inlel'$stIn th(il j:)rojllct, BO Hydro will be following up with you by phone In the fall of 2009. In themeantime, if. you have any, questions or commenl, please contact me directly at(604) 528·2331 or by (ii-malI at [email protected]. I "ook forward Ie Working

, wilh you to fUrther understand the Interests of the Okanagan Nation Alliance In relallon 'to the proposed ProJeot. .

Keith VqrlandSenior Manager, Oonsultallon and NegotiationsAborIginal RellDons and Negollatlons .

cc: ,MelisSa Holland, project Manager, BCTe

Sncl. Brief project descrIptionMap of proJeot area

Sep.'n 2009 2:10PM b. "VDRO ABORlGINAL RELATIONS No, 4428 P. 3/4

SELKIRK INTERTIE PROJECTseptember 2009

THE PROJECT

Th~ British Columbia Transmission Corporation (BCTC). the Crown-owned corporation that plans.liullds, operates and maintains B.C:s pilbllcly-owned electrical transmission system. Is studying thefeasibility of upgradlls to the Selkirk Substation southeast of Trail, B.C. and construction of anew double circuit 500 kV transmission Iina. The transmission line would travel from thesubstation approxlmatelV.10 to 20.kllome.tres to the canada-U.S, border.

PROJECT .. STUDY RATIONALE

New electrIcal transmission capacltv Is raqulred In the region and throughout the U.S•.PaclflcNorthwest to meet th's growing need for clean and reliable energy. BCTe is partnered withthree U.S. utilities to study such new electrical transmissIon, Investment' at the SelkirkSubstation and a' new Intertle would contribute to the rellabllltv and capecltV ofthe localsystem es well as Improve reciprocal ac'cess to electrlclt'l for both B,C, and U.S, !ltl/ltiea.

STUDY.• APPROVAL PROCESS

I:nVlronmentlll field studies are expected, to begin In tlte sprll)ll of 2(110. If the project Isdetermined to be fellSlble, It will be subject to the regulatorv approval of the National. Energy8Qard. The project 15 expected to have specific engineering, environmental and eeonomlccosu., benefits end Impacts and as such. will be subject to detailed evaluatIon,

BCTe will be whollV responsIble for the pel'!'hl~tlng process In CarJada.

PUBLIC ENAGAGEMENT & CONSULTATION'

BCTC Is committed to consultation and outreach with Fll"$t Nations, local communities andstakeholders. landownel"$ and government officIals at all levels es part of the project study,planning and permlttlng'process. As such. an extensive outreach and consultetlon process willbe Initiated wltli a goal to Inform and gather Input ftom First natlon,5 and stakeholders.

1

, ,

SIP. n 2009 2: 11PM B. ,rYDRO ABORIGINAL RElATIONS

SELKIRK INTERTIE PROJECTSeptember 2.009 .

No. 4428 P, 4/4.

2

,"';

KtIIlh VOllandAborigInal RalaUona end NagotlatlonsPhona: (804) 1528-2381Fax: (804) 528-2822E-mail: [email protected]

September.2$, 2009

VIA FAX: 260 7070166

Pauline Terbasketexecutive DlreotorOkanagan Nation Alliance32550 Shannon Lake Road,Weslbank, BC V4T 1V4

'lPd~©~UWlE/v)

SEP 3,02009,OKANAGANNATIONAlllANCE

DearMs. Terbasket:

Rei Scheduling' a MeetIng to DJacu~ tilt Wan'" Dam Transaction

We are wriling to infcin.n the aNA that BC Hydro I18s msde a decision to ~Ign Ihe AssetPl;lrchase Agreement (th. APA)' relalfng 10 the Wenel. Translollon. BC Hydro has filed

• ' . Ihe APA with the' British Columbia utilities Commission (BCUC). As described in our 'previous com,spondenllli with the' ONA, signing the APkls one step In a series ofdeclslCJl:ls ant! cIoes not oblige Be Hydro to ~mplete the TranSaolion If It' is nol'hOnourable tCl do so In the contex! of its obligations to First Nations. Be Hydro took thisInto acoollnt togethar wHh the fHt of, the Information' set out In BC Hydro's ARN, FirstNationi Preliminary Consultation'Report, a copy of which is enclosed for your reference.In mllklng its daclslon to !!inter Into the APA: 'A copy of the Record of this Decision Is

, also enclosed for your. ~rence. :A final decision on whelher to complete the'Trans8Gtloi'l will only occur after we have considered any Information you are able toprovide us that relates to tllf! discussion In t!le PrallmlnlllY Report. or whlph Is otherwisegermane, to the concerns that your Clrganlzatlon may have with respeol to theTran,sactlon. '

As previously Indicated to you, the PreUminary Report was prepared em the basis ofinformation BC Hydro had been eble to consider to that point Including your letter ofSeplember 9 and the letter of the same date from Grand Chlet"Philllp. We did nol havethe opportunity to fully consider your September 18, 20009 letter,at thai tlmla and we ii1~in the process of doing that now: As part of that process, BC Hydro would like toschedule II meetl,ng with the ONA as soon as your schedule permits. 'Based on our

Brill,,, Columbia Hidro Bnd Power AulhorJly8811 80uthpDlnt Drive, Burnaby, Be vaN 4X8bcllydto.oom '

T I BChudro ,mvaftQQUVIt:loto van~D ameJALSuppgA1E'A

~ {...,

) , .

. .corr&spOlldence with the.ONA to date, WEI would like to propose the following objectivesfor the meeting:', , . " ,',

• BO Hydro to provide an overview of the prooea& by WhIch It decided to enter Intothe APA , lncludlr:tg the relatlonahlp between signing the APA. the oompleUon of ' 'the propoSed transaction and the. First Nations consultatIon end accommodation '

,pl'QC8BB; • . ".' .

• Obtain further information and clarity frbm the ONA on Impacts of the WanetaDam on the ONA Interests, asspe~ea Ip your llitter to Be Hydro detedSflpfemb!lr 18, 2009 end Iii lt1e litter to BC' Hydro from Grand Chief -Steward'Phillip dated September 9, 2009; ,

• Obteln ~dback· from the ONA on BC Hydro's ARN First Netlons PreliminaryColljlultatlon Report, which was filed with. the !3cue. Id8~y any. additionalinformation, clarlticatlon or other views the ONA belle~s BO Hydro shouklconsider in lis ongoing aseellsmE/nt of whetf:ler It rerilalns honourable to completethe Trlll1sacllon. ". ' " ,

, We hope We have captured your concems arld questions In the ebove obJect~, hOW8Vllr, wa look fo~rd to receiving further agenda ltema from' you wtllch we may.have mlss~. '.."

rhe period for fwm"r consultation Iii t»nnecllon ,'llilh the TransactIon Is ·IImlted by cerla/ncommercleland teguliltory constreint8 th!lfdletat_expedltlous declslon making.. For·ttlatreason, BC HyclliJ hIP!! d8termlnlil.d thatlt/t(1ust have completed the .consultatlon pl'oceHby November 16, 2009. AccordIngly, we would be gratefunt you could advlee us. of apreferred maetlng date and time In the next two weeks so we cencommence meldl'lg thenecessary errangements. , . .

If y~u haYs any questions or concerns, please contact ROlfSnne Sllotl at 604-29B-2820.

Sincerely,

" .

Keith Vol1andSenior Msnager, Consuftatloh and Negotiations

.Aborilll~ R~latlons and Negotiations '

Enel: BC Hydro'S ARN "'Irst Nations Preliminary Consultation ReportRecord of Decision



October 28, 2009

British Columbia HycL:o and Power Authority6911 Southpoint DriveBmnaby, B.C. V3N 4X8 FAX: (604) 528- 2822

Attention: Keith Vorland, Senior ManagerConsultation & Negotiation, Aboriginal Relations & Negotiations

Dear 1'v1r. Vorland:

Re: Proposed Waneta Dam Transaction

Thank you for yom letter of September 28th. Although it has been difficult to find dates whichwork for our respective teams, we look f01ward to the meeting which has now been confirmed forOctober 30, 2009.

At the September 24th meeting of the Okanagan Chief Executive Meeting, it was confirn"led thatChief Tim Manual, Chief Jonathan K.ruger and Chief Clarence Louie will be responsible forleading the consultation and accommodation negotiations related to this proposed transaction. Inaddition to giving BC HycL:o an opportunity to review tlus proposed Transaction with tl"le Cluefs,tl1.ere are a number of matters which need to be discussed at om UpC011.llng meeting, and inparticular:

1. BC HycL:o's response to Grand Chief Stewart Plllllips' letter to Bob Elton of September 9,2009: In this letter the ONA clearly articulated om willingness to engage in good faitl"lwith BC HycL:o in a consultation and accommodation process regarding this proposedtransaction. Because it would be dishonourable for BC HycL:o, a provincial Crown agent,to become an owner of this facility witl"lout accommodating Okanagan Title and Rights,we require a c011.umtment by BC HycL:o tl1.at you are willing to engage in a consultationprocess tl1.at is intended to accommodate Okanagan Title and Rights. We suggested in thisletter tl"lat a tlllid party facilitator may be helpful to ensming that an agreement is reachedin a timely manner. Given BC HycL:o's goal of completing this transaction .in a veq shorttUDe frame, we are sUlprised that tl1.ere has been no response to this letter.

2. BC HycL:o's response to my letters to you of September 17tl"l and September 18th. In thefirst letter we sought key documents we require to complete om due diligence. We aresUlprised we have not received tl"lese yet. In our letter of September 18tl"l we ite11.uzed tl1.ephysical and non-physical impacts and infringements associated witl"l tl"le Waneta Dam andthe proposed transaction which u-.igger the obligation to consult. Again, given BC HycL:o'sgoal of completing this proposed transaction in a veq short time frame, we are sUlprisedthat we have received no substantive response to these concerns. We look fOlward to

hemng fr ~,~t:ur~

3. We lnust reacll an U11derstal1d.itlg 011 tlle C011sultatiol1 process dlat is req1..ri.red to addressour concerns and interests, and reach an understanding on the funding required toirnplement such a process in a t:i1nely manner. For example, having reviewed BC Hydro'sRecord of Decision dated Septem.ber 21, 2009 and your Prernninary Consultation Report,it appears that BC Hydro inay be dismissing the strength of Okanagan Title and Rights totlle land and waters used and impacted by the Waneta Dam.. There is obviously significantdisagreen1.ent between us on tlus issue, and we must tllerefore look to fInd solutions. TheONA are wilfulg to complete tlle necessaty work to explain to BC Hydro our relationshipto tl1.e land and waters relied adversely affected by Waneta, including the relationslupbetween tl1.e Okanagan and the Sinixt/Arrow Lakes. We will need to discuss tlle fundingand timern1.es for tlus work.

4. You wrote to me on September 23, 2009, regarding tlle Selkirk Intertie Project. It will beuseful to understand how tllat project is related to tl1.e proposed Waneta Transaction.

5. Finally, we remain vety concerned tllat BC Hydro has already committed to tl1.e AssetPurchase Agreement and has no real intention to meaningfully accommodate tl1.eOkanagan prior to tl1.e sale being completed. We are of tl1.e view that unless and until BCHydro meets it constitutional obligations to consult and accommodate the Okanagan, tl1.eAsset Purchase Agreement is unconstitutional.

We are hopeful tllat tlle meeting on October 30, 2009 will help us to find some solutions formoving forward in a timely manner.

Yours truly,

~AlLU:CE

Pauline TerbasketExecutive Director

cc: Brenda Gaertner, Mandell Pinder

OKANAGAN NATION ALLIANCE3255 C Shalmon Lake Road, Westbank, Be V4T IV4 Phone (250) 707-0095 Fax (250) 707-0166 www.syilx.org

BC Hydroâ€”Acquisition from Teck Metals Ltd. of an Undivided One

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