Tlingit

This article is about the Alaskan Native group. For the Siberian people, seeTelengit.

For other uses, seeTlingit (disambiguation).

Tlingit

Chief Anotklosh of theTakuTribe, wearing aChilkat blanket,Juneau, Alaska,c. 1913
Regions with significant populations
United States (Alaska)	14,000
Canada (British Columbia,Yukon)	2,110
Languages
English,Tlingit,Russian (historically)
Religion
Christianity, esp.Russian Orthodox TraditionalAlaska Native religion

Lingít "People of the Tides"
People	Tlingit
Language	Lingít
Country	Tlingit Aaní

TheTlingitorLingít(English:/ˈtlɪŋkɪt,ˈklɪŋkɪt/TLING-kit,KLING-kit) areIndigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coastof North America and constitute two of the two-hundred thirty-one (231, as of 2022)federally recognizedTribes of Alaska.Although the majority, about 14,000people, areAlaska Natives,there is a small minority, 2,110,who are CanadianFirst Nations.

Their language is theTlingit language(nativelyLingít,pronounced[ɬɪ̀nkɪ́tʰ]),in which the name means 'People of the Tides'.The Russian nameKoloshi(Колоши,from aSugpiaq-Alutiiqtermkulut'ruaqfor thelabretworn by women) or the related German nameKoulischenmay be encountered referring to the people in older historical literature, such asGrigory Shelikhov's 1796 map ofRussian America.Tlingit people today belong to several federally recognized Alaska Native tribes including the Angoon Community Association, theCentral Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska,Chilkat Indian Village, Chilkoot Indian Association, Craig Tribal Association, Hoonah Indian Association, Ketchikan Indian Corporation, Klawock Cooperative Association, the Organized Village of Kasaan, the Organized Village of Kake, the Organized Village of Saxman, Petersburg Indian Association, Skagway Village, theYakutat Tlingit Tribe,and the Wrangell Cooperative Association.Some citizens of theCarcross/Tagish First Nationin Yukon and theSitka Tribe of Alaskaare of Tlingit heritage.Taku Tlingitare enrolled in theDouglas Indian Associationin Alaska and theTaku River Tlingit First Nationin Canada.

The Tlingit have amatrilinealkinship system,with children born into the mother'sclan,and property and hereditary roles passing through the mother's line.Their culture and society developed in thetemperate rainforestof the southeastAlaskancoast and theAlexander Archipelago.The Tlingit have maintained a complexhunter-gathererculture based on semi-sedentary management of fisheries.Hereditary servitude was practiced extensively until it was outlawed by the United States Government.An inland group, known as the Inland Tlingit, inhabits the far northwestern part of the province ofBritish Columbiaand the southernYukonin Canada.

Territory

Tlingit and neighboring peoples

The greatest territory historically occupied by the Tlingit extended from thePortland Canalalong the present border betweenAlaskaandBritish Columbia,north to the coast just southeast of theCopper Riverdelta in Alaska.The Tlingit occupied almost all of theAlexander Archipelago,except the southernmost end ofPrince of Wales Islandand its surroundings, where the KaiganiHaidamoved just before the first encounters with European explorers.

Hoonah, Alaska,a traditional Tlingit village nearGlacier Bay,home of theXúnaa Kháawu

The Coastal Tlingit tribes controlled one of the mountain passes into the Yukon interior; they were divided into three tribes: the Chilkat Tlingit (Jilḵáat Ḵwáan) along theChilkat Riverand onChilkat Peninsula,the Chilkoot Tlingit (Jilḵoot Ḵwáan) and theTaku Tlingit(Tʼaaḵu Ḵwáan:) along theTaku River.

Inland, the Tlingit occupied areas along the major rivers that pierce theCoast MountainsandSaint Elias Mountainsand flow into thePacific,including theAlsek,Tatshenshini,Chilkat,Taku,andStikinerivers. With regular travel up these rivers, the Tlingit developed extensive trade networks withAthabascantribes of the interior, and commonly intermarried with them. From this regular travel and trade, a few relatively large populations of Tlingit settled aroundAtlin,Teslin,andTagish Lakes,whose headwaters flow from areas near the headwaters of the Taku River.

Delineating the modern territory of the Tlingit is complicated because they are spread across the border between the United States and Canada, they lack designated reservations, other complex legal and political concerns make the situation confusing, and there is a relatively high level of mobility among the population. They also overlap in territory with variousAthabascan peoples,such as theTahltan,KaskaandTagish.In Canada, the modern communities ofAtlin, British Columbia(Taku River Tlingit),Teslin, Yukon(Teslin Tlingit Council), andCarcross, Yukon(Carcross/Tagish First Nation) havereservesand are the representative Interior Tlingit populations.

The territory occupied by the modern Tlingit people in Alaska is not restricted to particularreservations,unlike most tribes in the lower contiguous 48 states. This is the result of theAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act(ANCSA), which established regional corporations throughout Alaska with complex portfolios of land ownership rather than bounded reservations administered by Tribal Governments. The corporation in the Tlingit region isSealaska Corporation,which serves the Tlingit as well as theHaidaandTsimshianin Alaska.

Tlingit people as a whole participate in the commercial economy of Alaska. As a consequence, they live in typically American nuclear family households with private ownership of housing and land. Many also possess land allotments from Sealaska or from earlier distributions predating ANCSA. Despite the legal and political complexities, the territory historically occupied by the Tlingit can be reasonably designated as their modern homeland. Tlingit people today consider the land from aroundYakutatsouth through theAlaskan Panhandle,and including the lakes in the Canadian interior, as beingLingít Aaní,the Land of the Tlingit.

The extant Tlingit territory can be roughly divided into four major sections, paralleling ecological, linguistic, and cultural divisions:

• The Southern Tlingit occupy the region south ofFrederick Sound,and live in the northernmost reaches of theWestern Red cedarforest.
• Northern Tlingit live north of Frederick Sound to Cape Spencer, and includingGlacier Bayand theLynn Canal;they occupy the warmest and richest of theSitka SpruceandWestern Hemlockforests.
• The Inland Tlingit live along large interior lakes and the drainage of the Taku River as well as in the southernYukon,and subsist in a manner similar to their Athabascan neighbors in the mixedsprucetaiga.
• The Gulf Coast Tlingit live along a narrow strip of coastline backed by steep mountains and extensive glaciers, north of Cape Spencer, and along the coast of theGulf of AlaskatoController BayandKayak Island.Their territory can be battered by Pacific storms.

The trade and cultural interactions between each of these Tlingit groups and their disparate neighbors, the differences in food harvest practices, and dialectal differences in language contribute to these identifications. These academic classifications are supported by similar self-identification among the Tlingit.

Tribes orḵwáans

Tlingit tribe	IPA	Translation	Village or Community location	Anglicized,archaic variants or adaptations
G̱alyáx̱ Ḵwáan	qaɬjáχqʰʷáːn	Salmon Stream Tribe	Yakataga-Controller Bay area	Kaliakh
Xunaa Ḵáawu	χʊnaːkʰáːwʊ	Tribe or People from the Direction of the North Wind	Hoonah	Hoonah people
S'awdáan Ḵwáan	sʼawdáːnqʰʷáːn	FromS'oow('jade')daa('around'),aan('land/country/village') because the bay is the color of jade all around	Sedum	Sumdum
Tʼaḵjik.aan Ḵwáan:	tʼaqtʃikʔaːnqʰʷáːn	Coast Town Tribe	northernPrince of Wales Island	Tuxekan
Laax̱aayík Kwáan:	ɬaːχaːjíkqʰʷáːn	Inside the Glacier People	Yakutat area	Yakutat
Tʼaaḵu Ḵwáan:	tʼaːqʰuqʰʷáːn	Geese Flood Upriver Tribe	Taku	Taku Tlingit,Taku people
Xutsnoowú(a.k.a.Xudzidaa)Ḵwáan	xutsnuːwúqʰʷáːn	Brown Bear Fort a.k.a. Burnt Wood Tribe	Angoon	Hootchenoo people,Hoochenoo, Kootznahoo
Hinyaa Ḵwáan	hinjaːqʰʷáːn	Tribe From Across The Water	Klawock	Henya, Hanega
G̱unaax̱oo Ḵwáan	qunaːχuːqʰʷáːn	Among The Athabascans Tribe	Dry Bay	Gunahoo people,Dry Bay people
Deisleen Ḵwáan:	tesɬiːnqʰʷáːn	Big Sinew Tribe	Teslin	Teslin Tlingit,Teslin people,Inland Tlinkit
Shee Tʼiká(a.k.a.Sheetʼká)Ḵwáan	ʃiːtʼkʰáqʰʷáːn	Outside Edge of a Branch Tribe	Sitka	Sitka, Shee Atika
Shtaxʼhéen Ḵwáan	ʃtaxʼhíːnqʰʷáːn	Bitter Water Tribe	Wrangell	Stikine people,Stikine Tlingit
Séet Ká Ḵwáan	séːtʰkʰʌ́qʰʷáːn	People of the Fast Moving Water	Petersburg	Séet Ká Ḵwáan
Jilḵáat Ḵwáan	tʃiɬqʰáːtqʰʷáːn	FromChaal('food cache')xhaat('salmon')khwaan('dwellers'): Salmon Cache Tribe	Klukwan	Chilkat people
Áa Tlein Ḵwáan	ʔáːtɬʰeːnqʰʷáːn	Big Lake Tribe	Atlin	Taku River Tlingit,Inland Tlinkit
Ḵéex̱ʼ Kwáan	qʰíːχʼqʰʷáːn	Dawn Tribe	Kake	Kake people
Taantʼa Ḵwáan	tʰaːntʼaqʰʷáːn	Sea Lion Tribe	Fort Tongass(formerly) &Ketchikan(today)	Tongass people
Jilḵoot Ḵwáan	tʃiɬqʰuːtqʰʷáːn	Chilkoot Tribe	Haines	Chilkoot people
Áakʼw Ḵwáan	ʔáːkʷʼqʰʷáːn	Small Lake Tribe	Auke Bay	Auke people
Kooyu Ḵwáan	kʰuːjuqʰʷáːn	Stomach Tribe	Kuiu Island	Kuiu people
Saanyaa Ḵwáan	saːnjaːqʰʷáːn	Southward Tribe	Cape Fox Village(formerly) &Saxman(today)	Saanya Kwaan,owns Saxman Corporation, which owns Cape Fox Corporation

Culture

A Tlingit totem pole inKetchikanc. 1901

Two Tlingit girls, nearCopper River (Alaska),1903. Photograph taken by theMiles Brothers

Main article:Culture of the Tlingit

The Tlingit culture is multifaceted and complex, a characteristic of Northwest Pacific Coast people with access to easily exploited rich resources. In Tlingit culture a heavy emphasis is placed upon family and kinship, and on a rich oratory tradition. Wealth and economic power are important indicators of rank, but so is generosity and proper behavior, all signs of "good breeding" and ties to aristocracy. Art and spirituality are incorporated in nearly all areas of Tlingit culture, with even everyday objects such as spoons and storage boxes decorated and imbued with spiritual power and historical beliefs of the Tlingits.

Tlingit society is divided into twomoieties,the Raven and the Eagle.These in turn are divided into numerousclans,which are subdivided into lineages or house groups. They have a matrilineal kinship system, with descent and inheritance passed through the mother's line. These groups have heraldic crests, which are displayed ontotem poles,canoes,feast dishes, house posts, weavings, jewelry, and other art forms.The Tlingits pass downat.oow(s)or blankets that represented trust. Only a Tlingit can inherit one but they can also pass it down to someone they trust, who becomes responsible for caring for it but does not rightfully own it.

Like other Northwest Coast native peoples, the Tlingit did practicehereditary slavery.

Philosophy and religion

Main article:Philosophy and religion of the Tlingit

Kóok gaaw,box drum, late 19th century. Image is of a sea wolf (orca).

Tlingit thought and belief, although never formally codified, was historically a fairly well organized philosophical and religious system whose basic axioms shaped the way Tlingit people viewed and interacted with the world around them. Tlingits were traditionallyanimists,and hunters ritually purified themselves before hunting animals.Shamans,primarily men, cured diseases, influenced weather, aided in hunting, predicted the future, and protected people against witchcraft.A central part of the Tlingit belief system was the belief in reincarnation of both humans and animals.

Between 1886 and 1895, in the face of their shamans' inability to treat Old World diseases includingsmallpox,many Tlingit people converted toOrthodox Christianity.Russian Orthodoxmissionaries had translated their liturgy into the Tlingit language. It has been argued that they sawEastern Orthodox Christianityas a way of resisting assimilation to the "American way of life", which was associated withPresbyterianism.After the introduction ofChristianity,the Tlingit belief system began to erode.

Today, some young Tlingits look back towards their traditional tribal religions and worldview for inspiration, security, and a sense of identity. While many elders converted to Christianity, contemporary Tlingit "reconcile Christianity and the 'traditional culture.'"

Language

Tlingit twined basket tray, late 19th c., spruce root,American dunegrass,pigment,Cleveland Museum of Art

Main article:Tlingit language

Two Tlingit speakers, recorded in theUnited States.

The Tlingit people of Southeast Alaska and Western Canada speak theTlingit language(Lingít[ɬɪ̀nkítʰ]),which is a branch of theNa-Dené language family.Lingít has a complexgrammarand sound system and also uses certainphonemesunheard in almost any other language.

Tlingit has an estimated 200 to 400 native speakers in the United States and 100 speakers in Canada.The speakers are bilingual or near-bilingual in English. Tribes, institutions, and linguists are expending extensive effort into revitalization programs in Southeast Alaska to revive and preserve the Tlingit language and its culture.SealaskaHeritage Institute,Goldbelt Heritage Instituteand theUniversity of Alaska Southeasthave Tlingit language programs, and community classes are held inKlukwanandAngoon.

Housing

Tlingit tribes historically built plank houses made from cedar and today call them clanhouses; these houses were built with a foundation such that they could store their belongings under the floors. It is said that these plank houses had no adhesive, nails, or any other sort of fastening devices. Clan houses were usually square or rectangular in shape and had front facing designs and totem poles to represent to which clan and moiety the makers belonged.

Economy

Many Tlingit men work in the fishing industry while women are employed at canneries or in the local handicraft industry. These handicrafts include items like wood carvings and woven baskets which are sold for practical or tourist consumption.

History

Main article:History of the Tlingit

Various cultures of indigenous people have continuously occupied the Alaska territory for thousands of years, leading to the Tlingit. Human culture with elements related to the Tlingit originated around 10,000 years ago near the mouths of theSkeenaandNass Rivers.The historic Tlingit's first contact with Europeans came in 1741 with Russian explorers. Spanish explorers followed in 1775. Tlingits maintained their independence but suffered from epidemics ofsmallpoxand otherinfectious diseasesbrought by the Europeans.The1862 Pacific Northwest smallpox epidemickilled about 60% of the Mainland Tlingit and 37% of the Island Tlingit.

Food

Tommy Joseph, Tlingit woodcarver and sculptor fromSitka, Alaska

Main article:Food of the Tlingit

Food is a central part of Tlingit culture, and the land is an abundant provider. Most of the richness of intertidal life found on the beaches of Southeast Alaska can be harvested for food. Though eating off the beach could provide a fairly healthy and varied diet, eating nothing but "beach food" is considered contemptible among the Tlingit and a sign of poverty. Indeed, shamans and their families were required to abstain from all food gathered from the beach, and men might avoid eating beach food before battles or strenuous activities in the belief that it would weaken them spiritually and perhaps physically as well. Thus for both spiritual reasons as well as to add some variety to the diet, the Tlingit harvest many other resources for food besides those they easily find outside their front doors. No other food resource receives as much emphasis assalmon;however,sealand game are both close seconds.

Halibut,shellfish,andseaweedtraditionally provided food in the spring, while late spring and summer bringsealandsalmon.Summer is a time for gathering wild and tame berries, such assalmonberry,soap berry,andcurrants.In fall,sea ottersare hunted.Herringandeulachonare also important staples, that can be eaten fresh or dried and stored for later use. Fish provide meat, oil, and eggs.Sea mammals, such as sea lions and sea otters, are used for food and clothing materials. In the forests near their homes, Tlingit hunted deer, bear, mountain goats and other small mammals.

Genetics

Genetic analyses of HLA I and HLA II genes as well as HLA-A, -B, and -DRB1 gene frequencies links theAinu peopleof Japan to someIndigenous peoples of the Americas,especially to populations on thePacific Northwest Coastsuch as Tlingit. The scientists suggest that the main ancestor of the Ainu and of the Tlingit can be traced back toPaleolithicgroups inSouthern Siberia.

Notable Tlingit people

• Todd Gloria(b. 1978), politician
• Nora Marks Dauenhauer(1927–2017), poet, author, and scholar
• Ernestine Hayes(b. 1945), poet, memorist, and professor
• Ursala Hudson,Chilkat and Ravenstail weaver
• Nathan Jackson (artist)(born 1938), woodcarver
• Esther Littlefield(1906–1997), artist, cultural interpreter
• Byron Mallott(1943–2020),Lieutenant Governor of Alaska(2014–2018)
• Da-ka-xeen Mehner,photographer and installation artist
• Larry McNeil(b. 1955), photographer
• Tillie Paul(1863–1952), civil rights advocate and educator
• William Paul(1885–1977), attorney
• Elizabeth Peratrovich(1911–1958), civil rights advocate
• Clarissa Rizal(1956–2016), Chilkat and Ravenstail weaver
• Dino Rossi(b. 1959), politician
• Martin Sensmeier(b. 1985), actor
• Louis Shotridge(1883–1937), a Tlingit anthropologist and curator
• Preston Singletary(b. 1963), glass artist
• Walter Soboleff(1908–2011), scholar, elder, and religious leader
• Jennie Thlunaut(c. 1891–1986), Chilkat weaver
• X'unéi(unknown), a powerful Yakutat chief that went to war against Yeilxaak
• Yeilxaak(unknown–1791), the first chief of Klukwan to be encountered by Europeans
• Vera Starbard,playwright and author
• X̱ʼuneiLance Twitchell,scholar and author

See also

• Chilkat weaving
• Ravenstail weaving
• Battle of Sitka(Tlingit Rebellion, 1802)
• Battle of Port Gamble
• History of the Tlingit
• List of edible plants and mushrooms of southeast Alaska
• Maritime fur trade
• Tlingit clans
• Alaska Native storytelling

References

• de Laguna, Fredericæ. "Tlingit." Suttles, Wayne, ed.Handbook of North American Indians,Vol. 7: Northwest Coast.Washington, D.C.:Smithsonian Institution,1990: 203–28.ISBN0-87474-187-4.
• Boyd, Robert Thomas.The Coming of the Spirit of Pestilence: Introduced Infectious Diseases and Population Decline among Northwest Coast Indians, 1774–1874.Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1999.ISBN978-0-295-97837-6.
• Moss, Madonna.Northwest Coast: Archaeology as Deep History.Washington, D.C.:Society for American Archaeology,2011.
• Pritzker, Barry M.A Native American Encyclopedia: History, Culture, and Peoples.Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000: 286–7.ISBN978-0-19-513877-1.
• Kan, Sergei."Shamanism and Christianity: Modern-Day Tlingit Elders Look at the Past."Klass, Morton and Maxine Wiesgrau, eds.Across the Boundaries of Belief: Contemporary Issues in the Anthropology of Religion.Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1999.ISBN978-0-8133-2695-5.

Further reading

• Emmons, George Thornton (1991).The Tlingit Indians.Seattle: University of Washington Press.ISBN978-0-295-97008-0.(Contributors Frederica De Laguna and Jean Low)
• Grinev, Andrei Val'terovich (2005).The Tlingit Indians in Russian America, 1741–1867.Translated by Bland, Richard L.; Solovjova, Katerina G. University of Nebraska Press.ISBN0-8032-0538-4.
• Olson, Wallace M. (2001).The Tlingit. An Introduction to Their Culture and History(Fourth ed.). Auke Bay, Alaska: Heritage Research. p. 110.ISBN0-9659009-0-8.
• Shearar, Cheryl (2000).Understanding Northwest Coast Art. A Guide to Crests, Beings and Symbols.Madeira Park, British Columbia: Douglash & MicIntyre, University of Washington Press. p. 144.ISBN978-1-55054-782-5.
• Stewart, Hilary (1979).Looking at Indian Art of the Northwest Coast Art.Madeira Park, British Columbia: Douglash & MicIntyre, University of Washington Press. pp.112.ISBN978-0-295-95645-9.
• Alaskan Tlingit and Tsimshian Essay by Jay Miller- From the University of Washington Library
• Duly, Colin.The Houses of Mankind.p. 55,58.

External links

• Map and list of Tlingit Kwaans and territories
• Tlingit Language and Culture Resources, Alaska Native Knowledge Network
• Anash Interactive—An online destination where users create comics, write stories, watch webisodes, download podcasts, play games, read stories and comics by other members, and find out about the Tlingit people of Canada.
• Tlingit Myths and Texts,John R. Swanton,Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin 39,1909
• Central Council Tlingit Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska
• The Carving of the Raven Spirit Canoe, housed in the Smithsonian InstitutionArchived17 June 2010 at theWayback MachineSmithsonian Ocean Portal
• The Tlingit Culture and Language with Resources