Dakelh

The Dakelh or Carrier are an Indigenous group who live in British Columbia.

Name

The name "Carrier" came from the custom of a widow carrying the ashes of her dead husband for 3 years.

They call themselves the "Dakelh / Dakelh-ne" (ᑕᗸᒡ), which means "people who travel by boat early in the morning."

They also call themselves Yinka Dene (people of the land), while the Carrier who speak the Babine-Witsuwitʼen language call themselves Yinka Whut'en which means the same thing.

Most of the time, they call themselves often simply Dune ("person", "human") or Dune-ne and Dune-ke/Dune-koh (ᑐᘅᘅ, "people", "men").

Home

The Dakelh live in northern British Columbia along the Fraser River. Their homeland has lots of forests and lakes.

Culture

The Dakelh way of live is based on the seasons. In summer, they gather berries. They also fish for salmon and hunt deer.