Pakuashipi, Quebec
Encyclopedia
Pakuashipi is an Innu
community in the Canadian
province of Quebec
, located on the north shore of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence
in the Côte-Nord
region. It is on the western shore of the mouth of the Saint-Augustin River, opposite the settlement of Saint-Augustin. It is not a reserve, but a community within the Municipality of Saint-Augustin, occupied by the Innu band of Pakua Shipi. Although they hold no formal legal title to the land at this time, negotiations are still ongoing to determine their aboriginal rights.
The community is serviced by a health centre, a community centre, a church, a school, a community store, a youth centre, a community radio station, an inn, municipal water and sewer system, fire station, and an aboriginal police force.
Pakuashipi is the Innu name of the Saint-Augustin River and means "shallow river", from pakua ("drained" or "dried up") and shipi ("river"). The inhabitants of this settlement are identified by other Innu groups as the Pakua-shipiunnuat, and are considered the most traditional, the most conservative Innu band, in terms of both culture and language.
and Inuit
tribes. Most of them, however, were displaced once Europeans began to exploit the area. In July 1949, the Quebec Government offered to the Innu population land with an area of 1.3 hectares (3.2 acre) in order to create a reserve. But this was refused by the federal government who deemed its population too small to justify such a decision. In the early 1960s, in order to provide essential services, the federal government decided to incorporate the Saint-Augustin group with the band at La Romaine reserve
and relocated them there. But during the night, in a storm, the group returned to their ancestral land.
On June 4, 1971, the Québec Ministry of Lands and Forests authorized the Government of Canada to build houses for the Indians of Saint Augustin on the current site. On July 27, 1987, the Saint Augustin Band changed its name to "Pakua Shipi Montagnais Band".
Population trend:
Innu
The Innu are the indigenous inhabitants of an area they refer to as Nitassinan , which comprises most of the northeastern portions of the provinces of Quebec and some western portions of Labrador...
community in the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, located on the north shore of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence
Gulf of Saint Lawrence
The Gulf of Saint Lawrence , the world's largest estuary, is the outlet of North America's Great Lakes via the Saint Lawrence River into the Atlantic Ocean...
in the Côte-Nord
Côte-Nord
Côte-Nord is the second largest administrative region by land area in Quebec, Canada, after Nord-du-Québec...
region. It is on the western shore of the mouth of the Saint-Augustin River, opposite the settlement of Saint-Augustin. It is not a reserve, but a community within the Municipality of Saint-Augustin, occupied by the Innu band of Pakua Shipi. Although they hold no formal legal title to the land at this time, negotiations are still ongoing to determine their aboriginal rights.
The community is serviced by a health centre, a community centre, a church, a school, a community store, a youth centre, a community radio station, an inn, municipal water and sewer system, fire station, and an aboriginal police force.
Pakuashipi is the Innu name of the Saint-Augustin River and means "shallow river", from pakua ("drained" or "dried up") and shipi ("river"). The inhabitants of this settlement are identified by other Innu groups as the Pakua-shipiunnuat, and are considered the most traditional, the most conservative Innu band, in terms of both culture and language.
History
The area was originally home to nomadic InnuInnu
The Innu are the indigenous inhabitants of an area they refer to as Nitassinan , which comprises most of the northeastern portions of the provinces of Quebec and some western portions of Labrador...
and Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
tribes. Most of them, however, were displaced once Europeans began to exploit the area. In July 1949, the Quebec Government offered to the Innu population land with an area of 1.3 hectares (3.2 acre) in order to create a reserve. But this was refused by the federal government who deemed its population too small to justify such a decision. In the early 1960s, in order to provide essential services, the federal government decided to incorporate the Saint-Augustin group with the band at La Romaine reserve
La Romaine, Quebec
La Romaine, also known as Unamenshipit in Innu-aimun, is an Innu First Nations reserve in the Côte-Nord region of Quebec, Canada, at the mouth of the Olomane River on the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. It belongs to the Innu band of Unamen Shipu...
and relocated them there. But during the night, in a storm, the group returned to their ancestral land.
On June 4, 1971, the Québec Ministry of Lands and Forests authorized the Government of Canada to build houses for the Indians of Saint Augustin on the current site. On July 27, 1987, the Saint Augustin Band changed its name to "Pakua Shipi Montagnais Band".
Demographics
As of December 2009, the band counted 322 members, of which 320 persons are living in the community. The number of private dwellings occupied by usual residents is 65 out of a total of 76. Mother tongues spoken are as follows:- English as first language: 0 %
- French as first language: 5.2 %
- English and French as first language: 0 %
- Other as first language: 94.8 %
Population trend:
- Population in 2006: 289 (2001 to 2006 population change: 26.8 %)
- Population in 2001: 228
- Population in 1996: 242
- Population in 1991: 211