Tagish
Encyclopedia
The Tagish or Tagish Khwáan are a group of Athabaskan First Nation people that lived around Tagish Lake
and Marsh Lake
, in the Yukon
Territory of Canada
. Tagish people intermarried heavily with Tlingit people from the coast and the Tagish language is almost extinct. Today Tagish people live mainly in Carcross
or Whitehorse, Yukon
and are members of the Carcross/Tagish First Nation
or the Kwanlin Dün First Nation
.
Members of the Tagish First Nation made the gold
discovery that led to the Klondike Gold Rush
: Keish (Skookum Jim Mason)
, Shaaw Tláa (Kate Carmack) and Káa goox (Dawson Charlie).
The word Tagish also refers to the Tagish language
, an Athabaskan language spoken by the ancestors of these people.
Tagish means "it (spring ice) is breaking up" and also gave its name to Tagish Lake
.
There are currently only two remaining people that speak Tagish fluently.
Tagish Lake
Tagish Lake is a lake in the Yukon Territory and northern British Columbia, Canada. The lake is more than long and about 2 km wide.It has two arms, the Taku Arm in the east which is very long and mostly in British Columbia and Windy Arm in the west, mostly in the Yukon. The Klondike Highway runs...
and Marsh Lake
Marsh Lake
Marsh Lake is a widening of the Yukon River southeast of Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada. It is over 30 kilometres long and ranges from three to four kilometres wide.The co-ordinates of the lake are , and is 2,147 feet above sea level...
, in the Yukon
Yukon
Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in....
Territory of Canada
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...
. Tagish people intermarried heavily with Tlingit people from the coast and the Tagish language is almost extinct. Today Tagish people live mainly in Carcross
Carcross, Yukon
Carcross, originally known as Caribou Crossing, is an unincorporated community in the Territory of Yukon, Canada on Bennett Lake and Nares Lake. It has a population of 431 and is home to the Carcross/Tagish First Nation....
or Whitehorse, Yukon
Whitehorse, Yukon
Whitehorse is Yukon's capital and largest city . It was incorporated in 1950 and is located at kilometre 1476 on the Alaska Highway in southern Yukon. Whitehorse's downtown and Riverdale areas occupy both shores of the Yukon River, which originates in British Columbia and meets the Bering Sea in...
and are members of the Carcross/Tagish First Nation
Carcross/Tagish First Nation
The Carcross/Tagish First Nation is a First Nation in the Yukon Territory in Canada. Its original population centres were Carcross, Yukon and Tagish, Yukon, although many of its citizens also live in Whitehorse...
or the Kwanlin Dün First Nation
Kwanlin Dün First Nation
The Kwanlin Dün First Nation is located in and around Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory of Canada. It is the largest First Nation in the Yukon. Linguistically, the Kwanlin Dün are affiliated with the Southern Tutchone Tribal Council. The Kwanlin Dün include people of Southern Tutchone, Tagish and...
.
Members of the Tagish First Nation made the gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
discovery that led to the Klondike Gold Rush
Klondike Gold Rush
The Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...
: Keish (Skookum Jim Mason)
Keish
Keish , better known by his English name Skookum Jim Mason, was a Canadian native part of the Tagish First Nation in what became the Yukon Territory of Canada...
, Shaaw Tláa (Kate Carmack) and Káa goox (Dawson Charlie).
The word Tagish also refers to the Tagish language
Tagish language
Tagish is an endangered Northern Athabaskan language spoken by the Tagish people in the Yukon Territory in Canada. It is almost extinct as there are only two fluent speakers left.Tagish is closely related to Kaska and Tahltan...
, an Athabaskan language spoken by the ancestors of these people.
Tagish means "it (spring ice) is breaking up" and also gave its name to Tagish Lake
Tagish Lake
Tagish Lake is a lake in the Yukon Territory and northern British Columbia, Canada. The lake is more than long and about 2 km wide.It has two arms, the Taku Arm in the east which is very long and mostly in British Columbia and Windy Arm in the west, mostly in the Yukon. The Klondike Highway runs...
.
There are currently only two remaining people that speak Tagish fluently.