Waswanipi, Quebec
Encyclopedia
Cree
The Cree are one of the largest groups of First Nations / Native Americans in North America, with 200,000 members living in Canada. In Canada, the major proportion of Cree live north and west of Lake Superior, in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories, although...
/Iynu (Cree being an English exonym) community in the Eeyou Istchee territory of central 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....
, 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...
, located along Route 113
Quebec route 113
Route 113 is a north/south two lane highway in northern Quebec, Canada. It starts at Route 117 just north of Louvicourt and continues north and north-east roughly until Waswanipi from where it continues east until it ends at Route 167 in Chibougamau...
and near the confluence of the Chibougamau and Waswanipi Rivers. It has a population of 1,473 people (Canada 2006 Census
Canada 2006 Census
The Canada 2006 Census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population. Census day was May 16, 2006. The next census following will be the 2011 Census. Canada's total population enumerated by the 2006 census was 31,612,897...
). Waswanipi is a compound word
Compound (linguistics)
In linguistics, a compound is a lexeme that consists of more than one stem. Compounding or composition is the word formation that creates compound lexemes...
composed of wâswâ- (to fish at night using a torch) and nipî (water), and is usually translated as "light over the water" referring to the traditional night-time fishing method of luring fish to light by using torches.
The original location of the village was on an island in Lake Waswanipi
Lake Waswanipi
Lake Waswanipi is a lake in south western Quebec, Canada. Waswanipi is a native Indian term for 'light over the water'. The natives had fished with torches on this lake....
(49°39′N 76°29′W). It was the site of a Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
trading post until 1965 when the post was closed. Its residents dispersed until 1978 when the new village of Waswanipi was built about 47 km upstream the Waswanipi River from the former location.