|
|
|
This information was researched by Tyler and Sachelle in 6-09. Name of Tribe and Basic Information
The Nootka is actually the Mowachaht.
The reason why they are calledthe Nootka is because of an early explorer named
Captain James Mowachaht means the people of the deer. The Nootka were commonly referred to as the Mowachaht, but sometimes they are called Nootkans. They live along the west coast of Vancouver Island and the northwest portion of the Olympic Peninsula in the state of Washington. The Nootka tribes in Washington call themselves the Makah. The original population of the Nootka was 30 000, but now is somewhere around 7 000. The Nootkans built their houses on a sheltered beach or in a cove. This is the basic information about the Nootka. Transportation They used to travel by horseback, and by oxen. Their main means of transportation was by water. They went in dugout canoes. Some canoes could hold over 60 people. Hunting The Nootka hunted deer, elk, and bear, but what they are good at is whaling. Whaling is just hunting whales. They go hunting for whales in dug-out canoes. To keep track of a harpooned whale they used sealskin floats. They also used nets and wires at the mouth of rivers. Work The men hunted and they also carved wood. The women cooked, made clothes, and washed clothing. Tools The
Nootka had few weapons. One weapon was the kestrel knife. It is another version
of the crooked knife. Most surfaces can be carved with ease. The
Another blade is the baby straight knife. This knife is smaller than the full size but it is pointier than the other blades. Clothing The Nootka usually wore animal skins. Buckskin was the most common worn. The women wore aprons. Both painted their faces. Also both wore ornaments. They would only wear special clothing and jewelry for ceremonies. How they wore their hair is different than it is now. The men wore their hair shoulder length. Habitat The Nootka lived in a warm climate. It usually rained there and not a light rain like we get, a very heavy rain. They live on the coast of Vancouver Island. They have thick, thick forests of hemlock, fir and spruce. In Manitoba we have flat land. In Vancouver they have hardly any flat land. They have mostly mountains. The kinds of animals that lived there were deer, moose, bear, mountain goats, eagles, and many other birds. Art The Nootka carved, painted, made large puppets, and made totem poles. They made beautiful pottery with clay.
Role of Men and Women Like most people now, men and women provided the food. But the men didn’t do the family cooking. That’s what the women did. But the women didn’t do the great feasts, the men did. If you were older you were more important. If you were younger you were less important. Everybody had a ranking position. No two people in a family were ranked the same. Each person had a degree of importance. The more important you were the more ornaments you wore. You also got fancier clothes. Also in some cases you got a special name. If you were the chief you were very important. Language Nootka spoke Salishanand and Penutian. They also spoke Wakashan. In 1939 6 000 people knew how to speak the Nootka language. Bibliography
Historica Foundation of Canada World
Book Inc. (2002)
http://www.saskschools.ca/~langbank/nootka.html
Leavitt, Jerome E. America and Its Indians, Chicago. Children’s Press
1962 |
|
|
Cook. He
wanted toknow the tribe’s name, but the Mowachaht thought he was talking about a
tribe up north. 
kestrel
knife can carve things for several hours before needing maintenance. Another
knife was the straight knife. The straight knife has a short drop-point and it
also has a steel blade. This blade is good for the finishing touches. The blade
is about 8 inches long.
