Chilcotin Country

Tŝilhqóx / Nen
"Ochre River"/"Land"
PeopleNenqayni[1] (Tŝilhqotʼin)
LanguageNenqayni Ch'ih (Tŝilhqotʼin Chʼih)
CountryTŝilhqotʼin Nen

The Chilcotin (/tʃɪlˈkoʊtɪn/)[2] region of British Columbia is usually known simply as "the Chilcotin", and also in speech commonly as "the Chilcotin Country" or simply Chilcotin. It is a plateau and mountain region in British Columbia on the inland lee of the Coast Mountains on the west side of the Fraser River. Chilcotin is also the name of the river draining that region. In the language of the Tsilhqot'in people, their name and the name of the river means "those of the red ochre river" (its tributary the Chilko River means "red ochre river"). The proper name of the Chilcotin Country, or Tsilhqotʼin territory, in their language is Tŝilhqotʼin Nen.[3]

The Chilcotin district is often viewed as an extension of the Cariboo region, east of that river, although it has a distinct identity from the Cariboo District. It is, nonetheless, part of the Cariboo Regional District which is a municipal-level body governing some aspects of infrastructure and land-used planning. The vast majority of the population are First Nations people, members of the Tsilhqot'in and Dakelh peoples, while others are settlers and ranchers.

  1. ^ Pallarés, Paula Laita (2021). Indigenous Language Revitalization in British Columbia: Yuneŝit’in strategies for Nenqayni ch’ih or the Tŝilhqot’in language (PDF) (PhD thesis). University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU. Retrieved 29 Oct 2023.
  2. ^ The Canadian Press (2017), The Canadian Press Stylebook (18th ed.), Toronto: The Canadian Press
  3. ^ "Lands & Resources". Tsilhqot'in Nation. Tsilhqot'in National Government. Retrieved 29 October 2023.