The Dene people () are an Indigenous group of

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

who inhabit the northern boreal,

subarctic The subarctic zone is a region in the Northern Hemisphere immediately south of the true Arctic, north of hemiboreal regions and covering much of Alaska, Canada, Iceland, the north of Fennoscandia, Northwestern Russia, Siberia, and the Cair ...

and

Arctic The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...

regions of Canada. The Dene speak Northern Athabaskan languages and it is the common Athabaskan word for "people". The term ''"Dene"'' has two uses: Most commonly, ''"Dene"'' is used narrowly to refer to the Athabaskan speakers of the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

in Canada who form the Dene Nation: the Chipewyan (Denesuline), Tłı̨chǫ (''Dogrib''), Yellowknives (T'atsaot'ine), Slavey (Deh Gah Got'ine or Deh Cho), Sahtu (Sahtúot’ine), and Gwichʼin (Dinjii Zhuh). ''"Dene"'' is sometimes also used to refer to all Northern Athabaskan speakers, who are spread in a wide range all across

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

and

northern Canada Northern Canada (), colloquially the North or the Territories, is the vast northernmost region of Canada, variously defined by geography and politics. Politically, the term refers to the three Provinces_and_territories_of_Canada#Territories, terr ...

. The Dene people are known for their oral storytelling.

Location

Dene are spread through a wide region. They live in the Mackenzie Valley (south of the Inuvialuit), and can be found west of

Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...

. Their homeland reaches to western

Yukon Yukon () is a Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada, bordering British Columbia to the south, the Northwest Territories to the east, the Beaufort Sea to the north, and the U.S. state of Alaska to the west. It is Canada’s we ...

, and the northern part of

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

and the

southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...

. Dene were the first people to settle in what is now the

. In

, historically there were ethnic feuds between the Dene and the

Inuit Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwe ...

. In 1996, Dene and Inuit representatives participated in a healing ceremony at Bloody Falls to reconcile the centuries-old grievances.

Behchokǫ̀ Behchokǫ̀ ( ɛ́ht͡ʃʰókʰõ̀or ɛ́ht͡sʰókʰõ̀ ) (from the Tłı̨chǫ meaning "Behcho's place"), officially the ''Tłı̨chǫ Community Government of Behchokǫ̀,'' is a community in the North Slave Region of the Northwest Territ ...

, Northwest Territories is the largest Dene community in Canada.

Ethnography

The Dene include six main groups: * Chipewyan (Denesuline), living east of Great Slave Lake, and including the Sayisi Dene living at Tadoule Lake, Manitoba. * Tłı̨chǫ (Dogrib), living between Great Slave and Great Bear Lakes. * Yellowknives (T'atsaot'ine), living north of Great Slave Lake. * Slavey (Deh Gah Got'ine or Deh Cho), living southwest of Great Slave Lake and into Alberta and British Columbia. * Sahtu (Sahtúot’ine), including the Locheux, Nahanni, and Bear Lake peoples, living along the

Mackenzie River The Mackenzie River (French: ; Slavey language, Slavey: ' èh tʃʰò literally ''big river''; Inuvialuktun: ' uːkpɑk literally ''great river'') is a river in the Canadian Canadian boreal forest, boreal forest and tundra. It forms, ...

(Deh Cho) near Great Bear Lake. * Gwichʼin (Dinjii Zhuh), in the Gwich'in Settlement Region. Although the above-named groups are what the term "Dene" usually refers to in modern usage, other groups who consider themselves Dene include: * Tsuutʼina (Tsuu T'ina), a.k.a. the Sarcee, currently located near

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

. * The Dane-zaa (Danezaa, Dunne-za, or Tsattine) of northeastern

and neighbouring regions of northwestern Alberta. * The Tahltan, Kaska Dena, and Sekani peoples of the northern area of the

British Columbia Interior The British Columbia Interior, popularly referred to as the BC Interior or simply the Interior, is a geographic region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. While the exact boundaries are variously defined, the British Columbia Interior ...

. Another group in this region, the Tsetsaut, lived in the Portland Canal area of the northernmost BC Coast near the border with

. They are now extinct. * The Dakelh (Carrier) peoples of the northern and central

, and the Wetʼsuwetʼen, a Dakelh branch * The Tsilhqotʼin peoples of the eponymous Chilcotin Country of the central British Columbia Interior * The extinct Nicola Athapaskans, or Stuwix ("strangers" in the Shuswap language), migrated south from northern BC into the Nicola Valley region in the late 18th century and were absorbed into the Nicola people, an alliance of Nlaka'pamux and Syilx (Okanagan peoples). * The Tanana Athabaskans and other peoples of

and

are also considered to be Dene, which is to say part of the family of Athapaskan-speaking peoples. In 2005, elders from the Dene People decided to join the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) seeking recognition for their ancestral cultural and land rights. The largest population of Chipewyan language (Dënesųłinë́ or Dëne) speakers live in the northern Saskatchewan village of and the adjoining Clearwater River Dene Nation. In 2011 the combined population was 3389 people. The Dënesųłinë́ language is spoken by 89% of the residents.

Notable Dene

* Thanadelthur ( – 5 February 1717) a woman of the Chipewyan Nation, a guide and interpreter, who was instrumental in forging a peace agreement between the Chipewyan and the

Cree The Cree, or nehinaw (, ), are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people, numbering more than 350,000 in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada, First Nations. They live prim ...

people * Ethel Blondin-Andrew, former MP for Western Arctic (Northwest Territories) * Georges Erasmus, National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations (1985–1991) * Leela Gilday, Canadian folk singer, Juno winner * Jimmy Herman (1940-2013) actor, '' Dances with Wolves'' * Matonabbee (–1782), guide for Samuel Hearne's expedition to the Coppermine River *

Tahmoh Penikett Tahmoh Penikett (; ; born May 20, 1975) is a Canadian actor. He is known for playing Karl "Helo" Agathon on SyFy's 2004 television series '' Battlestar Galactica''. He has appeared in TV series ''Supernatural'', '' Dollhouse'', the Showcase ti ...

, actor, '' Battlestar Galactica'' and '' Dollhouse'' * Eric Schweig, actor, '' The Last of the Mohicans'' * Jim Boucher, politician, businessman * Shannon Smallwood, justice of the Supreme Court of the

* Beʼsha Blondin, elder and founder of the Arctic Indigenous Wellness Foundation * Glen Coulthard, professor of Indigenous studies and political science at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

* Chelazon Leroux, drag performer, model

Footnotes

References

Sources

* .

External links

Dene Nation

Athabasca Tribal Council
* * * * * * {{First Nations in Alberta Indigenous peoples of the Subarctic Members of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization