The Dene Thá (/'tɛnɛ ðɑː/) First Nation is a

First Nations government In Canada, an Indian band or band (french: bande indienne, link=no), sometimes referred to as a First Nation band (french: bande de la Première Nation, link=no) or simply a First Nation, is the basic unit of government for those peoples subjec ...

of the South Slavey in

Northern Alberta Northern Alberta is a geographic region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. An informally defined cultural region, the boundaries of Northern Alberta are not fixed. Under some schemes, the region encompasses everything north of the ce ...

, Canada. The people call themselves Dene Dháa (sometimes spelled Dene Tha' or Dene Th'a) or 'Ordinary People' in the Dene Dháh language. Its population is centered primarily in three communities: Bushe River, Meander River, and

Chateh Chateh is an unincorporated community in northern Alberta in Hay Lake I.R. 209, located north of Highway 58, northwest of High Level High Level is a town in northern Alberta, Canada. It is located at the intersection of the Mackenzie Highwa ...

(formerly known as Assumption), but approximately 600 members who live off-reserve. Dene Thá First Nation is

Treaty 8 Treaty 8, which concluded with the June 21, 1899 signing by representatives of the Crown and various First Nations of the Lesser Slave Lake area, is the most comprehensive of the one of eleven Numbered Treaties. The agreement encompassed a ...

nation and a member of the North Peace Tribal Council.

Territories

The following areas are reserved for the Dene Thá: Amber River 211,

Bistcho Lake 213 Bistcho Lake 213 is an Indian reserve of the Dene Tha' First Nation in Alberta, located within Mackenzie County Mackenzie County is a specialized municipality in northern Alberta, Canada. It is located in Census Division 17, along the Mackenz ...

Bushe River 207 Bushe River 207 is an Indian reserve of the Dene Tha' First Nation in Alberta, located within Mackenzie County. To the west, it is adjacent to the town of High Level. In the 2016 Canadian Census The 2016 Canadian census was an enumeration of ...

Hay Lake 209 Hay Lake 209 is an Indian reserve of the Dene Tha' First Nation in Alberta, located within Mackenzie County. It is northwest of High Level. In the 2016 Canadian Census The 2016 Canadian census was an enumeration of Canadian residents, which ...

Jackfish Point 214 Jackfish Point 214 is an Indian reserve of the Dene Tha' First Nation in Alberta, located within Mackenzie County Mackenzie County is a specialized municipality in northern Alberta, Canada. It is located in Census Division 17, along the Macke ...

Upper Hay River 212 Upper Hay River 212 is an Indian reserve of the Dene Tha' First Nation in Alberta, located within Mackenzie County. It is 80 kilometres northwest of High Level. In the 2016 Canadian Census The 2016 Canadian census was an enumeration of Canadian ...

, and

Zama Lake 210 Zama Lake 210 is an Indian reserve of the Dene Tha' First Nation in Alberta, located within Mackenzie County. It is west of Zama Lake Zama Lake is a large lake in Mackenzie County, in north-western Alberta, Canada. Major Ernest Wilson Hubbell, ...

The total area of the reserves is . Until the 1950s, the Dene Thá lived a semi-nomadic lifestyle and hunted in their traditional territory, which included land in the northwestern corner of Alberta, the southern Northwest Territories, and the northeastern corner of British Columbia. Today, many live in permanent settlements in and around Bushe River, Meander River, and Chateh.Harvey-Trigoso, Kim (1999). ''Ecological knowledge of the Dene Tha': Traditional subsistence activities and childhood socialization''. University of Calgary. The Dene Thá First Nation signed Treaty 8 in 1900.

Demographics

the First Nations registered population was 2871 with 2017 members living on reserves or crown land and 854 members living off reserve.

Language

Dene Dháh (/'dɛnɛ ðɑh/) translates to 'Dene language' is the preferred name for the language spoken by the Dene Thá, but linguists and anthropologists commonly refer to the language simply as a dialect of South Slavey. It has been called Slavey, South Slavey, Alberta Slavey, and

Dene The Dene people () are an indigenous group of First Nations who inhabit the northern boreal and Arctic regions of Canada. The Dene speak Northern Athabaskan languages. ''Dene'' is the common Athabaskan word for "people". The term "Dene" h ...

, a catch-all term which encompasses several

Northern Athabaskan Northern Athabaskan is a geographic sub-grouping of the Athabaskan language family spoken by indigenous peoples in the northern part of North America, particularly in Alaska (Alaskan Athabaskans), Yukon, and the Northwest Territories. The North ...

language groups.Moore, Patrick and Angela Wheelock. 1990. Wolverine Myths and Visions: Dene Traditions from Northern Alberta. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. Dene Dháh, the only variety of South Slavey spoken in Alberta (Dene Zhatié is spoken in the Northwest Territories), belongs to the Northern Athabaskan subgrouping of the Athabaskan language family. It is closely related to languages such as

Dane-Zaa The Dane-zaa (ᑕᓀᖚ, also spelled Dunne-za, or Tsattine) are an Athabaskan-speaking group of First Nations people. Their traditional territory is around the Peace River in Alberta and British Columbia, Canada. Today, about 1,600 Dane-zaa re ...

, Kaska, Dëne Sųłiné, and Tłı̨chǫ Yatıì''.''

Dialects

Dene Dháh has three distinct

dialect The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety of a language that ...

s: * Xewónst’e ( Fort Vermilion-Eleske) * Xewónht’e ( Assumption- Habay) * Kegúnht’u (

Bistcho Lake Bistcho Lake is a large lake in northwestern Alberta, Canada. Bistcho Lake has a total area of (with islands area and water surface), and lies at an elevation of . It is the third largest lake in Alberta. Bistcho Lake is located in the hyd ...

) Each dialect name translates to "It's like that" and exhibits variation typical of the dialects.

Linguistic vitality

Most Dene Dháa adults speak Dene Dháh as their first language, and the language is still being passed on to children. In 2006, a survey conducted among school-aged children in Chateh reported a native-speaker proficiency rate of 65%.

References

External links

Dene Tha' official websiteEthnologue
{{Authority control Dene governments First Nations governments in Alberta