The Methow ( ) are a Native American tribe that lived along the

Methow River The Methow River ( ) is a tributary of the Columbia River in northern Washington in the United States. The river's watershed drains the eastern North Cascades, with a population of about 5,000 people. The Methow's watershed is characterized by ...

, a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainag ...

of the Columbia River in northern Washington. The river's English name is taken from that of the tribe. The name "Methow" comes from the

Okanagan The Okanagan ( ), also known as the Okanagan Valley and sometimes as the Okanagan Country, is a region in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. It is pa ...

placename ''/mətxʷú/'', meaning "sunflower (seeds)". The tribe's name for the river was ''Buttlemuleemauch'', meaning "salmon falls river". The Methow were a relatively small tribe, with an estimated population of 800 in 1780 and 300 in 1870. Today, the Methow live primarily on the

Colville Indian Reservation The Colville Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation in the northwest United States, in north central Washington, inhabited and managed by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, which is federally recognized. Established i ...

in Washington, where they form part of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, which is recognized by the United States government as an American Indian Tribe. The Methow now speak English. Their endangered language, known as Colville-Okanagan, spoken only by older adults, is a part of the Southern

Interior Salish The Interior Salish languages are one of the two main branches of the Salishan language family, the other being Coast Salish. It can be further divided into Northern and Southern subbranches. The first Salishan people encountered by American expl ...

linguistic branch.

Notes

{{authority control Native American tribes in Washington (state) Interior Salish People from Okanogan County, Washington