The Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians, formerly known as the Stillaguamish Tribe of Washington, is a

federally recognized tribe A federally recognized tribe is a Native American tribe recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs as holding a government-to-government relationship with the US federal government. In the United States, the Native American tribe ...

Stillaguamish people The Stillaguamish people (; ) are a Coast Salish, Southern Coast Salish people Indigenous peoples, Indigenous to the Stillaguamish River valley in northwestern Washington (state), Washington State in the United States, near the city of Arlingto ...

located in

Snohomish County Snohomish County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. With a population of 827,957 as of the 2020 census, it is the third-most populous county in Washington, after nearby King and Pierce counties, and the 72nd-most popul ...

, Washington. They are descended from the aboriginal Stillaguamish, listed on the

Treaty of Point Elliot The Treaty of Point Elliott of 1855, or the Point Elliott Treaty,—also known as the Treaty of Point Elliot / Point Elliot Treaty—is the lands settlement treaty between the United States government and the Native American tribes of the greater ...

as the Stoluck-wa-mish River Tribe. Although the Stillaguamish had existed for thousands of years prior, the Stillaguamish Tribe as it is today was founded on January 31, 1953, when the tribe ratified its constitution. The tribe eventually petitioned for federal recognition in 1974, which they received two years later in 1976. In 2014, the tribe was finally granted a reservation. The Stillaguamish Tribe is governed by the Stillaguamish Tribal Council, which carries out the administrative duties of the tribe. The tribe operates several businesses and services, both on and off the reservation.

Name

The name "Stillaguamish" is an

anglicization Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English languag ...

of their Lushootseed

endonym An endonym (also known as autonym ) is a common, name for a group of people, individual person, geographical place, language, or dialect, meaning that it is used inside a particular group or linguistic community to identify or designate them ...

, . The Lushootseed name means "people of the river," from the root word meaning "river" and the suffix meaning "people." The name is a drainage term, referring not to a central village but to all the people living along the Stillaguamish River.

History

In 1855, the Stillaguamish were party to the Treaty of Point Elliott, alongside many other Puget Sound peoples. The Stillaguamish were listed on the treaty as the Stoluck-wa-mish River Tribe. Although the treaty promised the establishment of a Stillaguamish reservation, one was not established until 2014. For this reason, many Stillaguamish remained in their traditional homelands, unrecognized and off reservation lands. On January 31, 1953, the Stillaguamish Tribe of Washington wrote and approved their constitution, which established a democratically elected six-member tribal council. In 1974, the tribe petitioned for federal recognition, which was achieved on October 27, 1976. In 2014, the tribe owned 64 acres of land, which were recognized as a reservation for the tribe.

Government

The administrative duties of the Stillaguamish Tribe are performed by the Stillaguamish Tribal Council, also called the board of directors. The tribal council is composed of six popularly-elected members, including a chairman, Vice-chairman, Treasurer, Secretary, and two additional members. As of September 2024, the membership of the Stillaguamish Tribal Council is as follows: * Chairman: Eric White * Vice Chairman: Kadi Bizyayeva * Secretary: Gary Tatro * Treasurer: Joshua Wells * Jeremy Smith * Stacy White

Language

The language of the Stillaguamish Tribe is

Lushootseed Lushootseed ( ), historically known as Puget Salish, Puget Sound Salish, or Skagit-Nisqually, is a Central Coast Salish language of the Salishan language family. Lushootseed is the general name for the dialect continuum composed of two main di ...

, a Coast Salish language spoken by many different tribes throughout the Puget Sound region. Today, English is the more-commonly spoken language by members of the tribe, although the tribe is working to revitalize the language. The Cultural Resources Department of the tribe manages the tribe's cultural elements, including language. They offer classes for Lushootseed, and the tribe has a YouTube channel where they offer resources and lessons in Lushootseed.

Economic Development

The Stillaguamish Tribal Business Development Department develops and works in partnership with the board of directors for the tribe's businesses. Businesses operated by the tribe include River Rock Tobacco & Fuel and the Angel of the Winds Casino Resort, all located in Arlington."Angel of the Winds Casino."
''500 Nations.'' Retrieved September 26, 2013.

Stillaguamish Reservation

The Stillaguamish Reservation was established in 2014 and is composed of several parcels of land, totaling 64 acres.

References

External links

Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians
official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Stillaguamish Tribe Of Indians Of Washington Coast Salish governments Native American tribes in Washington (state) Geography of Snohomish County, Washington Federally recognized tribes in the United States Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast