Teslin Lake is a large lake spanning the border between
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 ...
and
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 ...
, Canada. It is one of a group of large lakes in the region of far northwestern BC, east of the upper
Alaska Panhandle
Southeast Alaska, often abbreviated to southeast or southeastern, and sometimes called the Alaska(n) panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, bordered to the east and north by the northern half of the Canadian provi ...
, which are the southern extremity of the basin of the
Yukon River
The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. From its source in British Columbia, it flows through Canada's territory of Yukon (itself named after the river). The lower half of the river continues westward through the U.S ...
, and which are known in Yukon as "the Southern Lakes" (the other major ones in the group are
Atlin Lake
Atlin Lake (Tlingit language, Lingít: ''Áa Tlein'') is the largest natural lake in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia. The lake is wide and long. The northern tip of the lake is in the Yukon, as is ...
and
Tagish Lake but include
Bennett and
Lindeman Lakes, the headwaters of the Yukon River itself). The lake is fed and drained primarily by the
Teslin River, south and north, but is also fed from the east by the
Jennings River and the
Swift River, and from the west by the
Hayes River
The Hayes River is a river in Northern Manitoba, Canada, that flows from Molson Lake to Hudson Bay at York Factory. It was historically an important river in the development of Canada and is now a Canadian Heritage River and the longest natu ...
.
According to the Yukon Geographical Names Project, "Teslin" means "long water", but in the
Tlingit language
The Tlingit language ( ; ' ) is an Indigenous language of the northwestern coast of North America, which is spoken by the Tlingit people of Southeast Alaska and Western Canada and is a branch of the Na-Dene language family. Extensive effor ...
the local ''kwaan'' or tribe of Tlingit is called ''Deisleen Kwáan"'', meaning "Big Sinew Tribe".
There are three
Taku River Tlingit First Nation
The Taku River Tlingit First Nation are the band government of the Inland Tlingit in far northern British Columbia, Canada and also in Yukon. They comprise two ''ḵwaan'' (tribes) of the Tlingit people, Tlingit people, who are otherwise coastal, ...
communities around the south end of the lake in British Columbia:
Jennings River Indian Reserve No. 8,
Teslin Lake Indian Reserve No. 7 Teslin is the anglicized form of the name of the ''Deisleen Ḵwáan'' ("Big Sinew Tribe") of the Tlingit people, Tlingit people, one of two ''ḵwáan'' that are today incorporated as the Teslin Tlingit Council government in the Yukon Territory of ...
, and
Teslin Lake Indian Reserve No. 9; in the same area there once was a
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), originally the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England Trading Into Hudson’s Bay, is a Canadian holding company of department stores, and the oldest corporation in North America. It was the owner of the ...
trading post. On the Yukon portion of the lake there are three First Nation communities:
Nisutlin Indian Reserve No. 14,
Nisutlin Bay Indian Reserve No. 15, and the
Teslin Tlingit Council The Teslin Tlingit Council (TTC) is a First Nations in Canada, First Nation band government in the central Yukon in Canada, located in Teslin, Yukon along the Alaska Highway and Teslin Lake. The language originally spoken by the Teslin Tlingit or De ...
. The latter is centred in the Village of
Teslin, which is located where the