THE LAND BETWEEN THE TWO LAKES

ʔakisq̓nuk (pronounced 'ah-kis-kuh-nook') means "land between two lakes," and our people are one of six Ktunaxa Bands living in our traditional, unceded territory here in Windermere, B.C.

Ktunaxa (pronounced ‘k-too-nah-ha’) people have occupied the lands adjacent to the Kootenay and Columbia Rivers and the Arrow Lakes of British Columbia, Canada for more than 10,000 uninterrupted years.

Our traditional territory covers about 70,000 square kilometres (27,000 square miles) within the Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia. Historically, our territory included parts of Alberta, Montana, Washington and Idaho.

For thousands of years we enjoyed the natural bounty of the land, seasonally migrating throughout our homelands to follow vegetation and hunting cycles. We obtained all our food, medicine and material for shelter and clothing from nature – hunting, fishing and gathering throughout our territory, across the Rocky Mountains and on the Great Plains of both Canada and the United States. Our Creation Story has been passed down through generations and outlines the Ktunaxa territory boundaries through the river systems, lakes, and mountain ranges. Read the Creation Story here.

European settlement in the late 1800s, followed by the establishment of Indian Reserves, led to the creation of the present Indian Bands.

The Ktunaxa First Nations in British Columbia/Canada are ʔakisq̓nuk First Nation, ʔaq̓am, yaqan nuʔkiy and Yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡi‘it. The Ktunaxa/Kootenai Tribes in the United States are Kootenai Tribe of Idaho and Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (Ksanka Band).