Nicola Country

The Nicola Country, also known as the Nicola Valley and often referred to simply as The Nicola, and originally Nicolas' Country or Nicholas' Country, adapted to Nicola's Country and simplified since, is a region in the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It is the main subregion of the larger Thompson Country and is often referred to separately, or in combination forms, notably the Thompson-Nicola Regional District. The combination Nicola-Similkameen is also common.

The Nicola Country is roughly synonymous with the basin of the Nicola River, but unlike other similar region-names in BC was not named for the river. Rather, both were named as a result of this region being the territory under the rule of Nicola (Hwistesmexteqen), the most prominent and influential of the chiefs of the Nicola people, who like the river and region were named for the chief, i.e. "Nicola's people". Nicola was the son of Pelkamulox, an Okanagan chief who, at the invitation of Kwa'lila, the Secwepemc chief of Kamloops, settled in the valley to escape harassment at his former domicile at the head of Okanagan Lake and founded there the joint community of Okanagans and Nlaka'pamux known as the Nicola people and whose government is the Nicola Tribal Association, and at one time included members of the now-extinct "Stuwix" or Nicola Athapaskans.

Other than the several First Nations reserves in the Nicola Country, there are a number of small non-indigenous settlements. The area's only significant and largest town is Merritt, home to the Merritt Mountain Music Festival. Also of note in the region is the Douglas Lake Ranch, one of the world's largest ranches. Its headquarters are just west of Merritt at Douglas Lake but whose lands span most of the Thompson Plateau and also country beyond it to the northeast in the Shuswap Highland and to the north in the Bonaparate Plateau. .

Climate and terrain

Located in the rainshadow of the Canadian Cascades and the Lillooet Ranges of the Coast Mountains, the climate of the Nicola Country is dry and, in summers, quite hot. Due to a higher location than surrounding basins, it tends to be much colder than Kamloops, the Okanagan, the Shuswap or the lower Thompson areas. Vegetation in lower elevations tends towards sagebrush and open pine and deciduous, with high-elevation areas thick with coniferous forest. Wildlife are abundant, and the presence of the timber rattler in the region is to be noted.

References

• BCGNIS listing "Nicola Country"
• The Thompson Country, Mark Sweeten Wade

This First Nations-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Thompson Country Thompson-Nicola Regional District Valleys of British Columbia Nlaka'pamux First Nations history in British Columbia History of British Columbia British Columbia Interior geography stubs First Nations stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую Charles Kerins Alexander B. Yano Look at other dictionaries: Nicola (chief) — Nicola (1780/1785 1865) (Spokan Hwistesmetxe qen, Walking Grizzly Bear), also Nkwala or N kwala, was an important First Nations political figure in the fur trade era of the British Columbia Interior (early 19th century to 1858) as well as into… …   Wikipedia Nicola River — Country Canada Province British Columbia …   Wikipedia Nicola Lake — Location British Columbia Coordinates 50°10′N 120°31′W …   Wikipedia Nicola language — Nicola Spoken in Canada Region British Columbia Ethnicity Nicola Athapaskans Extinct ? Language family …   Wikipedia Nicola Valley Museum and Archives — Established 1980 1 Location 1675 Tutill Court, Box 1262 Merritt, British Columbia, Canada Type regional historic museum …   Wikipedia Nicola Valley Institute of Technology — Motto Education, Strength, Leadership Established 1983 Type Aboriginal run post secondary institution Religious affiliation non denominational Undergraduates …   Wikipedia Nicola Athapaskans — This article is for the extinct Athapaskan speaking group of the Nicola Country of British Columbia. For the modern group known as the Nicola, see Nicola people. The Nicola Athapaskans, also known as the Nicola people or Stuwix, were an… …   Wikipedia Nicola people — This article is for the modern group of First Nations Interior Salishan people known as the Nicola. For the extinct Athapaskan people commonly known by the same name, see Nicola Athapaskans. The Nicola people are a historic First Nations… …   Wikipedia Nicola (people) — This article is for the modern group of First Nations Interior Salishan people known as the Nicola. For the extinct Athapaskan people commonly known by the same name, see Nicola Athapaskans.The Nicola people are a historic First Nations political …   Wikipedia Nicola (name) — Nicholas Miklos Mikołaj Mikuláš Nicola Nicolas Nicolau Nicolay Niccolò Nikola Nikolay …   Wikipedia 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”