Wuikinuxv people

The Wuikinuxv people, also known as the Wuikenukv, Oweekeno, Wikeno, Owikeno, Oowekeeno, Oweekano, Awikenox, or Rivers Inlet people, are an Indigenous First Nations people of the Central Coast region of the Canadian province of British Columbia, located around Rivers Inlet and Owikeno Lake, to the north of Queen Charlotte Strait. The Wuikinuxv people and their neighbours the Heiltsuk and Haisla peoples were in the past sometimes known incorrectly as the "Northern Kwakiutl".

Culture

A recently completed Bighouse, which is the first in many long years, is the focus on a rebuilding of Wuikinukv society.

The culture was structured much the same as the other indigenous peoples of the coast. At the height of the coastal civilization, the Wuikinukv territory encompassed the mouth of Rivers Inlet to the head waters of Owikeno Lake.

Language

Main article: Oowekyala language

Oowekyala, the language of the Wuikinuxv, is closely related to the Heiltsuk language, so much so that it is considered one of two dialects of an unnamed language named Heiltsuk-Oowekyala, the other dialect being Heiltsuk. It is also closely related to Haisla and is also related to Kwak'wala, the most widely-spoken of the Northern Wakashan languages. It is more distantly related to Nuu-chah-nulth, Ditidaht and Makah, the Southern Wakashan languages.

Government

The government of the Wuikinuxv people is the Wuikinuxv Nation.

Location and services

At present the small community of Rivers Inlet, British Columbia exists on the banks of the 3 km Wannock River, which connects Owikeno Lake to the head of Rivers Inlet. It has an airstrip and daily service from a local airline. In the summer months, airline service is disrupted by the traffic in and out of the sport-fishing camps. The airline favors the tourists as opposed to the local community