A Pacific Northwest Coast American Indian group in Queen Charlotte I, British Columbia, famous for their wood carvings, totem poles, and canoes. They traditionally lived by fishing and hunting, and held potlatch ceremonies, distributing ceremonial goods.
For the tribal class ship of the Canadian Navy, see HMCS Haida (G63).| Haida | |
|---|---|
| Total population | c. 2,000 |
| Regions with significant populations | Canada (British Columbia), United States (Alaska) |
| Language | English, Haida |
| Religion | |
The Haida are an indigenous people of the west coast of North America. The Haida Nation claimed territories comprise an archipelago called the Queen Charlotte Islands or Haida Gwaii as the Haida refer to the islands - and parts of southeast Alaska. The Haida are commonly referred to in Canada as being a First Nations "band" (not "tribe" as in American parlance).
The Haida people are well known as skilled artisans of wood, metal and design. Haida communities located in Prince of Wales Island, Alaska, and the Queen Charlotte Islands also share a common border with other indigenous peoples such as the Tlingit and the Cape Fox tribes of the Tsimshian.
The Tlingit called the Haida Deikeenaa, "far out to sea people", from the distance separating Haida Gwaii from the mainland and the Alexander Archipelago.
Although Haida societal structure is a living process, its roots are in the ancient potlatch system, and remain recognizable in contemporary political, economic and legal functions. On that portion of Haida territory claimed by Canada, the two communities of Massett and Skidegate have Band Councils that experience varying degrees of influence and control by Canada's federal government. The persistence of Haida government can be seen in that the influence of the Band Councils, insofar as they may be seen as agents of Canadian government authority, are regulated by a community governance system of Matriarchs and Lineage authorities.
Haidas were traditionally known as fierce warriors and slave-traders, raiding as far as California. Haida oral narratives record journeys as far north as the Bering Sea, and one account implies that even Asia was visited by Haidas before Europeans entered the Pacific. The Haida ability to travel was dependent upon a supply of ancient Western Redcedar trees that they carved into their famous Pacific Northwest Canoes. Haida warriors entered battle with redcedar armor, wooden shields, stone maces and atlatls.
The Haida were hunters and gatherers.
Like all indigenous peoples of the northeast coast of the Pacific Ocean, the Haida make extensive use of redcedar bark, which is still used both as a textile for clothing, ropes and sails, and in its raw form, as a building material or even armor. The famous Haida totem poles were also carved on the trunks of Red Cedar trees. The diversity of Haida design can be seen in its expression as Haida Manga.
The Haida theory of social structure is based on moiety lineages.
Tribal/Band Government
Although much reduced by commercial activities, the natural abundance of forest and sea in the Haida archipelagos remains an essential aspect of contemporary Haida culture. The Council of the Haida Nation continues to pursue a policy of rescuing natural lands and waters. It is also co-managing, with the government of Canada, the wild and diverse islands of the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site, which is reserved for National Park status within the Canadian National Park system. The Haidas comprise an international tribe whose principal residences are in Masset and Skidegate, British Columbia; There are also many Haidas in various urban areas in the western United States and Canada. Before contact with Europeans in the late eighteenth century, the Haidas lived on what are now the Queen Charlotte Islands and the Alexander Archipelago off the northwest coast of North America.
The Haida of Alaska traditionally lived in three villages on the west coast of Prince of Wales Island and in one village on the island's east coast. In 1911, with the encouragement and support of the U.S. government and the Presbyterian Church, the three Haida villages of Cordova Bay consolidated at Hydaburg. 1555, establishing the Hydaburg Reservation for the protection and civilization of the Haida.
The Haida have been involved in three distinct processes of adjudicating their aboriginal claims. In 1935 the Tlingit and Haida brought suit against the United States in a court of claims case that awarded the Tlingit and Haida of Alaska $7.2 million for the taking of aboriginal lands by the United States when it established the Alexander Archipelago Forest Reserve (now known as the Tongass National Forest) in 1902. The Tlingit and Haida Central Council was designated as the administrator of funds and programs derived from the court of claims case. Village corporations with significant Haida shareholders include Haida Corporation in Hydaburg, Kavilco in Kasaan, and Shaan-Seet in Craig.
In contrast to the Haida in Alaska, Haida in the towns of Masset and Skidegate in the Canadian reserves were administered by the Canadian Department of Indian Affairs. During the 1960s, when the Canadian authorities encouraged greater Indian participation in self-governance, the Masset and Skidegate Haidas renewed their traditional arts, including the erection of totem poles, the revival of dance, and the building of canoes. Back in the 1980s, the two villages formed the Council of the Haida Nation to support their political interests.
The issue most important to the modern Haidas continues to be the establishment of a governing body that will have political and economic control of their ancestral homelands. Problems with defining the role of an officially recognized Haida tribe are complicated by the Indian Reorganization Act, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, and the institutions created under those laws
As for the Haida Nation in Canada, the 2004 Supreme Court of Canada in Haida Nation v. 511 declared that the Crown had a legal duty to consult with the Haida Nation and accommodate their interests when issuing a timber license to a forestry company for harvesting wood on lands claimed by the Haida Nation. 1010 where the Court had established the legal precedent that a First Nations band in Canada can make claim to "Aboriginal title" to specific land, despite Crown sovereignty over all lands in Canada, if they had occupied such land prior to the Crown asserting its sovereignty over this land and if the specific land itself is integral to the First Nations band's distinctive culture.
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