The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw ([ˈkʷakʷəkʲəʔwakʷ]), also known as the Kwakiutl[2][3] (/ˈkwɑːkjʊtəl/; "Kwakʼwala-speaking peoples"),[4][5] are an indigenous group of the Pacific Northwest Coast, in southwestern Canada.

The anthropologist Franz Boas had done most of his anthropological work in this area and popularized the term for both this nation and the collective as a whole.

Animals that figure in these origin myths include the Thunderbird and his brother, Kolas, the seagull, orca, grizzly bear, or chief ghost.

[9] Historically, the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw economy was based primarily on fishing, with the men also engaging in some hunting, and the women gathering wild fruits and berries.

Ornate weaving and woodwork were important crafts, and wealth, defined by slaves and material goods, was prominently displayed and traded at potlatch ceremonies.

Disease, which developed as a result of direct contact with European settlers along the West Coast of Canada, drastically reduced the Indigenous Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw population during the late 19th-early 20th century.

[11] An account of experiences of two founders of early residential schools for Aboriginal children was published in 2006 by the University of British Columbia Press.

A second book was published in 2005 by the University of Calgary Press, The Letters of Margaret Butcher – Missionary Imperialism on the North Pacific Coast,[13] edited by Mary-Ellen Kelm.

A review article entitled Mothers of a Native Hell,[14] about these two books, was published in the British Columbia online news magazine The Tyee in 2007.

Restoring their ties to their land, culture and rights, the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw have undertaken much in bringing back their customs, beliefs and language.

Artists in the 19th and 20th centuries, such as Mungo Martin, Ellen Neel and Willie Seaweed, have taken efforts to revive Kwakwakaʼwakw art and culture.

A head chief who, through primogeniture, could trace his origins to that naʼmima's ancestors delineated the roles throughout the rest of his family.

Over time, the potlatch tradition created a demand for stored surpluses, as such a display of wealth had social implications.

[23] As with other Pacific Northwest nations, the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw highly valued copper in their economy and used it for ornament and precious goods.

Contact with European settlers, particularly through the Hudson's Bay Company, brought an influx of copper to their territories.

The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw nations also were aware of silver and gold, and crafted intricate bracelets and jewellery from hammered coins traded from European settlers.

In this system, it was considered prestigious for a buyer to purchase the same piece of copper at a higher price than it was previously sold, in their version of an art market.

[23] If a host still held a surplus of copper after throwing an expensive potlatch, he was considered a wealthy and important man.

The act represents a challenge; if the target cannot break a plaque of equal or greater value, he or she is shamed.

The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw shared many cultural and political alliances with numerous neighbours in the area, including the Nuu-chah-nulth, Heiltsuk, Wuikinuxv and some Coast Salish.

Although Kwakʼwala and Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw culture have been well-studied by linguists and anthropologists, these efforts did not reverse the trends leading to language loss.

A 2005 proposal to build a Kwakwakaʼwakw First Nations Centre for Language Culture has gained wide support.

Woven textiles included the Chilkat blanket, dance aprons and button cloaks, each patterned with Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw designs.

The Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw used a variety of objects for jewellery, including ivory, bone, abalone shell, copper, silver and more.

The music is used primarily for ceremony and ritual, and is based on percussive instrumentation, especially log, box, and hide drums, as well as rattles and whistles.

The four-day Klasila festival is an important cultural display of song and dance and masks; it occurs just before the advent of the tsetseka, or winter.

When the Canadian government was focused on assimilation of First Nations, it made the potlatch a target of activities to be suppressed.

Missionary William Duncan wrote in 1875 that the potlatch was "by far the most formidable of all obstacles in the way of Indians becoming Christians, or even civilized".

[31] In 1885, the Indian Act was revised to include clauses banning the potlatch and making it illegal to practise.

Duncan Campbell Scott convinced Parliament to change the offence from criminal to summary, which meant "the agents, as justice of the peace, could try a case, convict, and sentence".