Tāłtān: The name Tahltan comes from the language of our Tlingit neighbours. Our own language is called Tāłtān, or dah dẕāhge (“our language”), a Dene language that is endangered, with 180 native speakers recorded in the 2021 census. In 1910, Chief Nanok and 80 other Tahltan leaders signed the Tahltan Declaration.

Population: The Tahltan Central Government says it represents approximately 5,000 members, while the BC government lists 3,063. About 800 members live in the three communities of Tahltan Territory: Tatl’ah (Dease Lake), Łuwechōn (Iskut), and Tlēgōhīn (Telegraph Creek).

Territory and Treaty: Our territory spans 95,933 square km of Northwest British Columbia, centred on the Stikine River, with Tahltan Central Government offices in Dease Lake and Telegraph Creek. There is no treaty. Discussions with British Columbia are taking place outside the treaty process, and neither band is affiliated with a tribal council, as the Tahltan Central Government fills that role itself.

Culture: The Tahltan have two primary clans, Crow and Wolf, each divided into matrilineal sub-clans. Our identity is integrally tied to the land and the wealth of the resources therein, and our territory includes 70 per cent of BC’s Golden Triangle, a major mining region.

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