The Séliš-Ql̓ispé Ethnogeography Project
From the earliest SQCC recordings in 1975, the elders told us about place-names. They wanted us to learn these powerful words and all they have to teach us about our spirituality, our cultural relationships with the lands and waters, and our history.
For almost half a century, the culture committee has combed through our recordings of the elders, and also searched for information provided by earlier generations of elders held in archives and libraries across the country and the world. We have carried out extensive fieldwork throughout our aboriginal lands, recording the memories and insights of elders, and continue to do so today. We’ve held countless meetings with elders to review and correct our work. The materials that are coming out of the Séliš- Ql̓ispé Ethnogeography Project are based on that massive and rigorous foundation of research and consultation.
We have now documented approximately 1500 Salish place-names across our vast territories. But we don’t want this material to gather dust on a shelf. We want it to be part of the revitalization of our cultural ways. We want to fulfill the dream of our elders that one day, we will once again know these places by the names they were called by the ancestors. This project is therefore also dedicated to returning our place-names to our daily lives and to the land itself.
To learn more:
Brochure and Guide to Available Materials
2023 Selis u Qlispe - Nations Names & Territories
An illustrated, footnoted, 30-page booklet providing a detailed overview of the project, our methodology, and what we are producing.
An interactive map showing the locations of our emerging series of signs.
Séliš-Ql̓ispé TIMELINE | since the last ice age
St̓lt̓úlix͏ʷs Séliš u Ql̓ispéSt̓lt̓úlix͏ʷs Séliš u Ql̓ispéTerritories of the Salish, Kalispel & Related Nations
Nɫʔay | PLACE OF SMALL BULL TROUT The Missoula Area and the Séliš & Ql̓ispé People
An illustrated brochure of materials now available.