Glossary

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Carryall

A toboggan approximately four metres long fitted with a canvas or hide container and pulled by dogs or a snowmobile. The carryall is used for transporting people and goods and is used by trappers and hunters.

Caulk

To make waterproof by filling the seams or joints of boats or houses with waterproof material.

Caulking

Material used to caulk seams.

Chipewyan (Dene) Nation

The Dene were a northern nomadic tribe whose territory stretched from the Churchill River north to the tundra, and from Hudson Bay in the east to Great Slave Lake and part of Alberta in the West. Fur traders who worked for the Hudson’s Bay Company often referred to the Dene as ‘northern Indians’. The Dene are also known as Chipewyan (meaning ‘pointy skins’), a name given to them by the Cree and which referred to the distinctive pointy tails on their long over-shirts. The Dene, which means ‘the people’. speak a distinct form of the Algonquian language group.

Coureurs des bois

Young men who left the villages of New France to live among Aboriginal Peoples; they made trading agreements and collected furs, learned Aboriginal languages, and became skilled at wilderness travel and the Aboriginal way of life.

Cree Nation Although there is evidence that the Cree lived in the parkland regions of the West for sometime, the Plains Cree originated in the east and moved to the Plains through their involvement with the fur trade. While the term ‘Cree’ most likely originated from a French name of unknown origin, Kristineaux, their own term is Nehiyawak or ‘exact people’. There are many branches of the Cree nation spread across the country , which are typically divided into the Plains Cree, Woodland Cree, Swampy Cree and Moose Cree. Originally they were woodland people and spoke the Algonquian language of Eastern Canada.

Crow Nation The Crow people are a part of the Siouan language family and share many common traits of Plains Aboriginal culture. Initially, the Crow lived on permanent settlements along the upper Missouri River in the United States. However, they migrated to the Yellowstone River area of the Rocky Mountains during the 18th century. The Crow call themselves ‘Absoraka’ meaning ‘bird people’. The Crow adopted many traits of the Plains including buffalo hunting, tipis and the Sun Dance. They participated in the fur trade and their women were known to be some of the best tanners of buffalo hide.

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