INTRODUCTION

The Northern Tutchone people, now known as the Selkirk First Nation, led a nomadic lifestyle of hunting and fishing spent in groups of one or two families. At certain times of year

the small groups came together for special occasions like feasts and potlatches (a memorial ceremony held a year or two after a person’s death), and seasonal festivals.

Traditionally hospitable people, the Northern Tutchone frequently welcomed other First Nation communities to their land. Trade attracted these native groups to Fort Selkirk and intermarriages amongst different First Nations people were common.

The Northern Tutchone people see their traditional territory as much more than an inanimate landscape. It is a land of memories, and over the millennia the Northern Tutchone developed names for every lake, trail, hill, mountain and river in the area. Often these names signify a legend or an event.

As Europeans began to explore the area in the 19^th century, some of them were little interested with First Nation names. Men such as Robert Campbell and Lt. Frederick Schwatka tended to rename the places they visited and printed those new names on early maps. The renaming of the Northern Tutchone homeland has resulted in the loss of some of the oral history of the area.

Recently, work has been undertaken to unearth and re-establish traditional Northern Tutchone placenames. Through the consultation of elders, the original names have been recorded and certain places have been returned to their original First Nations names.

Despite the fact that Fort Selkirk has not been an active community since the early 1950's the First Nations perception of Fort Selkirk as a living community has survived through the joint efforts of the Yukon Heritage Branch and Selkirk First Nation members who interpret, manage and maintain Fort Selkirk.