Northwest Indian

Member of a regional grouping of American Indian peoples occupying the shores and rivers of the Pacific coast from southern Alaska to northern California. They include Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Kwakiutl, Nootka, Makah, and Chinook peoples, among others. The region's abundant food resources, including salmon, sea lions, deer, elk, and wild plants, enabled the development of a settled culture, renowned for its woodcarving skills; distinctive totem poles and hinged masks were produced throughout the area. Extended families lived together in wood plank houses. The potlatch ceremony, gift-giving to enhance social prestige, was a particular Northwest Indian practice and was accompanied by days of feasting and dancing.

The northwest coast is a mountainous and forested region, with high rainfall. Settlement occurred along the ocean and waterways where food supplies were easily obtained. For most of the Northwest Indians, European contact did not take place until the mid-18th century. The potlatch ceremony was banned in Canada in 1880 after it became ruinously competitive for the those groups taking part.