HÉNƛ̓IKʷILAXʷ – a x̄á’isla origin story

We are here to retrace the journey of Waamis /hénƛ̓ikʷilaxʷ. The first x̄á’isla person that arrived in the area.

Getting to retrace some of his footsteps and his journey, it’s pretty amazing.

Title: hénƛ̓ikʷilaxʷ a haisla origin story.

Long ago in a small village in Rivers Inlet called…

…Suəmx̌ulh, there lived a young man by the name of Waamis.

He had married the chief’s daughter of that village. One evening he and his wife were sitting around the fire.

They got into a disagreement and this argument led to Waamis picking up a stone and
tossing it in his wife’s direction

It was said that the stone accidently struck her in the temple killing her.

As a result of that her father sought a revenge against Waamis and his family and he called together a group of his braves and he ordered them to kill Waamis and his family.

Luckily for Waamis, his friend ran to warn Waamis of what was going to happen.

Waamis began to pack up his family and he fled the area.

He travelled by night to avoid being seen by day.

I can’t even begin to imagine how hard that must have been travelling by night in these waters.

Rewind the story a little bit back….

….to a time where there were some hunters that got lost and there was a hunting party that was sent out searching for this lost group of hunters.

Eventually the people that were searching for them wound up in the Kitimaat area and they were scared away by what they believed to be a giant white monster…

…that dwelled at the mouth of the river.

That story of that monster must have been told up and down the coast, so the area was largely unoccupied because of that monster.

Waamis must have heard the story and knew that this area was a place he could probably seek refuge with his family.

And this is where he first arrived.

Here he stayed camped out for a little while before he became curious enough to check out the monster for himself.

He ventured with his friend who was a brave, the informant.

And as they got closer and closer to the giant white monster, he realized that they were in fact, a big flock of seagulls that were feeding off the abundance of oolichan in the Kitamaat river.

So when he realized that, and realized that they were feeding off of oolichan, he asked his elderly mother to taste test some oolichan to see if it was safe for them to eat.

She ate an abundance of them, fell asleep, woke up and deemed it was safe for them to eat.

Then he decided that it was a good place to relocate to because of the abundance of things that they could harvest in the area.

They moved their camp to the mouth of the river and one day a paddle came floating down the river which indicated to them that they weren’t alone.

So, they decided to go and explore to see who was nearby.

And when they got closer, they had come across a group of Tsimshian people.

They couldn’t understand each other because they spoke different languages, but he somehow invited them to join him for a meal with his camp.

They enjoyed each other’s company so much so that he invited them to permanently reside with his camp.

But in order to do that he asked them to relinquish their sense of owner ship to the community they were coming from.

They agreed to do that and that was essentially the start of x̄á’isla Nation or x̄á’isla people.

When he had enough people in his community, he wanted to c̓úxʷa or cleanse himself of the shame of his past and so he changed his name from Waamis to Hénƛ̓ikʷilaxʷ

and Hénƛ̓ikʷilaxʷ means “man who hunts with a bow and arrow.”

It is important as a x̄á’isla person to understand that piece of our history and to know where we came from and our origins.

"People of the Snow."

HÉNƛ̓IKʷILAXʷ – a x̄á’isla origin story

’áx̄nukʷ qáɫdud qi q̓áɫduasus Waamis …
…qi ’ám̓aki x̄á’isla ’áqel qix gugʷásganuxʷ

qáɫdu qi qal̓i’ásisi du qi qál̓iniasi, ’úm̓ac wáɫdem!

qic ḡiálicx̄i ’emáis gugʷás River’s Inlet – ’uík̓inix̄ʷ…

gúkʷeli lax̄i wísemax̄i Waamis duéntasi.

háisekʷ’id ’engʷáx̄s his qi gugʷásasi. n̓aukʷs ḡánuɫ, kʷá’ax̄si du ḡenemási ’uísdis leq̓ʷesási.

háxpika’in Waamis du ḡenemási gi dáagusduelc t̓ísemax̄i gi m̓exʷ’ída’il̓ látems ḡenemási.

li t̓ec̓uáqiud’in ḡenemási gi ɫélmas’i.

ník̓ix̄da’in ’aups ḡenemáx̄i Waamisa ɫel ban̓agʷíisi qi ɫélmaɫisi ḡenemási du ’uísdisi, hi’úx̄ʷelsa’in hím̓asax̄i qi m̓ám̓iaɫisi qen níkisi Waamis gi ’élx̄asa’i.

kíxʷala’in m̓áyaɫis Waamis gi dútiɫ waaamis ḡʷixáis ’aups ḡenemási.

híɫzema’in waaamis his ’uísdisi gi k̓íx̄ʷa’in.

ḡeláli qen ḡánuɫisi gi ƛáka qen k̓esisi dúḡʷeɫ la n̓áqʷelix̄i.

k̓uun ’íku kútela ɫaw̓inái’inis ƛáki gu ḡánuɫ du ƛáka w̓ápax̄u.

xʷíɫasukʷelas núyemax̄i...

…la ḡiálix̄i, ’eƛelá’ina m̓im̓áal̓inix̄ʷ nákasu’in hi ’eƛeláis m̓im̓áal̓inix̄ʷi.

li bíbegʷanemax̄i náka lákamas sax̄ʷλ la x̄á’islix̄i, x̄ʷsdukasus ’ezíḡisax̄i…

…gúkʷeli la w̓áux̄dis wáaix̄i

n̓íkx̄ent núyemax̄i qi ’ezíḡiskasuax̄i his gʷítelix̄i, k̓úusi gúkʷela hi ’úgʷelisax̄i his qi ’ezíḡisax̄i.

qáutelix̄ent waaamis qi núyemax̄i qen láisi ’íku heyá leqí du qi ’uísdisi

lisi ’ám̓ak ’áqel qi.

k̓úusi hut li leqʷiásasi li q̓ál̓ix̄da’in m̓áasdems qi ’ezíḡiskasuax̄i.

li mál̓akʷela’in du m̓áyaɫisi λáxalix̄i du dadutiláinix̄ʷax̄i.

lisi nexʷálan̓akʷela, li ’úm̓as’ins m̓úx̄ʷsdus ’ezíḡis, hi q̓álax’id ’úm̓asis c̓igiláax̄sis qi ’ezíḡisax̄i hémsi q̓ínems záxʷenax̄i la qi waaix̄i.

wi lisi q̓áxatel̓ m̓áasdems qi, q̓álam̓i hémsis c̓igiláx̄sax̄i záxʷen, humá’in ’ebúkʷasi qen p̓eqá náukʷs záxʷen dúqʷ ’enaxʷa ’íks hámsa.

q̓ínem záxʷen hémsisi, ḡʷáɫi hémsa gi k̓áɫx’id, c̓egíɫ, dútiɫ ’íkisis hémsa.

weli k̓ʷix̄áid’in qen ’íkis gukʷiás qi, q̓ínemis ’íks hémsasul̓ qi.

li w̓am̓ax̄áisela’in leq̓ʷeyásasi x̄á’is w̓áaix̄i, n̓áukʷen q̓ágec̓uels qi dúqʷel ḡúm̓ix̄i, láatusela la wáix̄i, li dútiƛasu’in k̓esisi n̓áw̓asem.

weli k̓ʷix̄áid’in qen láa lisi gi dúqʷa ’enáukʷ begʷánmenukʷ n̓exʷálisx̄i.

li n̓exʷáln̓akʷela gi ’áqel bíbegʷanemix̄i gʷítelix̄i.

k̓úusi ’íku wául̓ala k̓esis m̓ánaks wal̓ax̄dásasi, láλi ’íku’in yaux̄ʷ qi bíbegʷanemi qen hámasualisi la ’esá’i leq̓ʷiás.

’ígaq̓ʷe’ali, li yáux̄ʷ’in bíbegʷanemax̄i qen k̓esisi húta hidáis ’esá’i gukʷiás lai

laqi ḡiálax̄i cúqʷa’in Waamis qi bíbegʷanemax̄i qen ƛ̓elísiɫi gaiḡásasi.

wáx̄’id’in qi bíbegʷanemax̄i, qen ḡʷáilisi gáiy̓axc̓ianu q̓ac̓ x̄á’islakelasu’ax̄i

lis q̓ínem begʷánems gukʷiás, li qʷix̄áid qen c̓úxʷisi sax̄ʷλ his qi máx̄cisis wiwedásasi ḡenemási, k̓esin q̓áɫ’as wenúdisi duéntasi waaamiskelasuisi, li w̓anúdix̄da’inλu hénƛ̓ikʷilaxʷ.

li duéntila’in qen sax̄ʷλs hénƛ̓ikʷilaxʷ sákelisis qi henλáy̓u’asi.

sáx̄ganukʷ w̓ax̄ x̄á’islix̄u qen q̓íq̓alisu qu núyema’enukʷ du q̓íq̓alisu ḡaiḡása’enis.

Git-a-maat / Kitamaat

núyems nísanukʷ gaiḡás

’áx̄nukʷ qáɫdud qi q̓áɫduasus Waamis…
…qi ’ám̓aki x̄á’isla ’áqel qix gugʷásganuxʷ. qáɫdu qi qal̓i’ásisi du qi qál̓iniasi, ’úm̓ac wáɫdem!
qic ḡiálicx̄i ’emáis gugʷás River’s Inlet – ’uík̓inix̄ʷ gúkʷeli lax̄i wísemax̄i Waamis duéntasi. háisekʷ’id ’engʷáx̄s his qi gugʷásasi. n̓aukʷs ḡánuɫ, kʷá’ax̄si du ḡenemási ’uísdis leq̓ʷesási. háxpika’in Waamis du ḡenemási gi dáagusduelc t̓ísemax̄i gi m̓exʷ’ída’il̓ látems ḡenemási. li t̓ec̓uáqiud’in ḡenemási gi ɫélmas’i.

ník̓ix̄da’in ’aups ḡenemáx̄i Waamisa ɫel ban̓agʷíisi qi ɫélmaɫisi ḡenemási du ’uísdisi, hi’úx̄ʷelsa’in hím̓asax̄i qi m̓ám̓iaɫisi qen níkisi Waamis gi ’élx̄asa’i.

kíxʷala’in m̓áyaɫis Waamis gi dútiɫ Waamis ḡʷixáis ’aups ḡenemási. híɫzema’in Waamis his ’uísdisi gi k̓íx̄ʷa’in. ḡeláli qen ḡánuɫisi gi ƛáka qen k̓esisi dúḡʷeɫ la n̓áqʷelix̄i.

k̓uun ’íku kútela ɫaw̓inái’inis ƛáki gu ḡánuɫ du ƛáka w̓ápax̄u.

xʷíɫasukʷelas núyemax̄i... …la ḡiálix̄i, ’eƛelá’ina m̓im̓áal̓inix̄ʷ nákasu’in hi ’eƛeláis m̓im̓áal̓inix̄ʷi. li bíbegʷanemax̄i náka lákamas sax̄ʷλ la x̄á’islix̄i, x̄ʷsdukasus ’ezíḡisax̄i… …gúkʷeli la w̓áux̄dis wáaix̄i. n̓íkx̄ent núyemax̄i qi ’ezíḡiskasuax̄i his gʷítelix̄i, k̓úusi gúkʷela hi ’úgʷelisax̄i his qi ’ezíḡisax̄i. qáutelix̄ent Waamis qi núyemax̄i qen láisi ’íku heyá leqí du qi ’uísdisi. lisi ’ám̓ak ’áqel qi.

k̓úusi hut li leqʷiásasi li q̓ál̓ix̄da’in m̓áasdems qi ’ezíḡiskasuax̄i. li mál̓akʷela’in du m̓áyaɫisi λáxalix̄i du dadutiláinix̄ʷax̄i. lisi nexʷálan̓akʷela, li ’úm̓as’ins m̓úx̄ʷsdus ’ezíḡis, hi q̓álax’id ’úm̓asis c̓igiláax̄sis qi ’ezíḡisax̄i hémsi q̓ínems záxʷenax̄i la qi waaix̄i.

wi lisi q̓áxatel̓ m̓áasdems qi, q̓álam̓i hémsis c̓igiláx̄sax̄i záxʷen, humá’in ’ebúkʷasi qen p̓eqá náukʷs záxʷen dúqʷ ’enaxʷa ’íks hámsa. q̓ínem záxʷen hémsisi, ḡʷáɫi hémsa gi k̓áɫx’id, c̓egíɫ, dútiɫ ’íkisis hémsa.

weli k̓ʷix̄áid’in qen ’íkis gukʷiás qi, q̓ínemis ’íks hémsasul̓ qi.
li w̓am̓ax̄áisela’in leq̓ʷeyásasi x̄á’is w̓áaix̄i, n̓áukʷen q̓ágec̓uels qi dúqʷel ḡúm̓ix̄i, láatusela la wáaix̄i, li dútiƛasu’in k̓esisi n̓áw̓asem.

weli k̓ʷix̄áid’in qen láa lisi gi dúqʷa ’enáukʷ begʷánmenukʷ n̓exʷálisx̄i. li n̓exʷáln̓akʷela gi ’áqel bíbegʷanemix̄i gʷítelix̄i.

k̓úusi ’íku wául̓ala k̓esis m̓ánaks wal̓ax̄dásasi, láλi ’íku’in yaux̄ʷ qi bíbegʷanemi qen hámasualisi la ’esá’i leq̓ʷiás.

’ígaq̓ʷe’ali, li yáux̄ʷ’in bíbegʷanemax̄i qen k̓esisi húta hidáis ’esá’i gukʷiás lai… laqi ḡiálax̄i cúqʷa’in Waamis qi bíbegʷanemax̄i qen ƛ̓elísiɫi gaiḡásasi.

wáx̄’id’in qi bíbegʷanemax̄i, qen ḡʷáilisi gáiy̓axc̓ianu q̓ac̓ x̄á’islakelasu’ax̄i.

lis q̓ínem begʷánems gukʷiás, li qʷix̄áid qen c̓úxʷisi sax̄ʷλ his qi máx̄cisis wiwedásasi ḡenemási, k̓esin q̓áɫ’as wenúdisi duéntasi Waamiskelasuisi, li w̓anúdix̄da’inλu hénƛ̓ikʷilaxʷ… li duéntila’in qen sax̄ʷλs hénƛ̓ikʷilaxʷ sákelisis qi henλáy̓u’asi.

sáx̄ganukʷ w̓ax̄ x̄á’islix̄u qen q̓íq̓alisu qu núyema’enukʷ du q̓íq̓alisu gaiḡása’enis.

Git-a-maat / Kitamaat