Daily Almanac for
Aug 30, 2008
Search White Pages
Info search tips
Bio search tips

Encyclopedia

Chipewyan

Chipewyan (chip"uwī'un) [key], Native North Americans of the Athabascan branch of the Nadene linguistic stock (see also Native American languages). Formerly the largest of the Athabascan groups, scattered Chipewyan bands ranged W Canada between Great Slave Lake and the Churchill River. They were nomadic hunters and gatherers who lived in small groups of extended families, following the seasonal migration of caribou herds. The Chipewyan were in rivalry with the Woodland Cree; eventually their numbers were severely reduced by smallpox. They are not to be confused with the Chippewa or Ojibwa. In 1991 close to 10,000 Chipewyan were living in Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and the Northwest Territories.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

    • Cite
    • Print
    • Bookmark

More on Chipewyan from Infoplease:

  • Fort Chipewyan - Fort Chipewyan Fort Chipewyan , trading post, NE Alta., Canada, at the west end of Lake Athabasca. ...
  • Lake Athabasca - Athabasca, Lake Athabasca, Lake, fourth largest lake of Canada, c.3,120 sq mi (8,100 sq km), c.200 ...
  • North American Natives: The Northern Area - The Northern Area The Northern area covered most of Canada, also known as the Subarctic, in the ...
  • Samuel Hearne - Hearne, Samuel Hearne, Samuel , 1745–92, British fur trader, explorer in N Canada. He entered ...
  • Athabascan - Athabascan Athabascan , Athapascan,or Athapaskan, group of related Native American languages ...

See more Encyclopedia articles on: North American indigenous peoples


Premium Partner Content
HighBeam Research

Related content from HighBeam Research on: Chipewyan

Additional search results provided by HighBeam Research, LLC. © Copyright 2005. All rights reserved.