Mamalilikala
The Mamalilikulla - Qwe'Qwa'Sot'Em or Mamalelequala are one of the First Nations on Vancouver Iceland in the Canadian province of British Columbia. They belong to the group of the Kwakwaka'wakw, who speak Kwakwala. Their dialect is the Likwala. The name probably means " seen while swimming ."
In January 2008, there were exactly 384 recognized Mamalelequala, but of them lived only three men and one woman on the reserve, 42 lived in other reserves, 326 no reserve. Most live in Alert Bay, Campbell River and Vancouver. The main reserve is located on Compton Iceland, an island between Vancouver Iceland and the mainland of British Columbia.
In all negotiations, the tribe is represented along with nine other strains by the Kwakiutl District Council. The failure to fulfill group include not only the Mamalilikulla the First Nations of Campbell River, Cape Mudge, Comox, Da'naxda'xw, Gwa'Sala - Nakwaxda'xw, Kwakiutl, Kwiakah, Quatsino and Tlatlasikwala.
History
Creation Legend
The legend of the creation of the tribe told George Dawson in 1885: "The Creator went from place to place, to change the world and build as we know it today. He stood at a place called Snake container when he spotted a man. The Creator watched this man and saw that he groped around as if he were looking for something. He was blind. So he spoke to the creator, and asked him what he was doing there. The man replied that he was starving and looking for something to eat.
The Creator replied: '. Dive into the deep water and stay down as long as you can ` And when the man followed his instruction, the creator sang loudly: ' Mali, Mali, Mali ` When the man came to the surface again. heard the Creator to call and asked him if he could see. ' No, ' said the man sadly. ' Well, dip again and stay so long under water, as you really can! ` Said the Creator. And when the man deeply immersed ( dove! ), the creator sang again: ' Mali, Mali, Mali ` But the blind man did not remain very long under water.. And when he came to the surface, he said the Creator, he could not see still. But actually he could see. The healing of the Creator had worked, but the creator did not know.
' We want to try again, ` said the Creator. So the man appeared a third time, while the Creator sang. ' Mali, Mali, Mali ` And the man appeared so deep and so long that he could even see the monster in the deepest depths. When he came to the surface, the Creator asked him if he could see our world. The man replied that he believed to be able to see only a very small light, although he really could see very, very good. So he once again had to dive, and the Creator called out ' Mali ', while the man was under water. And when the man showed up, the Creator called out to him: ' Your name shall be Malilikala `.
So Malilikala built a house at a place called Two heads (or two heads - two headed ). He was the first of the Mamalilikala. "
Traditional residential
The Mamaleleqala - Qwe ` quality ` Sot ` enox Indian Band had their traditional village Village Iceland, which they called Mama Lilli Kulla. This island is located around 25 km from Alert Bay, at the entrance of Knight Inlet.
Establishment of reserves
Commissioner Peter O'Reilly on the suitable Mamalilikulla 1886 according to their information a reservation, which consisted of four individual reserves. As all the tribes he confessed them to exclusive hunting and fishing rights on this land. These reservations were confirmed in 1914 by the McKenna - McBride Commission, but was Compton Iceland added with an area of 150 acre. Explicitly five reservations were confirmed on 14 August 1914:
- " No.1- Mahmalillikullah, 434.25 acres;
- No.2 - Meetup, 15.75 acres;
- No.3 - AHTA, 17.50 acres;
- No.Kakweken 10.00 acres, and
- No.- Dead Point, 97.00 acres "
In contrast, the Dead Point Indian Reserve in 1934 is over, with its 97 acre without any compensation to a neighboring tribe.
Katherine O'Brien and Kate Dibben resulted in the 30's a small mission station on the island. In 1935 Hughina Harold as a nurse from Victoria to Village Iceland. From this period letters to her mother, who three decades later, broadcast by a radio station, were owned by the anthropologist and ethnologist Harry Wolcott. He took up contact with her and the two wrote a book entitled A Kwakiutl Village and School.
In the early 1970s, the tribe be reserve but gave up because there was now under the management of Indian Affairs neither education, nor other facilities. The few inhabitants were supplied previously by the ' Namgis with water.
The tribe changed in 1985 the name of Mama Lila Kulla in Mamalilikulla - Qwe'Qwa'Sot'Em. During this time the first studies to Culturally Modified Trees began on different islands, especially on Hanson Iceland. These Orca studies came along frequently visited by these marine mammals Johnstone Strait.
Current Situation
1995 complained of the tribe against the expropriation of his reserve of 1934. It took until 2007 until the government is ready stated a compensation of $ 1,239,270 to make. For this, the process costs should be reimbursed, which amounted to $ 128,270 more. This money should be devoted to the acquisition of land, if the conditions are met, in turn, should be accepted as reserve.
Signed in 2003 the tribe together with the ' Namgis and Tlowitsis First Nation, the Hanson Iceland Management Agreement with the BC Ministry of Sustainable Resource Management. He was succeeded in 2004 an agreement on an Economic Measure Agreement: Hanson Iceland Economic Infrastructure.
Marine Harvest, one of the largest salmon producers in Western Canada ( 40 of 80,000 tonnes of salmon from British Columbia which were sold in 2006, 500 employees) closed down in 2001 and 2006 agreements on the establishment of aquaculture to the trunk. Whether the company is ready for more, than to make promises about the exploration of the wild salmon separate breeding tank, the future will tell. Meanwhile, they realize that there is a connection between the sea open salmon farming and the sharp population declines of salmon, although the root cause analysis is not yet complete.
2007 came the Yukusam Heritage Society, which in addition to the mom Lilli Kulla the ' Namgis and Tlowitsis belong, agree that by various means setting the tourists who enter mainly as kayakers their country, explored and, if necessary, so affected will that they learn more about the culture and respect them at the same time. Alone on Hanson Iceland have been culturally modified trees discovered 5,000.
Current chief is Robert Sewid.
Reserves
Today's reserves are Mamalilikulla 1 ( 175.8 ha) at the western end of Village Iceland at the Eliot passage Apsagayuh 1A ( 0.9 ha) at Shoal Harbour on Gilford Iceland and Compton Iceland ( 60.4 ha) between Harbledown and Swanson Islands.