SONGHEES

The Songhees Nation is now located in Esquimalt on Vancouver Island, 5 kilometers from Victoria, the capital of British Columbia. Historically, the original site of the Songhees Indian Reservation was located in Victoria's Inner Harbour. The main village sites were at the British Columbia Legislature and James Bay, and across the harbour on the Victoria’s west side.

 

The City of Victoria and adjoining territory has been occupied by Aboriginal people for over 4000 years. The Songhees and Esquimalt First Nations people are a part of the Coast Salish ethnic group and descendants of the following family groups: Kakyaakan, Teechamitsa, Whyomilth, Kosampsom, Swenwhung, Chilcowitch and Chekonein.

The Lekwungen People's population was once in the thousands. This number was tragically reduced by the small pox epidemics, and other diseases, in the 19th Century. The Coast Salish people and culture survived the epidemics, as well as colonization, and banishment of Traditional Ceremonies.

The Coast Salish Traditional Winter Ceremonies are one of the most secretive in British Columbia, if not in North America. The huge "bighouses" (that are modelled after traditional living dwellings) are now used for large gatherings, where the history is recorded and mapped out orally in ceremony.

These ceremonies are the foundation of the Songhees Culture and guarantee a sustained culture and language. This is what makes the Lekwungen Nation a distinct society.
The Songhees ancestors lived in large cedar houses, in extended family groups that were self-governing. All household groups claimed specific living areas and areas where they could hunt, fish, and collect plants.
They occupied the area from Albert Head to Cordova Bay to the San Juan Islands. The language spoken was a dialect known as the Lekwungen.
Songhees Nation elects five Council members and one Chief.