Description
The Athapaskan (or Athabascan) were a large group of Native American tribes who spoke similar languages. They traditionally lived in northwestern North America. Before 1400 some Athapaskans, including the Navajo and the Apache, moved to what is now the southwestern United States. Others migrated to the Great Plains or the Pacific coast. Today the name Athapaskan is usually used for tribes who stayed in northern Canada and Alaska. They include the Denesuline, the Han, and the Kutchin. The Athapaskan people of southern Oregon and northern California arrived from the north in ancient times, traveling by canoe. Linguists estimate that they arrived in the region about 700 years ago.
Language
Chipewyan is spoken over the largest area of any North American native language, while Navajo is spoken by the largest number of people of any native language north of Mexico.
Culture
The Athapaskan lived in forests in areas with long, snowy winters. They fished and hunted for animals such as deer, moose, rabbits, and squirrels. They prized the reindeer for its skin and fur as well as its meat. The Athapaskan also gathered plants. eligious traditions in each of these areas vary markedly from each other. In general, the Northern Athapaskan religious traditions follow culturally scripted theories of ever-watchful spirit forces whose primary relationship with human beings centers on hunting and other subsistence issues. By contrast, the Southern Athapaskan religious traditions of the American Southwest focus on patterns reinforcing social harmony.