Description
The name Dunne-za has been translated to "Those who live among the beaver." The spelling Dane-zaa is typically used for "the Real People." Prior to the 19th century, the Dane-zaa inhabited lands further east, near the Athabaska and Clearwater Rivers, and north to Lake Athabaska, as well as territory north of the upper Peace River. According to Dane-zaa oral history, the Peace River is named for the settling of a conflict between the Dane-zaa and the Cree. The Cree traditionally lived south and east of the Upper Peace River region. Due to their trade with settlers, they had guns and they pushed the Dane-zaa northwest in the late 18th century.
Language
Dane-zaa, formerly known as Beaver, is an Athabascan language of western Canada. It means "people-regular language." About one-tenth of the Dane-zaa people speak the language.
Culture
The Dane-zaa culture is rooted in dreams, visions, drumming, stories and song, where knowledge is passed on from Elders. They collectively hold the history of the community in their oral stories that span creation, the fur trade, the arrival of settlers and missionaries, as well as more recent experiences. The Dane-zaa traditionally lived in small nomadic hunting bands of 25-30 people. Most food came from hunting large game animals: bison in the prairie country near the Peace River, moose in the muskeg and forests, caribou near the mountains, and bears. Before they obtained firearms from fur traders, hunting was often done by groups of people who surrounded animals.