Project 57 Week 6: xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam)

xʷməθkʷəy̓əm gets their name from the məθkʷəy, which was a flowering plant that grew in the Fraser River estuary (David Suzuki Foundation, 2022). Xʷməθkʷəy̓əm can be translated to “People from where the məθkʷəy grows” (Musqueam First Nation & MOA, p. 8). A sχʷəy̓em̓ (ancient history) about the place explains that the sʔi:ɬqəy̓ (double headed serpent) travelled from xʷməm̓qʷe:m (Camosun Bog) to the stal̕əw̓ (river), creating a creek. During this creation, everything passed over by the sʔi:ɬqəy died, and became the məθkʷəy (from Musqueam’s Story).  

xʷməθkʷəy̓əm’s territory includes Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, New Westminster, Delta, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, Surrey, and Coquitlam. Included in that are the UBC Endowment Lands and YVR Airport. (From Musqueam’s Story: Musqueam Territory). The community had many villages, the main winter village being at the mouth of the Fraser River, and people moved throughout the territory (Musqueam First Nation & MOA, p. 8). Xʷməθkʷəy̓əm speak hən̓q̓əmin̓əm, and have been working since the 1970s on language revitalization (Musqueam First Nation & MOA, p. 41).  

To learn more about xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, check out these resources 

• Musqueam First Nation, Musqueam’s Story
• Musqueam First Nation and Museum of Anthropology (UBC), Musqueam: Giving information about our teachings.
• Museum of Vancouver exhibit, c̓əsnaʔəm: the city before the city
• Museum of Vancouver video, c̓əsnaʔəm: The city before the city

The Decolonizing the Library Working Group invites everyone to learn alongside us with Project 57. This project is a response to the TRC Call to Action 57, which calls on "federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal governments to provide education to public servants on the history of Aboriginal peoples." 

For more information visit Indigenous Initiatives.