Gwichʼin
Former Grand Chief Clarence Alexander, Ecotrust Indigenous Leadership Award ceremony, Portland, Oregon, 2004 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| Canada (Northwest Territories, Yukon) | 3,275 |
| United States (Alaska) | 1,100 |
| Languages | |
| Gwichʼin, English | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity, Animism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Alaskan Athabaskans Especially Hän | |
| People | Dinjii Zhuu Gwichʼin |
|---|---|
| Language | Dinju Zhuh Kʼyuu |
| Country | Gwichʼin Nành, Denendeh ᑌᓀᐣᑌᐧ |
The Gwichʼin (or Kutchin or Loucheux) are an Athabaskan-speaking First Nations people of Canada and an Alaska Native people. They live in the northwestern part of North America, mostly north of the Arctic Circle.
Gwichʼin are well-known for their crafting of snowshoes, birchbark canoes, and the two-way sled. They are renowned for their intricate and ornate beadwork. They also continue to make traditional caribou-skin clothing and porcupine quillwork embroidery, both of which are highly regarded among Gwichʼin. Today, the Gwich’in economy consists mostly of hunting, fishing, and seasonal wage-paying employment.