History of Community Name

"The first Indian Agent assigned the current reserve (where we are today) to the members that were residing at the [Cowichan] Lake. The Ts’uubaa-asatx people’s name was changed to the Lake Cowichan First Nation" (community's website). 

Note on Names

Where possible, the community or nation’s name in this record reflects the community’s preference, as indicated on their website. A list of other names is also provided. These include alternatives used by communities as well as names imposed on communities by colonial authorities. Familiarity with the history and context of imposed names is necessary for finding records about Indigenous individuals, groups and lands in the colonial archive.

Our source for colonial names is government and church documents held by the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR). For alternative names, we have drawn from lists on the websites of the British Columbia Assembly of First Nations (BCAFN), the First People’s Cultural Council (FPCC), and the National Indigenous Knowledge and Language Alliance (NIKLA). The source of each name can be found in the hovernote that appears when moving the computer's cursor over a name.

If you are aware of other community or nation names that we should include, or would like to comment on those we have listed, please email us at irshdc.reference@ubc.ca.