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Chilliwack Lake Park renamed to reflect ancestral Indigenous place name

Provincial park has acquired the name Sxótsaqel meaning ‘sacred lake’ in Halq’eméylem
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A man looks out at Chilliwack Lake on Jan. 13, 2019. (Jenna Hauck/ Chilliwack Progress file)

Chilliwack Lake Park will be renamed Sxótsaqel/Chilliwack Lake Park to reflect its ancestral place name.

The name Sxótsaqel (pronounced skot-sa-qel) means “sacred lake” in Halq’eméylem.

“Acknowledging Indigenous place names at provincial parks provides us with a deeper connection to the land’s history and culture, and supports ongoing reconciliation with Indigenous peoples,” said Kelly Greene, Parliamentary secretary for Environment. “We are committed to working in partnership with First Nations to reflect Indigenous history and culture in provincial parks.”

The renaming effort was part of a larger collaborative process undertaken a couple of years ago by BC Parks, Ts’elxwéyeqw Tribe and the S’olh Téméxw Stewardship Alliance, on a new park management plan.

The lake area is the ancestral homeland of the Ts’elxwéyeqw (chill-KWAY-uck) Tribe.

Carrielynn Victor tweeted about the name change, on Oct. 6, the day the amendment was introduced in the provincial legislature.

“Legislation introduced today recognizing the ancestral name for Sxótsaqel, Chilliwack Lake,” Victor wrote.

“Congratulations to those from the Tselxweyeqw Tribe and their staff at TTML who have helped this come to be. Looking forward to the shift this brings.”

Chilliwack Lake Park, in the upper Chilliwack River Valley, is a popular provincial park with 40 kilometres of trails, and the lake for camping, boating or hiking.

The name change was among legislative amendments to the Protected Areas of British Columbia Act, which would also add more than 2,258 hectares of land and/or foreshore to nine existing provincial parks and one conservancy.

RELATED: Name change under consideration

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Jennifer Feinberg

About the Author: Jennifer Feinberg

I have been a Chilliwack Progress reporter for 20+ years, covering the arts, city hall, as well as Indigenous, and climate change stories.
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