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Province Announces Historic Decision to Restore Ancestral Name in Haida Gwaii
Daajing Giids, the ancient Haida name, is officially being restored as the village title for what was formally Queen Charlotte effective immediately, the province announced on July 13.
“To be clear for everyone’s knowledge and understanding, the restoration of this ancestral name, Daajing Giids, is the first in B.C.’s history that we are aware of,” Nathan Cullen, Minister of Municipal Affairs said.
Gaagwiis (Jason Alsop), president of the Haida Nation, acknowledged the years of work it has taken to get to this point.
“It’s a great opportunity to come together and celebrate people working together to make it right,” he said.The province’s approval was the last step in the process, formalizing the community that stretches along Graham Island’s southern coast as the Village of Daajing Giids (pronounced “daw-jean geeds”).
The Village Council of Daajing Giids, unanimously voted in favour of the change during a regular council meeting on May 16. They then had to pass a request to Cullen, which he brought to the provincial cabinet for approval.
Premier John Horgan and the cabinet of B.C. “wholeheartedly” endorsed the recommendation for a name change, Cullen said.
In March, the province released the Declaration Act Action Plan, a report outlining 89 actions for government ministries to implement recommendations in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).“We’ll continue as a province to work with the Haida and the settler community and all others to advance reconciliation. In a place that has always been, from my perspective, the lead, not just for British Columbia, not just for Canada, but the entire world and peoples coming together.”