Musqueam First Nation
/məˈskwiːəm fɜːrst ˈneɪʃən/noun
A Coast Salish Indigenous nation whose traditional territory includes areas around the Fraser River and present-day Vancouver, British Columbia.
Did you know?Musqueam is the anglicized form of xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, a hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ name traditionally explained as referring to a place associated with the məθkʷəy̓ plant or grass.
Etymological Timeline
Precolonial period
hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓
xʷməθkʷəy̓əm
“The traditional name of the Musqueam people and their homeland; commonly explained as “place of the məθkʷəy̓.””
Precolonial period
hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓
məθkʷəy̓
“The name of a local plant or grass associated with the place-name.”
18th–19th Century
English
Musqueam
“An English rendering of the Indigenous name xʷməθkʷəy̓əm.”
19th Century
English
Musqueam
“A colonial-era English geographic and ethnographic designation for the people and their territory.”
20th Century
English
Musqueam First Nation
“The modern legal and political name used by the federally recognized Indigenous nation.”