The Bella Coola Tribe, which is also known as the Bellacoola, Belhoola or Bilqula tribe, is a small Indian tribe that resides at a reservation around Bella Coola in British Columbia. The Bella Coola tribe consists of about six hundred people at this time.

The tribe had featured about fourteen hundred member at its peak in the late nineteenth century. The tribe was especially prominent along the Bella Coola River of British Columbia. Also, gold was discovered in the area around the settlement in 1851, thus ensuring that the Indians could make consistent contact with white traders. However, as the century came to the close it was impacted significantly by smallpox and starvation.

The tribe used the Bella Coola language that is in the Salishan language family. Also, the main subsistence in the area worked with fishing and hunting with some trade involved. A social structure that involved an aristocracy and shamans was used during the prime of the tribe's existence. Also, five different geographical groups were used with chiefs ruling their groups.

A unique cosmology was also used. This stated that there are two heavens and two hells and that a female deity named QAma'its ruled them.


© 1881, Alica Leppamen