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Deline Tribe (Bear Lake, Delines)

The Deline or Bear Lake Indians are an Athabaskan tribe of northern Canada. The Delines are relatives of the Hare tribe and speakers of a Hare dialect. Although the Bearlake language itself is a Hare dialect, the Deline First Nation also includes many Dogrib families, and both languages are still spoken on the reserve today.

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Names: The tribal name "Deline" comes from a place name in their own language, Délįne, which means "flowing water." It is also spelled Déline and other ways. Deline people also call themselves Sahtúot'ine or Sahtu Dene, which is a more general term referring to refers to several related bands including the Delines, the Hares, and the Mountain Denes. Sahtú is the native name for Great Bear Lake, and so the Deline are also frequently called the Bearlake, Bearlakes, or Bear Lake tribe in English.

Deline Language Links

Bearlake Language Tree:
Theories about Deline language relationships compiled by Linguist List.

Hare Language:
Our resources about the Hare language, including Deline.

Dogrib:
Our resources about the Dogrib language.

Deline Tribal and Community Links

Deline First Nation:
Homepage of the Deline Nation in Canada.

Sahtu Secretariat Incorporated:
Economic coalition of Hare, Deline, Mountain Dene, and Metis people in the Northwest Territories.

Deline Band:
Tribal profile of the Deline First Nation.

Dene Nation:
Organization supporting the interests of the Deline and other Dene peoples of the Northwest Territories.

Deline Culture and History Links

Deline: A City of Widows:

Canadian Aboriginals and Uranium Radiation:

Sahtu and the Atomic Bomb:
Articles about nuclear testing and radiation poisoning in the Deline First Nations community.

Four Directions: Deline:
Timeline and links about Deline history.

Books for sale on the Deline Indians
Our organization earns a commission from any book bought through these links

At the Heart of It:
Excellent book about the life of a contemporary Deline boy.

Links, References, and Additional Information

Deline Tribe:
Deline links page.

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