Wil Luunda ‘Waada aks (Where the Waters Meet): Deep-time histories of shifting estuarine landscapes and human settlement in Laxgalts’ap watershed, northern British Columbia, Canada

Abstract

The geomorphological dynamism of estuarine landscapes provides challenges to archaeologists trying to understand the long-term, intertwined histories of people and place in these ecotones. This is especially the case in regions like the Northwest Coast of North America, where the location of the interface between river and coast has shifted in tandem with changing relative sea level (RSL) positions in the late Pleistocene through the Holocene. We explore the deep-time landscape and settlement histories of the estuarine landscapes of Laxgalts’ap, a culturally significant place for the Gitga’at First Nation on the northern coast of British Columbia, Canada, by melding archaeological, paleoenvironmental, and oral historical knowledge. Using geological data and GIS modeling, we document the evolution of the estuary at Laxgalts’ap in the context of a transformation from a marine channel to an inlet and then a river valley over the last 14,500 years. Our archaeological surveys revealed evidence of human occupation that is over 10,600 years old and spans the Holocene, demonstrating the long-term connections to estuarine areas that are also reflected in Gitga’at oral traditions. This study demonstrates how, with careful attention to geomorphological processes and landscape change, we can document deep-time cultural connections to place, even in the most dynamic landscapes.