The Islands Name Change to Haida Gwaii
Haida Gwaii and Queen Charlotte Islands
It may be confusing, as you read though this website and others, to see both the names Haida Gwaii and Queen Charlotte Islands used. Until April 29, 2010 this group of Islands was officially called the Queen Charlotte Islands. However, on that date the British Columbia government introduced the long-awaited Reconciliation Act, which officially changed the name of the Queen Charlotte Islands to Haida Gwaii. It was part of a complete restructuring of the political protocol between the government and Haida people. The decision was announced by Premier Gordon Campbell in December of 2009 and was a groundbreaking event as it was the first time the First Nations had signed a treaty with the Crown in British Columbia.
Haida Nation president Guujaaw was quoted as saying: “After 100 years of conflict, we have set the ground for a more productive era of peace. This marks an opportunity to build a relationship on mutual trust and design a model for a sustainable economy.”
The Queen Charlotte Islands were named in 1778 by the famous British explorer, Capt. George Dixon, whose vessel was called the Queen Charlotte. Queen Charlotte was the wife of King George III. There has been renewed interest in this story after the success of the Oscar-winning film The King's Speech, which was about King George VI.
Haida Gwaii was created as an alternative name for the Queen Charlotte Islands to acknowledge the history of the Haida Nation as a part of the large land claims of the 1980’s. Haida Gwaii translates to “Islands of the People” and most Canadians have always felt it was more appropriate than Queen Charlotte Islands.
In the 1990’s the B.C. government adopted the name Charlotte Islands/Haida Gwaii, which was confusing and made little sense.
Politically, Haida Gwaii has grown in leaps and bounds since 2007 when the Crown and the Haida Nation found common ground in the Strategic Land Use Agreement. This was developed to help protect the islands of Haida Gwaii.
When the name changed to Haida Gwaii, along with it came many other changes, including a joint management council that makes all decisions regarding development and has created a process to resolve title disputes between Haida and the Crown.
It also included $10-million for the Haida to buy out forest tenures on the islands. Since this deal was made, there have been many others between the province and other First Nation groups.
