More than useable tools: towards an appreciation of Ne?kepmx fibre technology as a significant expression of culture
Prior to the general adoption of manufactured goods brought by traders and settlers to Ne?kepmx territory. Ne?kepmx women spent a great deal of time processing plant materials to make items for daily. ceremonial. and trade purposes, such as baskets. mats, clothing. cradles. rope, and nets, as well a...
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University of Northern British Columbia
2000
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ftunbcolumbiadc:oai:unbc.arcabc.ca:unbc_16783 2024-05-19T07:40:29+00:00 More than useable tools: towards an appreciation of Ne?kepmx fibre technology as a significant expression of culture Amaron, Beryl Marie (Author) Mills, Antonia (Thesis advisor) University of Northern British Columbia (Degree granting institution) 2000 electronic Number of pages in document: 189 https://unbc.arcabc.ca/islandora/object/unbc:16783/datastream/PDF/download https://unbc.arcabc.ca/islandora/object/unbc%3A16783 https://doi.org/10.24124/2000/bpgub173 English eng University of Northern British Columbia Copyright retained by the author. http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Ntlakyapamuk Indians -- Ethnobotany Ethnobotany -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian art -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Plant fibers -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian women -- Material culture -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian textile fabrics -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region E99.N96 A53 2000 Text thesis 2000 ftunbcolumbiadc https://doi.org/10.24124/2000/bpgub173 2024-04-19T00:29:37Z Prior to the general adoption of manufactured goods brought by traders and settlers to Ne?kepmx territory. Ne?kepmx women spent a great deal of time processing plant materials to make items for daily. ceremonial. and trade purposes, such as baskets. mats, clothing. cradles. rope, and nets, as well as a number of products for decorative or recreational purposes. I call this activity fibre technology. Much of the research concerning the use of plants by Ne?kepmx women in this type of technology was compiled almost one hundred years ago. It offers valuable information about this activity during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Since the body of literature covering this time frame was produced predominantly under the influence of the Boasian anthropological theory of cultural relativity, it describes fibre products mainly by their form, the techniques used, and their utilitarian function. Based on more recent literature about First Nations' cultural practices, that includes a strong Native voice, and on interviews I had with Ne?kepmx women. I argue in this thesis that Ne?kepmx women not only produced useable objects through fibre technology, but that these were works of artistic beauty and also symbolic representations of Ne?kepmx culture. Ne?kepmx women made fibre products with a commitment to respect the spiritual and material worlds at all stages of the process. This is a deep part of Ne?kepmx cultural values, traditional knowledge, and identity. That commitment manifests in beautifully crafted pieces that are distinctly Ne?kepmx. At the same time, through their own ingenuity Ne?kepmx women. both prior to and since colonisation. have adapted fibre products to meet the changing conditions of their own lives. The practice of fibre technology has diminished considerably in the last several decades. Nevertheless, those women who continue to practise it and teach it to others do so with a strong commitment to their traditions in order that fibre technology can remain an important symbolic expression of ... Thesis First Nations UNBC's Digital Institutional Repository (University of Northern British Columbia) |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
UNBC's Digital Institutional Repository (University of Northern British Columbia) |
op_collection_id |
ftunbcolumbiadc |
language |
English |
topic |
Ntlakyapamuk Indians -- Ethnobotany Ethnobotany -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian art -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Plant fibers -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian women -- Material culture -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian textile fabrics -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region E99.N96 A53 2000 |
spellingShingle |
Ntlakyapamuk Indians -- Ethnobotany Ethnobotany -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian art -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Plant fibers -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian women -- Material culture -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian textile fabrics -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region E99.N96 A53 2000 More than useable tools: towards an appreciation of Ne?kepmx fibre technology as a significant expression of culture |
topic_facet |
Ntlakyapamuk Indians -- Ethnobotany Ethnobotany -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian art -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Plant fibers -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian women -- Material culture -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region Indian textile fabrics -- British Columbia -- Nicola Valley Region E99.N96 A53 2000 |
description |
Prior to the general adoption of manufactured goods brought by traders and settlers to Ne?kepmx territory. Ne?kepmx women spent a great deal of time processing plant materials to make items for daily. ceremonial. and trade purposes, such as baskets. mats, clothing. cradles. rope, and nets, as well as a number of products for decorative or recreational purposes. I call this activity fibre technology. Much of the research concerning the use of plants by Ne?kepmx women in this type of technology was compiled almost one hundred years ago. It offers valuable information about this activity during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Since the body of literature covering this time frame was produced predominantly under the influence of the Boasian anthropological theory of cultural relativity, it describes fibre products mainly by their form, the techniques used, and their utilitarian function. Based on more recent literature about First Nations' cultural practices, that includes a strong Native voice, and on interviews I had with Ne?kepmx women. I argue in this thesis that Ne?kepmx women not only produced useable objects through fibre technology, but that these were works of artistic beauty and also symbolic representations of Ne?kepmx culture. Ne?kepmx women made fibre products with a commitment to respect the spiritual and material worlds at all stages of the process. This is a deep part of Ne?kepmx cultural values, traditional knowledge, and identity. That commitment manifests in beautifully crafted pieces that are distinctly Ne?kepmx. At the same time, through their own ingenuity Ne?kepmx women. both prior to and since colonisation. have adapted fibre products to meet the changing conditions of their own lives. The practice of fibre technology has diminished considerably in the last several decades. Nevertheless, those women who continue to practise it and teach it to others do so with a strong commitment to their traditions in order that fibre technology can remain an important symbolic expression of ... |
author2 |
Amaron, Beryl Marie (Author) Mills, Antonia (Thesis advisor) University of Northern British Columbia (Degree granting institution) |
format |
Thesis |
title |
More than useable tools: towards an appreciation of Ne?kepmx fibre technology as a significant expression of culture |
title_short |
More than useable tools: towards an appreciation of Ne?kepmx fibre technology as a significant expression of culture |
title_full |
More than useable tools: towards an appreciation of Ne?kepmx fibre technology as a significant expression of culture |
title_fullStr |
More than useable tools: towards an appreciation of Ne?kepmx fibre technology as a significant expression of culture |
title_full_unstemmed |
More than useable tools: towards an appreciation of Ne?kepmx fibre technology as a significant expression of culture |
title_sort |
more than useable tools: towards an appreciation of ne?kepmx fibre technology as a significant expression of culture |
publisher |
University of Northern British Columbia |
publishDate |
2000 |
url |
https://unbc.arcabc.ca/islandora/object/unbc:16783/datastream/PDF/download https://unbc.arcabc.ca/islandora/object/unbc%3A16783 https://doi.org/10.24124/2000/bpgub173 |
genre |
First Nations |
genre_facet |
First Nations |
op_rights |
Copyright retained by the author. http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.24124/2000/bpgub173 |
_version_ |
1799480040729083904 |