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Those Who Fell From the Sky : A History of Cowichan Peoples

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This book has been named one of 61 winners of the British Columbia 2000 Book Award. Those Who Fell From The Sky is the first-ever published record of the Cowichan peoples, written for and approved by the Cowichan Tribes. The book chronicles the rich culture, spiritual practices and local history of local First Nations using an effective mix of documented records, archeological evidence and oral tales from prehistory to European contact. Historian Dr. Daniel Marshall's informative tale begins with the 12 original Cowichan peoples that fell from the sky to populate the Cowichan Valley's pristine wilderness and build a society from cedar and salmon -- the foundation of West Coast Native culture. But the the book also sets the stage for modern land claims, recounting the Cowichan people's early relationship with government, the Crown and colonial settlers that started arriving in huge numbers during the mid-1800s.

The underlying message within is the Cowichan people's unshaken sense of place in the face of massive changes resulting from European expansion. "The history of the Cowichan peoples is all about their relationship to the land and the incredible permanence of place that they have achieved," states the book's postscript. "While the transient nature of Vancouver Island's white society continues to ebb and flow like the tide, the Cowichan peoples will always remain connected to their warm land."

As a British Columbia 2000 Book Award winner, Dr. Marshall's work will now display the unique gold-embossed seal created by the BC government and the BC Book Publishers Association as part of the province's Millenium Legacy Programme. The provincial government will also provide up to $300,000 to school libraries to buy more than 22,000 British Columbia 2000 designated titles of which Those Who Fell From The Sky is one. For a complete list of the titles log on to http://www.BC2000.gov.bc.ca.

BOOK CONTENTS CH.1 The Ancient World of the Cowichan/ CH.2 The First Cowichan Peoples: Those Who Fell from the Sky/ CH.3 The Story of the Flood/ CH.4 The Natural Landscape Encountered/ CH.5 The Traditional Landscape Expands/ CH.6 Prophetic Patterns: Contact with the European World/ CH.7 Drawing the Line across the Cowichan World/ CH.8 Hecate's Spell is Cast upon the Land/ CH.9 Crown & Anchor: Cowichan Peoples 'Join' Canada/ Postscript: Words from the Warm Land/ Bibliography.