The Moricetown Band Council unanimously voted to return the village to its original Witsuwit’en name, Witset.
Catholic priest Father Morice came to the village in the 1800s and changed the community’s name to ‘Moricetown.’
“Father Morice never asked us permission to change the name of the village,” said Band Cheif Victor Jim in a media release. “And he was a tyrant; he made us gather up all our regalia and burn it. That can never be forgiven.”
The word ‘Witset’ means “the people of the first village’, according to the release.
“Council is only required to sign an official Band Council Resolution (BCR) and to send it to Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) for approval. Once approval is granted, the village can begin changing over all signage,” said Band Manager Lucy Gagnon in the release.
Changing the names of the Bulkley River and Bulkley Lake back to Widzin Kwa are also a priority for council. Those names were also changed by Father Morice.
“The Witsuwit’en have been on a journey to self-determination, reasserting their sovereignty
of this land; as part of that journey, they are regaining control of their identity,” says today’s release.