Clans

Carrier people are divided into several clans. Children inherit their clan from their mother. When a child is adopted, as is quite common among Carrier people, it is still the biological mother from whom the child inherits his or her clan. Someone whose mother was not a clan member may be adopted into a clan. It is possible to change clans, but this is only done occasionally, for a special reason, such as making it possible for a chosen person to receive an 'uza name belonging to a clan other than his or her birth clan. A person who changes clan is said to cross the floor (change clan).

In this area there are four clans. The three main clans are Lusilyoo, Lhts'umusyoo, and Kwunbawhut'en-ne. The fourth clan, Lohjuboo, has very few members and so frequently sit together with another clan. Most members of the this clan are originally from Babine Lake or Takla Lake. Lhts'umusyoo has a variant Lhumusyoo.

Each clan has one or more -nutsi “crests”. 'unutsi are symbols of the clan and are depicted on the regalia of clan members. Only members of the clan are entitled to display a crest. If someone else wears clothing with a crest or otherwise displays one, a member of the clan that owns that crest may seize the object containing the crest, for which it must then pay fair compensation. Each clan also has a clan song, didoh-ne shun or didohshun.

In English people use the Carrier clan name, distorted if they cannot pronounce Carrier well, the crest, e.g. “frog clan”, or one of the names created by a Hudson's Bay Company factor.

The Kwunbawhut'en-ne are now often referred to in Carrier as Grantun an adaptation of the Hudson's Bay Name.

A clan in the abstract is didoh or 'ilhoh didohne. Clan members are didoh-ne.

In addition to a personal name, some people have one, or occasionally more than one, 'uza' name. These are an honour, perhaps more like European noble titles. Each name belongs to a clan and may be given only to a member of that clan. Occasionally, when it is considered desirable for a certain person to receive a name, that person will be transferred to the clan to which the name belongs. It is considered desirable for the new recipient of an 'uza' name to be a descendant of a previous holder, but such names are not directly inherited. The clan leaders have to decide who should receive a name, and they may decline to give a name to a person who requests it or who is proposed by his or her family.

In addition to the general term for 'uza', there are terms specific to men duneza' and to women ts'ekeza'. naihk'inyin is another term for 'uza', now rarely used. An important noble, especially the first among equals of the clan leaders, is duneza'cho. Another term for a clan leader, whose usage people do not entirely agree on, is keyoh whuduchun. There is a related verb treat (st) as noble. A noble dog, lhiza', is one trained to hunt beaver or bear.

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