The
Tanana Athabaskans,
Tanana Athabascans or
Tanana Athapaskans are an
Alaskan Athabaskan peoples of the
Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group. They are the original inhabitants of the
Tanana River (in
Tanana languages Tth'itu' , literally "straight water", in
Koyukon language Tene No' , literally "trail water") drainage basin in east-central
Alaska Interior, United States and a little part (
White River First Nation) lived in
Yukon, Canada. Tanana River Athabaskan peoples are called in
Lower Tanana and Koyukon language
Ten Hʉt'ænæ (literally "trail people"), in
Gwich'in language Tanan Gwich'in (literally "people of Tanana River"). In Alaska, where they are the oldest, there are three or four groups identified by the languages they speak. These are the
Tanana proper or Lower Tanana (
Kokht'ana) and/or Middle Tanana,
Tanacross or Tanana Crossing (
Koxt'een), and
Upper Tanana (
Kohtʼiin). The Tanana Athabaskan culture is an
hunter-gatherer culture and have a
matrilineal system. Tanana Athabaskans were
semi-nomadic and as living in semi-permanent settlements in the
Tanana Valley lowlands. Traditional Athabaskan land use includes fall hunting of
moose,
caribou,
Dall sheep, and small terrestrial animals, and also
trapping. The Athabaskans did not have any formal tribal organization. Tanana Athabaskans were strictly territorial and used hunting and gathering practices in their semi-nomadic way of life and dispersed habitation patterns. Each small
band of 20–40 people normally had a central winter camp with several seasonal hunting and fishing camps, and they moved cyclically, depending on the season and availability of resources.