Dene

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The Dene people (/ˈdɛneɪ/) are an Indigenous group of First Nations who inhabit the northern boreal, subarctic and Arctic regions of Canada. The Dene speak Northern Athabaskan languages and it is the common Athabaskan word for "people".^[1] The term "Dene" has two uses:

• Most commonly, "Dene" is used narrowly to refer to the Athabaskan speakers of the Northwest Territories in Canada who form the Dene Nation: the Chipewyan (Denesuline), Tłı̨chǫ (Dogrib), Yellowknives (T'atsaot'ine), Slavey (Deh Gah Got'ine or Deh Cho), Sahtu (Sahtúot’ine), and Gwichʼin (Dinjii Zhuh).^[2][a]

• "Dene" is sometimes also used to refer to all Northern Athabaskan speakers, who are spread in a wide range all across Alaska and northern Canada.^[b]

The Dene people are known for their oral storytelling.^[3]

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