Okanagan

Coordinates: 49°44′52″N 119°43′02″W / 49.74778°N 119.71722°W / 49.74778; -119.71722
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the region in British Columbia. For the extended cross-border region inclusive of Washington state, see Okanagan Country. For other uses, see Okanogan.
Okanagan
Okanagan Valley
Province
British Columbia
Principal cities
List
Area
778, 250

The Okanagan (/ˌoʊkəˈnɑːɡən/ OH-kə-NAH-gən),[3] also called the Okanagan Valley and sometimes the Okanagan Country, is a region in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. It is part of the Okanagan Country, extending into the United States as Okanogan County in north-central Washington. According to the 2016 Canadian census, the region's population is 362,258. The largest populated cities are Kelowna, Penticton, Vernon, and West Kelowna.

The region is known for its sunny climate, dry landscapes and lakeshore communities and particular lifestyle.[4] The economy is retirement and commercial-recreation based, with outdoor activities such as boating and watersports, skiing and hiking. Agriculture has been focused primarily on fruit orchards, with a recent shift in focus to vineyards and wine.

The region stretches northwards via the Spallumcheen Valley to

Okanogan County. The Okanagan as a region is sometimes described as including the Boundary, Similkameen
, and Shuswap regions, though this is because of proximity and historic and commercial ties with those areas.

Etymology

The name is derived from the Okanagan-language place name ukʷnaqín.[5] An alternative explanation from Washington is ‘People living where you can see the top’, ostensibly of Chopaka Peak in the Lower Similkameen.[6]

Geography

View of McIntyre Bluff from Highway 97

The area was occupied by

glacial drift
covers the underlying bedrock. At the end of the Pleistocene, marginal lakes formed along the sides of the melting ice lobe and streams deposited their loads in them as deltas and accumulations of silt. These accumulations now form the white cliffs which are particularly prominent along the southern end of Okanagan Lake.[7]

Geographic features include:

Major highways

Provincial parks

Main article: List of provincial parks of the Okanagan

Climate

Dry forest of Knox Mountain Park, just north of Kelowna
Semi-arid shrubland near Osoyoos

The Okanagan has a mild, relatively dry climate that varies depending on latitude. Most of the Okanagan lies within the

Cascade Mountains to the southwest. Areas in the north end of the valley receive more precipitation and cooler temperatures than areas to the south. Generally, Kelowna
is the transition zone between the drier south and the wetter north.

The Okanagan north of Kelowna has a

ponderosa pine
and low grasses dominate the valleys and mountains in this region.

The Okanagan south of Kelowna has a

ponderosa pine and low grasses can be found at higher elevations to the east. Despite being located in a xeric shrubland, areas near Osoyoos and Oliver claim to be part of Canada's only desert.[10]

Between 2000 BCE and 1900 CE, the climate and vegetation of the Okanagan had changed little. However, historical records from the Pacific Agrifood Research Station in Summerland indicate that the Okanagan climate had warmed by about 1 °C between 1908 and 1994.[11]

History

The Okanagan Valley is home to the

villages of kekulis, a type of pithouse.[12] Today the member bands of the Okanagan Nation Alliance
are sovereign nations, with vibrant natural resource and tourism based economies. Their annual August gathering near Vernon is a celebration of the continuance of Syilx life and culture.

In 1811, the first non-natives came to the Okanagan Valley, in the form of a

Cascade Mountains, then via the Nicola, Coldwater and Fraser rivers to Fort Langley
instead of to Fort Vancouver, which had come into being in American territory. The Okanagan Valley did not see many more outsiders for a decade afterward.

View of the Okanagan Valley from the hills above Kelowna

In 1859, the first European settlement was established when Father

Coldstream Ranch near Vernon, the Ellis Ranch, which formed the basis of the City of Penticton once subdivided, and the Richter Ranch
, which continues in operation today, in the mountains between the Town of Oliver and the Village of Keremeos in the Similkameen.

A mining industry began in the southern Okanagan region, with Fairview, now an empty benchland on the western side of Oliver, the best-known and largest of the boomtowns created in the later part of the 19th century. More farmers, as well as a small service industry, came to meet the needs of the miners.

Fruit production is a hallmark of the Okanagan Valley today, but the industry began with difficulty. Commercial orcharding of

SS Sicamous and SS Naramata from 1914, and others. The Sicamous and Naramata survive as a tourist attraction on Okanagan Beach on the north side of Penticton, the Sicamous serving both as a museum and also an event facility. Other steamboats operated on Skaha Lake
to the south of that city. The club lounge and wheelhouse, without any keel or hull, of the SS Okanagan are in the same park as the Sicamous and Naramata.

While the last half-century has grown several resource-based enterprises in the region, primarily forestry, though mining had played an important role in earlier times. The fastest-growing industries in the Okanagan today are real estate, tourism accommodations and services, and retirement-driven real estate development as well as the ripping up of orchards and their replacement by wineries and vineyards.[citation needed] Favoured by its sunny climate, lakes, and winery attractions, the valley has become a popular destination for vacationers and retirees. The area also attracts seasonal fruit-picking labourers, primarily from Quebec and Mexico.[13][14]

Demographics

The population of the region was 362,258 as of the 2016 Canadian census. The three regional districts within the Okanagan and their populations were: Central Okanagan (194,822), North Okanagan (83,022) and Okanagan-Similkameen (84,354).

The statistical figures below are based on the 2011 Canadian census, 2016 Canadian census, and the British Columbia Ministry of Communities, Sport and Cultural Development.[15][16]

Municipalities

Municipalities in the Okanagan
Name Type Regional district Population
(2016) 		Area (2011) Density (2011)
(Pop./km2) 		Incorporated
Armstrong City North Okanagan 5,114 5.24 km2 (2.0 sq mi) 920 1913
Coldstream District North Okanagan 10,648 67.25 km2 (26.0 sq mi) 155.6 1906
Enderby City North Okanagan 2,964 4.26 km2 (1.6 sq mi) 690 1905
Kelowna City Central Okanagan 127,380 211.82 km2 (81.8 sq mi) 553.8 1905
Lake Country District Central Okanagan 12,922 122.19 km2 (47.2 sq mi) 95.8 1995
Lumby Village North Okanagan 1,833 5.27 km2 (2.0 sq mi) 301.6 1955
Oliver Town Okanagan-Similkameen 4,928 4.88 km2 (1.9 sq mi) 990 1945
Osoyoos Town Okanagan-Similkameen 5,085 8.76 km2 (3.4 sq mi) 553.1 1946
Peachland District Central Okanagan 5,428 15.75 km2 (6.1 sq mi) 330.2 1909
Penticton City Okanagan-Similkameen 33,761 42.10 km2 (16.3 sq mi) 780.9 1908
Spallumcheen
 District North Okanagan 5,106 255.77 km2 (98.8 sq mi) 19.8 1892
Summerland District Okanagan-Similkameen 11,615 74.06 km2 (28.6 sq mi) 152.3 1906
Vernon City North Okanagan 40,116 95.76 km2 (37.0 sq mi) 398.4 1892
West Kelowna City Central Okanagan 32,655 123.51 km2 (47.7 sq mi) 250.1 2007

Statistics Canada. 2017. Armstrong, CY [Census subdivision], British Columbia and Okanagan, RD [Census division], British Columbia (table). Census Profile. 2016 Census. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 98-316-X2016001. Ottawa. Released February 8, 2017. http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E (accessed April 16, 2017).

Designated places

Designated places in the Okanagan
Name Regional district Population
(2011) 		Area (2011) Density (2011)
(Pop./km2)
Kaleden
 Okanagan-Similkameen 1,224 4.32 km2 (1.7 sq mi) 283.6
Naramata
 Okanagan-Similkameen 1,647 7.99 km2 (3.1 sq mi) 206.2
Olalla Okanagan-Similkameen 401 0.49 km2 (0.2 sq mi) 826.3

Unincorporated communities

North Okanagan

Central Okanagan

South Okanagan

Indian reserves

The Indian reserves of the Okanagan first peoples also form identifiable communities:

The Osoyoos and Westbank Indian Reserves have large non-native populations because of band-governed residential and commercial development on their lands. The Osoyoos Indian Reserve leases large swathes of land to commercial vineyard developments and is where 40% of wine grapes used in the Okanagan come from.

Ghost towns

Sport

Ice hockey is a popular sport in the region with WHL team Kelowna Rockets playing in the region's most populated city. The Jr. A teams are the Vernon Vipers, West Kelowna Warriors and the Penticton Vees of the BCHL. Penticton were the 2012 national Jr. A champions, after they ousted the Woodstock Slammers for the title. Jr. B sides Kelowna Chiefs, Sicamous Eagles, Summerland Steam, Osoyoos Coyotes and North Okanagan Knights play in the KIJHL, Osoyoos having won the 2010/11 KIJHL season. Penticton and Summerland are both home to Chicago Blackhawks and Edmonton Oilers Defenceman Duncan Keith.

The area has been host to multiple junior hockey championships, including the

RBC Cup in Vernon in 1990 (then called the Centennial Cup) and 2014
.

Kelowna is home to junior Canadian football team Okanagan Sun, and Jr. Baseball team Kelowna Falcons, including the UBC Okanagan Heat university program.

Agriculture

See also:
Racialization of Labour in the Okanagan

The continued growth and operation of the agricultural industry in the Okanagan absolutely depends on the employment of temporary migrant workers.[17]

In 2009, there were 3,000 Mexican migrant labourers working in the Okanagan.[17]

See also

References

  1. ^ "2016 British Columbia Census Total Population Results". Archived from the original on 2019-07-24. Retrieved 2019-10-23.
  2. ^ Population Estimates – Province of British Columbia
  3. ^ OHK-ə-NAH-gən
  4. ^ The Main Report of the Consultative Board. Canada – British Columbia Okanagan Basin Agreement (PDF) (Report). Victoria, British Columbia: British Columbia Water Resources Service. March 1974. p. 11. Retrieved 2015-10-25. the region is both scenically attractive and climatically desirable, and has consequently experienced a rapidly expanding resident and tourist population growth
  5. ISBN 978-0-8061-3598-4
    . Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  6. ISBN 0-87770-173-3
    ; p. 15. (Footnote prepared by L.V. McWhorter and Dean Guie, possibly with material supplied by Mourning Dove.)
  7. ^ Stuart S. Holland (1976). Landforms of British Columbia: A Physiographic Outline, Bulletin 48 (PDF) (Report). Province of British Columbia. pp. 74–75. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
  8. ^ Canada, Environment and Climate Change (2013-09-25). "Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010 Station Data – Climate – Environment and Climate Change Canada". climate.weather.gc.ca. Retrieved 2020-05-19.
  9. Environment Canada
    . Retrieved 2014-04-24.
  10. ^ John B. Theberge. "What's in a Name". Osoyoos Desert Society. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  11. ISBN 0-9699795-2-5
    .
  12. ISBN 0-9699795-2-5
    .
  13. ^ O'Donoghue, Annie (2001). "Okanagan Dreams". Documentary. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
  14. ^ Couture, Hugo (2009). "LES MIGRATIONS SAISONNIÈRES DES QUÉBÉCOIS DANS LES VALLÉES FRUITIÈRES DE LA COLOMBIE-BRITANNIQUE" (PDF). Mémoire. Université Laval. Retrieved 2011-08-28.
  15. ^ "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2011 and 2006 censuses (British Columbia)". Statistics Canada. May 28, 2012. Retrieved April 4, 2013.
  16. ^ "British Columbia Regional Districts, Municipalities, Corporate Name, Date of Incorporation and Postal Address" (XLS). British Columbia Ministry of Communities, Sport and Cultural Development. Retrieved December 8, 2012.
  17. ^ a b Tomic, Patricia, Ricardo Trumper & Luis L. M. Aguiar. "Housing Regulations and Living Conditions of Mexican Migrant Workers in the Okanagan Valley, BC." Canadian Issues. 78. Link (accessed April 5, 2011).

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Okanagan.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Okanagan.
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