Adopted as part of Jervis Inlet 31 March 1924 in the 18th Report. Official name for the northern arm of Jervis Inlet changed to lekw'emin 21 June 2023 on 92J/4 as recommended by shíshálh Nation, 2020.

Source: BC place name cards & correspondence, and/or research by BC Chief Geographer & Geographical Names Office staff.

The place name lekw’emin (inlet) is the shíshálh name for the location of present-day Jervis Inlet. The name lekw’emin means inlet and it can be used to denote any inlet in general terms. However, Jervis Inlet was known as lekw’emin (inlet) because it was the largest inlet in shíshálh swiya. (Advice from shíshálh Nation Stewardship and Territorial Land Management Division, 2021)

Source: included with note

lekw'emin
• the l, m, and n are pronounced as in English
• e is pronounced as a short ‘u’ sound as in ‘luck’
• kw’ is pronounced together, starting with a ‘k’ sound, followed by a ‘wh’ sound as in the English ‘what’, and the ‘ is a short glottal stop – together pronounced like ‘quwuh’
• i is pronounced as a long ‘a’ sound as in ‘main’
lekw'emin is not capitalized
(Advice from shíshálh Nation Stewardship and Territorial Land Management Division, 2022).

Source: included with note

Acknowledging with gratitude Raquel Joe (ch’elkwilwet), Museum Curator, tems swiya Museum, shíshálh Nation, and Steven Feschuk (xwash), Protector of Culture, shíshálh Nation, for providing the audio pronunciation.

Source: BC place name cards & correspondence, and/or research by BC Chief Geographer & Geographical Names Office staff.

To hear recordings of place names and learn other she shashishalhem words and phrases, visit shíshálh Nation’s language webpage: https://shishalh.com/culture-language/sechelt-language/

Source: included with note