Anahim Peak
{{short description|Mountain in British Columbia, Canada}}
{{Infobox mountain
| name = Anahim Peak
| native_name = {{native name|clc|Bis Nadiʔah}}
| other_name = Bes But'a, Bis Nadiʔah
| photo = Anahim Peak, British Columbia.jpg
| photo_caption = West side of Anahim Peak
| elevation_m = 1897
| elevation_ref = {{cite bivouac |id=4989 |name=Anahim Peak |access-date=2007-03-18}}{{cite opentopomap|Anahim Peak|52.757778|-125.625278|2023-06-07}}
| prominence_m = 542
| range = Chilcotin Plateau
| listing = Mountains of British Columbia
| location = British Columbia, Canada
| district = Range 3 Coast Land District
| map = Canada British Columbia
| map_caption = Location in British Columbia
| label_position = right
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-zoom = 8
| mapframe-caption = Location in Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park
| coordinates = {{coord|52|45|28|N|125|37|31|W|type:mountain_region:CA-BC_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| topo_maker = NTS
| topo_map = {{Canada NTS Map Sheet|93|C|13}}
| type = Volcanic plug
| age = 6.7 million years{{cite thesis|title=Field Relations and Petrology of the Rainbow Range Shield Volcano, West-Central British Columbia|last=Bevier|first=Mary Lou|year=1978|page=68|type=M.S. Thesis|publisher=University of British Columbia|url=https://open.library.ubc.ca/media/download/pdf/831/1.0052579/2|access-date=2021-01-16|url-status=}}
| volcanic_belt = Anahim Volcanic Belt
| last_eruption =
| first_ascent =
| easiest_route =
|fetchwikidata=ALL
}}
Anahim Peak, also spelled Anaham, ʔAnaghim, or Anaheim, is a volcanic cone in the Anahim Volcanic Belt in British Columbia, Canada, located {{convert|39|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} northwest of Anahim Lake and {{convert|11|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} east of Tsitsutl Peak.{{cite bcgnis|id=1496|title=Anahim Peak|accessdate=2009-01-13}} It was formed when the North American Plate moved over a hotspot, similar to the one feeding the Hawaiian Islands, called the Anahim hotspot. It is one of the several volcanoes in the Anahim Volcanic Belt that stands out all by itself, rising from the Chilcotin Plateau, between the Rainbow Range and the Ilgachuz Range and near the headwaters of the Dean River.
Name
The Carrier (Dakelh) name for Anahim Peak is Bes But'a, meaning "obsidian peak."{{cite web|url=http://www.ydli.org/dakinfo/DakelhPlacenames.html|title=Dakelh placenames|publisher=Yinka Dene Language Institute|accessdate=2009-11-20}} To the Tsilhqot'in Nation, the mountain is called Bis Nadiʔah (also meaning "obsidian peak"),{{cite web|url=https://www.tsilhqotin.ca/tsilhqotin-place-names/|title=Tŝilhqotin Place Names|publisher=Tŝilhqot’in National Government|accessdate=2022-02-16}} or Tŝi-bis Gunlin Xadalgwenlh ("mountain where there is obsidian stone"). The word bes (bis in Tŝilhqot’in) is anglicised as "beece", another word for obsidian and also an early designation for this mountain. The name Anahim is that of Chief Anahim, a leader of the Tsilhqot'in people in the mid-19th Century.
The Nuxalk (ItNuxalkmc) name for Anahim Peak is Anuxim, meaning shining out, or shining on the inside. In the origin story of mount Nusq'lst, mount Anuxim is the father of Tl'isla, the wife of mount Nusq'lst.McIlwraith, T. (1948). The Bella Coola Indians, Volume 1. University of Toronto Press, 1992
Area and history
Anahim Peak was a significant source of obsidian for the Nuxalk, Tsilhqot'in, and Dakelh peoples. Obsidian was desirable because extremely sharp arrowheads and cutting knives could be made from it. It was also used for jewellery. Anahim obsidian was traded widely all over the BC Interior and up and down the Coast from Bella Coola. Red ochre was used in paint and decoration was also taken from this area. Anahim Peak is not far from the small community of Anahim Lake.