 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Okanagan" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(December 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Okanagan Okanagan Valley | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Vineyards of the central Okanagan Valley | |
 Location of the Okanagan inBritish Columbia | |
| Coordinates:49°44′52″N119°43′02″W / 49.74778°N 119.71722°W /49.74778; -119.71722 | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | British Columbia |
| Principal cities | |
| Area | |
| • 3 Districts | 20,817 km2 (8,037 sq mi) |
| Population (2023) | 439,852[2] |
| • Density | 21.1/km2 (55/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC−08:00 (PST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−07:00 (PDT) |
| Postal code prefixes | |
| Area codes | 236,672,778,250 |
TheOkanagan (/ˌoʊkəˈnɑːɡən/OH-kə-NAH-gən),[3] also called theOkanagan Valley and sometimes theOkanagan Country, is aregion in theCanadian province ofBritish Columbia defined by the basin ofOkanagan Lake and theCanadian portion of theOkanagan River. It is part of theOkanagan Country, extending into theUnited States asOkanogan County in north-centralWashington. According to the 2016 Canadian census, the region's population is 362,258. The largest populated cities areKelowna,Penticton,Vernon, andWest Kelowna.
The region is known for its sunny climate, dry landscapes, 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 tovineyards and wine.
The region stretches northwards via the Spallumcheen Valley toSicamous in theShuswap Country, and reaches south of theCanada–United States border, where it continues asOkanogan County. The Okanagan as a region is sometimes described as including theBoundary,Similkameen, and Shuswap regions, though this is because of proximity and historic and commercial ties with those areas.
The name is derived from theOkanagan-language place nameukʷnaqín.[5] An alternative explanation from Washington is ‘People living where you can see the top’, ostensibly ofChopaka Peak in the Lower Similkameen.[6]
The area was occupied byPleistoceneglaciation, and a widespread mantle ofglacial 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 that are particularly prominent along the southern end ofOkanagan Lake.[7]
Geographic features include:
The Okanagan has a mild, relatively dry climate that varies depending on latitude. Most of the Okanagan lies within therain shadow of theCascade 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 ahumid continental climate (Köppen:Dfb) with warm, sometimes hot summers and cold winters with highs around freezing, though mild by Canadian standards. Precipitation is well distributed year round. Some regions of the Okanagan, most notably nearKelowna, border on an inlandoceanic climate due to it having an average temperature slightly above −3.0 °C (26.6 °F) and below 0 °C (32 °F).[8][9]Dry forests ofponderosa pine and low grasses dominate the valleys and mountains in this region.
The Okanagan south of Kelowna has asemi-arid climate (Köppen:Bsk) with hot, dry summers and cool winters. The average daytime temperature in this region is about 15.0 °C (59.0 °F), which is the warmest in Canada. The average annual precipitation in this region is also thesecond driest in Canada outside of theArctic, the driest being theThompson River Valley west ofKamloops. The southern Okanagan is dominated by northern reach of theColumbia Plateau ecoregion and is the onlyxeric shrubland ecosystem in Canada.Dry forests ofponderosa pine and low grasses can be found at higher elevations to the east. Despite being located in a xeric shrubland, areas nearOsoyoos andOliver claim to be part ofCanada's only desert.[10]
Between 2000 BCE and 1900 CE, the climate and vegetation of the Okanagan had changed little. But historical records from the Pacific Agrifood Research Station inSummerland indicate that the Okanagan climate warmed by about 1 °C between 1908 and 1994.[11]
 | This section mayrequirecleanup to meet Wikipedia'squality standards. The specific problem is:chronology unclear beyond the mid-19th century. Please helpimprove this section if you can.(August 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The Okanagan Valley is home to theSyilx, commonly known as the Okanagan people, anInterior Salish people who live in the valley from the head ofOkanagan Lake downstream to near the river's confluence with theColumbia River in present-dayWashington, as well as in the neighbouringSimilkameen Valley and theUpper Nicola to the north of that, though the whole of their traditional territory encompasses the entire Columbia River watershed and includes areas east of theOkanogan River in Washington, i.e. theColville Reservation. At the height of Okanagan culture, about 3000 years ago, it is estimated that 12,000 people lived in this valley and surrounding areas. The Okanagan people employed an adaptive strategy, moving within traditional areas throughout the year to fish, hunt, or collect food, while in the winter months, they lived in semi-permanentvillages ofkekulis, a type of pithouse.[12] Today the member bands of theOkanagan 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 afur trading expedition voyaging north out ofFort Okanogan, aPacific Fur Company outpost at the confluence of the Okanogan and Columbia Rivers. Within fifteen years, fur traders established, known as theBrigade Trail via the Cariboo Plateau andThompson Country toFort Kamloops and through the Okanagan, fromFort Alexandria at the southern end of theNew Caledonia fur district in the Central Interior to the north, toFort Vancouver, the HBC's headquarters in theColumbia Department, for passing furs between New Caledonia and the Columbia River for shipment to the Pacific. The trade route lasted until 1846, when theOregon Treaty laid down the border betweenBritish North America and theUnited States west of theRocky Mountains on the 49th parallel. The new border cut across the valley, bisecting Osoyoos Lake. To avoid payingtariffs, British traders forged a newer route that bypassed Fort Okanogan via theFraser Canyon fromSpuzzum up over theCascade Mountains, then via the Nicola, Coldwater andFraser rivers toFort 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.
In 1859, the first European settlement was established when FatherCharles Pandosy led the making of anOblate mission atOkanagan Mission, now a neighbourhood of Kelowna. TheFraser Canyon Gold Rush of 1858 eventually encouraged more settlement as some prospectors from the United States took theOkanagan Trail route on their way to theFraser Canyon, although at the height of the rush the American adventurers who used the route did not settle because of outright hostilities from theSyilx, whom a few of the parties traversing the trail had harassed and brutalized. A few staked claims around the South Okanagan and Similkameen valleys and foundgold andcopper in places, with another trail fromFort Hope to newer goldfields atRock Creek andWild Horse Creek in the East Kootenay, skirting the US border and crossing Osoyoos Lake at Osoyoos, a customs post and also the location of thegold commissioner's office. TheDewdney Trail, surveyed and built byEdgar Dewdney, was constructed to prevent trade in the region from going north-south instead of remaining firmly under British control, and also for military mobility purposes should the need arise. In the decades after the gold rushes, ranchers, mostly on military land grants, settled on Okanagan Lake; notable ones included theColdstream Ranch near Vernon, theEllis Ranch, which formed the basis of the City of Penticton once subdivided, and theRichter Ranch, which continues in operation today, in the mountains between the Town of Oliver and the Village of Keremeos in the Similkameen.
Amining industry began in the southern Okanagan region, withFairview, now an empty benchland on the western side ofOliver, 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 miners' needs.
Fruit production is a hallmark of the Okanagan Valley today, but the industry began with difficulty. Commercial orcharding ofapples was first tried there in 1892, but a series of setbacks prevented the major success of commercial fruit crops until the 1920s. In 1936, the grower-ownedBC Tree Fruits Cooperative was established to store, package, and sell Okanagan fruit.[13]
.jpg)
Until the 1930s, the demand for shipping fruit and other goods drove a need for ongoing operations of the sternwheelersteamboats thatserviced Okanagan Lake, operated by a subsidiary of theCanadian Pacific Railway, linking theSouthern Mainline with the original transcontinental mainline at Sicamous: theSSAberdeen from 1886, theSSSicamous andSSNaramata from 1914, and others. TheSicamous andNaramata survive as a tourist attraction on Okanagan Beach on the north side ofPenticton, theSicamous serving both as a museum and also an event facility. Other steamboats operated onSkaha Lake to the south of that city. The club lounge and wheelhouse, without any keel or hull, of the SSOkanagan are in the same park as theSicamous andNaramata.
While the last half-century has grown several resource-based enterprises in the region, primarily forestry, mining played an important role in earlier times. Favoured by its sunny climate, lakes, andwinery attractions, the valley has become a popular destination for vacationers and retirees. The area also attracts seasonal fruit-picking labourers, primarily fromQuebec andMexico.[14][15]
The region's population was 403,950 as of the2021 Canadian census. The three regional districts within the Okanagan and their populations were Central Okanagan (222,162), North Okanagan (91,610) and Okanagan-Similkameen (90,178).
The statistical figures below are based on the2011 Canadian census,2021 Canadian census, and the British Columbia Ministry of Communities, Sport and Cultural Development.[16][17][18]
| Name | Type | Regional district | Population (2021) | Area (2011) | Density (2021) (Pop./km2) | Incorporated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armstrong | City | North Okanagan | 5,323 | 5.24 km2 (2.0 sq mi) | 1020 | 1913 |
| Coldstream | District | North Okanagan | 11,171 | 67.25 km2 (26.0 sq mi) | 167.8 | 1906 |
| Enderby | City | North Okanagan | 3,028 | 4.26 km2 (1.6 sq mi) | 710.4 | 1905 |
| Kelowna | City | Central Okanagan | 144,576 | 211.82 km2 (81.8 sq mi) | 682.4 | 1905 |
| Lake Country | District | Central Okanagan | 15,817 | 122.19 km2 (47.2 sq mi) | 129.5 | 1995 |
| Lumby | Village | North Okanagan | 2,063 | 5.27 km2 (2.0 sq mi) | 347.7 | 1955 |
| Oliver | Town | Okanagan-Similkameen | 5,094 | 4.88 km2 (1.9 sq mi) | 927.9 | 1945 |
| Osoyoos | Town | Okanagan-Similkameen | 5,556 | 8.76 km2 (3.4 sq mi) | 660.7 | 1946 |
| Peachland | District | Central Okanagan | 5,789 | 15.75 km2 (6.1 sq mi) | 359.6 | 1909 |
| Penticton | City | Okanagan-Similkameen | 36,885 | 42.10 km2 (16.3 sq mi) | 857.3 | 1908 |
| Spallumcheen | District | North Okanagan | 5,307 | 255.77 km2 (98.8 sq mi) | 20.8 | 1892 |
| Summerland | District | Okanagan-Similkameen | 12,042 | 74.06 km2 (28.6 sq mi) | 162.6 | 1906 |
| Vernon | City | North Okanagan | 44,519 | 95.76 km2 (37.0 sq mi) | 461.7 | 1892 |
| West Kelowna | City | Central Okanagan | 36,078 | 123.51 km2 (47.7 sq mi) | 295.5 | 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.https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E (accessed April 16, 2017).
| 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 |
The Indian reserves of theOkanagan 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. TheOsoyoos Indian Reserve leases large swathes of land to commercial vineyard developments and is where 40% of wine grapes used in the Okanagan come from.
Ice hockey is a popular sport in the region, withWHL teamKelowna Rockets playing in the region's most populated city. The Jr. A teams are theVernon Vipers,West Kelowna Warriors and thePenticton Vees of theBCHL. Penticton were the 2012 national Jr. A champions, after they ousted theWoodstock Slammers for the title. Jr. B sidesKelowna Chiefs,Sicamous Eagles,Summerland Steam,Osoyoos Coyotes andNorth Okanagan Knights play in theKIJHL, Osoyoos having won the 2010/11 KIJHL season. Penticton and Summerland are both home toNHLdefencemanDuncan Keith.
The area has hosted multiple junior hockey championships, including theMemorial Cup inKelowna in 2004 andRBC Cup inVernon in 1990 (then called the Centennial Cup) and2014.
Kelowna is home to juniorCanadian football teamOkanagan Sun, and Jr.Baseball teamKelowna Falcons, including theUBC Okanagan Heat university program.
The continued growth and operation of the agricultural industry in the Okanagan depends on the employment of temporary migrant workers.[19] In 2009, 3,000 Mexican migrant labourers worked in the Okanagan.[19]
the region is both scenically attractive and climatically desirable, and has consequently experienced a rapidly expanding resident and tourist population growth
Places adjacent to Okanagan | |
|---|---|
Municipalities and communities ofOkanagan,British Columbia, Canada | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cities | | |
| Towns | ||
| Districts | ||
| Villages | ||
| Designated places | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Indian reserves | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent region | |
.svg)