In its broader sense, Babine refers to the Athabascan Indians who speak the Babine dialect of the Babine-Witsuwit'en

Babine-Witsuwit'en

-External links:****** Note, however, that the Carrier-speaking region is marked incorrectly on this map and that Babine-Witsuwit'en is not indicated. The area around Babine Lake and Takla Lake, included in the Dakelh region on the map, is actually Babine speaking...

 language in the vicinity of the Babine River

Babine River

Babine River is a river in central British Columbia, Canada. It drains Babine Lake and is a tributary of the Skeena River, and is about 60 mi long....

, Babine Lake

Babine Lake

Babine Lake is the longest natural lake in British Columbia, Canada.Babine Lake is located northeast of the town of Burns Lake in central British Columbia, some west northwest of the city of Prince George. It is long, wide, and has a net area of and a total area of...

, Trembleur Lake, and Takla Lake

Takla Lake First Nation

Takla Lake Nation is a First Nation based around Takla Lake, 400 km north of Prince George, British Columbia, Canada. The main community is at Takla Landing, at the north end of Takla Lake, but the band services 17 reserves totaling 809 hectares. Takla Lake First Nation has approximately 650...

 in the central interior of British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.

In its narrower sense, Babine refers to the subset of Babine speakers who belong to the Lake Babine Nation

Lake Babine Nation

Lake Babine Nation is a Babine First Nation originally based around Babine Lake. Its main community has been in Woyenne, near Burns Lake, since many of the nation's members moved there in the 1940s...

, a band comprising three main communities:

• Fort Babine
  Fort Babine
  Fort Babine, British Columbia is a small native reserve community, located at the northern tip of Babine Lake, approximately 100 km north of Smithers. It is accessible by an all-weather gravel logging road. There are approximately 60 year-round residents...
  
   (traditional name: Wit'at, approx. 100 full-time residents);
• Tachet (approx. 100 full-time residents);
• and Woyenne (next to the village of Burns Lake, approx. 800 residents).

The term Babine is of French origin, meaning "lippy", because when first encountered by fur traders Babine women wore labret

Labret

A labret is one form of body piercing. Taken literally, it is any type of adornment that is attached to the facial lip . However, the term usually refers to a piercing that is below the bottom lip, above the chin...

s. Although perceived by some as disparaging, the band prefers to use the name "Lake Babine Nation" because it emphasizes the connection of the people to their traditional territory around Babine Lake.

The Babine River is considered one of the top steelhead

Rainbow trout

The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....

 rivers in the world, known for large fish that are often taken with floating lines and "skating" dry flies. The Babine is located in the Skeena River

Skeena River

The Skeena River is the second longest river entirely within British Columbia, Canada . The Skeena is an important transportation artery, particularly for the Tsimshian and the Gitxsan - whose names mean "inside the Skeena River" and "people of the Skeena River" respectively, and also during the...

watershed.