The Duwamish (, ) are a Lushootseed-speaking Native American tribe in western Washington, and the indigenous people of metropolitan Seattle, where they have been living since the end of the last glacial period (c. 8000 BCE, 10,000 years ago). The Duwamish Tribe descends from at least two distinct groups from before intense contact with people of European ancestry—the People of the Inside (the environs of Elliott Bay) and the People of the Large Lake (Lake Washington)—and continues to evolve both culturally and ethnically. By historic language, the Duwamish are (Skagit-Nisqually) Lushootseed; Lushootseed is a Salishan language. Adjacent tribes throughout the Puget Sound-Strait of Georgia basin were, and are, interconnected and interrelated, yet distinct. Today, some Duwamish people are enrolled in the federally recognized Tulalip Tribes of Washington as well as the Muckleshoot Tribe. The present-day Duwamish Tribe developed in parallel with the times of the Treaty of Point Elliott and its aftermath in the 1850s. Although not recognized by the U.S. federal government, the Duwamish remain an organized Tribe with roughly 500 enrolled members as of 2004. In 2009, the Duwamish Tribe opened the Duwamish Longhouse and Cultural Center on purchased land near their ancient settlement of Ha-AH-Poos (also written hah-AH-poos) in West Seattle, near the mouth of the Duwamish River. History Before white settlement What is now Seattle has been inhabited since the end of the last glacial period (c. 8000 BC—10,000 years ago). Sites at West Point in Discovery Park (in Seattle's Magnolia district) date back at least 4,000 years. Villages at the then-mouth of the Duwamish River in what is now the Industrial District had been inhabited since the 6th century AD. Thirteen prominent villages were in what is now the City of Seattle. The people living around Elliott Bay, the Duwamish, Black and Cedar Rivers were collectively known as the doo-AHBSH, "People of the Inside" (see below for more detailed discussion of this name). There were four prominent villages on Elliott Bay and the then-estuarial lower Duwamish River . Before civil engineering, the area had extensive tidelands, abundantly rich in marine life which was eaten as seafood. The people living around Lake Washington were collectively known as the hah-choo-AHBSH, "People of the Large Lake" (see below for more detailed discussion of this name). Another group strong culturally associated with the "People of the Large Lake" are the Ha-achu-abshs / Ha-achu-AHBSH ("People of the Small Lake /