is mostly archaeological tangible, for written sources only begin with the European discovery and claim at the end of the 18th century. There are also oral traditions and research on trees that show traces of processing, the so-called culturally modified trees. The semi-nomadic Salish on the coast lived mainly from salmon. At the latest from 1600 BC A rural way of life developed with a corresponding transformation of the landscape. There were also large villages that were sometimes inhabited in winter for centuries. Societies differentiated into a dominant nobility, the general population, and slaves, who were mostly prisoners of war and their descendants. In addition, there were slaves as objects of trade and the exchange in the form of ritual gifts within the leading groups. Similar to membership in the nobility, the rank of chief was mostly hereditary in certain families, but could be revoked. The extremely rainy region produced temperate rainforests, which not only provided the material for the totem poles, which could reach over 50 m high, but also for the houses (early plank houses), but also for food, clothing and blankets. Metal, on the other hand, was extremely rare. The seaworthy canoes permitted warfare along the coasts, but also extensive trade. The fur merchants and explorers coming from Europe also used the trade routes and well-known waterways. However, they also brought in unknown diseases that wiped out numerous tribes, for the Salish were decimated by smallpox as early as 1775 onwards. In addition, there was a particularly warlike phase, characterized by plundering raids by the northern coastal peoples, which were intensified by European weapons technology. In 1846, the USA and Great Britain divided the vast Oregon Country along the 49th parallel, severing traditional territories, kinship and trade ties. The onset of settlement led to battles, especially in Washington, such as the Puget Sound Wars. The establishment of Indian reservations in Canada resulted in extreme dispersal of settlements, while in the United States, several tribes were often grouped together, creating new associations known as "tribes". While the Salish were initially able to play an important economic role in British Columbia before they were pushed out of most industries by legislation, in the USA they were often relegated to comparatively inhospitable regions. The two states also pursued different strategies of forced assimilation. These began in both states with proselytizing - against which their own spiritual forms developed as a