flathead

Flathead, river, Canada and the United States

Flathead (flăt`hĕd), river, c.240 mi (390 km) long, rising as the North Fork, in SE British Columbia, Canada, and flowing generally SE through NW Montana, to Coram, where it is joined by the Middle Fork (c.85 mi/140 km long) and the South Fork (c.80 mi/130 km long). It continues S through Flathead Lake, then W and S to Clark Fork River. A 78-mi (125-km) section of the river borders Glacier National Park and is administered by the National Park Service. Hungry Horse Dam and Kerr Dam are the centers of hydroelectric, irrigation, and flood control projects in the river's basin.

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Flathead, indigenous people of North America

Flathead: see Salish.

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Flathead

North American Indian people living in Montana, U.S. Salish is what they call themselves, and their language is of Salishan linguistic stock. The name Flathead is now customary, although it is a misnomer; they themselves did not practice head flattening, but some of their slaves came from tribes that did. The Flatheads, who inhabited what is now western Montana, were the easternmost group of the Plateau Indians, but they exhibited many cultural traits of the Plains Indians just east over the Rocky Mountains. They acquired horses and went on bison hunts on the Plains, often warring with Plains tribes. The Plains tepee was the usual dwelling. Western Flatheads used bark canoes, and fishing was important for all groups. Religious belief centred on guardian spirits, with whom they communicated in visions. Since 1872 the Flatheads have resided primarily on a reservation north of Missoula, Mont. Early 21st-century population estimates indicated more than 4,000 individuals of Flathead descent.

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flathead

any Pacific scorpaenoid food fish of the family Platycephalidae, which resemble gurnards