Nootka Wolf Mask The Nootka or Nuu-Chah-Nulth people are a First Nations group whose traditional home is in the Pacific Northwest, on the west coast of Vancouver Island. They are related to the Chinook and Kwakiutl peoples, and the Nootka language is part of the Wakashan group of languages. The Nootka, and other Pacific Northwest cultures, were famous for their potlatch ceremonies, in which the host would bestow very generous gifts on guests. The Nootka were among the first people on the Pacific coast north of California to come into contact with Europeans. Competition between Spain and the United Kingdom over "control" of Nootka Sound led to a bitter international dispute around 1790, which was settled when Spain agreed to relinquish its claims to the north Pacific coast. At the time of early contact with European explorers, up until 1830, more than 90 percent of the Nootka were killed by sexually transmitted diseases, malaria, and smallpox, and by cultural turmoil resulting from contact with Westerners