The Dena’ina (also Tanaina) are an Alaska Native people, an extended tribe of American Indian lineage. They are the original inhabitants of the south central Alaska region ranging from Seldovia in the south to Talkeetna in the north, Lime Village in the Northeast and Pedro Bay in the Southwest.
The name means "The people," and is related to the preferred name for the Navajo people "Dene". The Dena'ina name for Cook Inlet is Tikahtnu meaning "Big Water River" or Nuti meaning "Saltwater." The Dena'ina are the only Athabascan group to live on saltwater and this allowed them to have the most sedentary lifestyle of all Northern Athabascans.
