The Athabaskan people traditionally lived in the Interior and portions of southcentral Alaska north of the coastal mountains (shown in red on the map below). This area stretched from south of the Brooks Range down to the Kenai Peninsula. This geographical region roughly corresponded with the extent of Alaska's boreal forest (not a coincidence!).

The Athabaskans were nomadic and traveled in small groups to fish, hunt, and trap. While inhabiting the largest area of any Alaskan Native group, they had the lowest population density. This was a reflection of the relative scarcity of resources compared to maritime regions. At the time of the Russian discovery of Alaska in the 18th century, the total population of Athabaskan people was approximately 10,000 people.

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