Linguistically, the Cowlitz tribe belongs to the Salish family of languages among Northwest Coast indigenous peoples. Both subtribes of the Cowlitz originally spoke a Salish language, but later the Upper Cowlitz would speak the Sahaptan language from east of the Cascade Mountains.
Unlike many other Northwest Coast tribes in Washington, the Cowlitz are not recognized officially by the United States federal government, and therefore do not have federally recognized tribal lands (such as on a reservation) and their own tribal center.