The Hok Hok or Huzwhukw is one of three cannibal birds used in the Hamatsa dance ritual – the most important ritual of the Kwak-wakawakw winter dance ceremonies. These large headdresses are danced by initiates earning rights and privileges within the secret societies. The three birds, Raven, Huxwhukw and Galukwami (Crooked Beak of Heaven) are the supernatural guardians of Baxwbakwakanuksiwe, the cannibal of the north end of the world. The large scale is physically demanding and challenging to dance so to test the worthiness of the dancer. The dancer enters the ceremonial hall having just returned from the forest where they experience cold, isolation, hunger encounters with animals, and possession by the supernatural world. During the ceremony, the initiate is ceremonially tamed but retains the knowledge that had been earned in the forest.

— Gary Wyatt