Alaska Native Cultures

Inupiaq (Inuit) and St. Lawrence Island Yup’k

Inupiaq & St. Lawrence Island Yupik People

• Who are they and where are they located?– The Inupiaq, Inupiat, or Inuit people or “Real People” are

the northernmost group of Alaska Natives– The Inupiaq & St. Lawrence Island Yupik people are still

hunting & gathering societies• They continue to subsist on the land & sea of north and

northwest Alaska– Their lives revolve around the whale, walrus, seal, polar bear, caribou

and fish– To the people of the north, the extreme climate is not a barrier, but a

natural realm for a variety of mammals, birds & fish, gathered by the people for survival

Inupiaq & St. Lawrence Island Yupik People

• House Types & Settlements– The “Real People” tended to live in small groups of related

families of 20-200 people– The people used a variety of designs & materials, but three

key features were common:• An underground tunnel entrance below the living level to trap cold

air• A semi-subterranean structure, using the ground as insulation• A seal-oil lamp from soapstone or pottery for light, heat & cooking

– Homes were usually made from sod blocks, sometimes laid over driftwood or whalebone & walrus bone frames, generally dome shaped

– The shape was usually rectangular (St. Lawrence Island homes were circular). The rectangular houses generally were 12-15ft x 8-10ft holding 8 to 12 people

– In the summer many of these houses flooded when the ground thawed, but most people had already moved to their summer camps

– Community houses, called qargis were used as a work area in Inupiaq settlements

The Qamat

In the spring, when the snow house

• Melted, the Real People often lived in skin tents

Sod house

Inupiaq People

Subterranean House

Inupiaq & St. Lawrence Island Yupik People

• Culture & Social Organization– Family & bartering connections were respectful & essential – Division of labor was by gender– Competitive games tested strength & stamina of participants; also

song duels, exchanging & other activities were part of the culture

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9JkF_cm8ZM

Inupiaq & St. Lawrence Island Yupik People

• Traditional Subsistence Patterns– Depended upon location & season of the resources such as

whales, marine mammals, fish, caribou & plants• Whales & sea mammals were hunted in the coastal & island

villages• Pink & chum salmon, cod, inconnu & whitefish were fished

whenever ice formed; herring, crab & halibut were also caught• Birds & eggs formed an important part of the diet

Inupiaq & St. Lawrence IslandYupik People

• Traditional Tools & Technology– The traditional tool kit had a variety of stone, wood, bone & ivory tools made for butchering,

tanning, carving, drilling, inscribing, sharpening & flaking – Hunting equipment & tool kits are kept in different containers

Bow Drill

–The bow drill was an important tool used for starting fires, drilling holes in wood, bone & ivory

Inuit Hunting Kit

Nanook of the North 1922

• St. Lawrence Island Yup’ik harpoon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4kOIzMqso0

Hunting Equipment– A package of toggle-headed harpoons, lances, lines & seal bladder floats was used for

the bowhead whale hunt• Seal skin floats are water-filled seal bladders which attract & lead bowhead whales closer to

shore– Other tools included scratching boards for attracting seals to breathing holes, bows,

arrows, spears, spear throwers, bolas for taking birds & snares– Fishing gear includes nets, traps made from branches & roots & hooks.

Transportation and Hunting– The umiaq/angyaq is a large open skin boat, 15 – 25 feet long (50 ft long near Kotzebue)

• It is used for hunting whale & walrus, travel & bartering. A large umiaq could carry up to 15 people and a ton of cargo

– The kayak, a closed skin boat, is typically for one person

Transportation and Hunting

– The basket sled is used for land travel – A flat sled, qamutik’, is used for hauling gear and large skin boats across the ice– Snowshoes are used in interior regions

Inuit Snow Goggles

Inupiaq & St. Lawrence Island Yupik People

• Clothing– Consisted of outer & inner pullover tops, parkas or kuskpuks,

outer & inner pants, socks & boots (kamiks)

Women’s Parka• The woman’s pullover had a larger hood for carrying small children –

except on St. Lawrence Island – where they do not carry the baby in the parka

Clothing– Tops & pants were made of caribou skin with the

fur facing inward on inner garments and outwards on outer

– Gloves were made from various skins with the fur turned inside and usually connected with a leather strip around the neck.

– Waterproof outer garments made from sea-mammal intestines completed the wardrobe

Inupiaq & St. Lawrence Island Yupik People

• Ceremonial / Beliefs– Both groups believe in reincarnation and the recycling of

spirit forms from one life to the next, both human & animal

– Names of those who died recently are given to newborns

– Only if animal spirits are released can the animal be regenerated and return for future harvest. This explains the elaborate treatment of animals killed

Eagle Wolf Dance

Raven Creation Story

• The Inupiat creation story centers on the raven, who begins with the shape of a human.

• The raven finds himself alone in “primeval darkness.” • He explores his surroundings and finds he is on a island

surrounded by a large abyss. • He befriends a sparrow, but still lonely, creates a being

much like himself. – The being however is nasty and violent, so the

raven hurdles him into the abyss, where this evil being becomes the worlds first evil spirit by the name of Tornaq. 

• Raven retreats, but then becomes ever more curious of this abyss and has the sparrow fly down to explore it’s depths.

• When the sparrow returns he tells Raven of a world that is just beginning to form.

Raven Creation Story• Raven makes himself wings, grows feathers, and he and

sparrow fly down to the new land, Earth.• Raven sets about creating humans, animals, trees and

everything we know of on Earth. – The legend tells us that Raven stayed on to teach humans how to hunt,

fish, plant, how to live and how to act. After Raven had taught the people all of these things, he reminded them to remember him and then left.

– As he went, he created the celestial bodies of the sky, sun, moon, stars, to give light to Earth. –Inupiat Creation story from Creation Myths of the World in my own words.