Nunamiut
Encyclopedia
The Nunamiut people are a semi-nomadic inland Inupiaq Eskimo
s located in northern and northwestern Alaska
, mostly around the Anaktuvuk Pass, Alaska
, whose ancestors date back hundreds of years.
, around Chandler Lake and the Killik River
. In 1949, the Chandler Lake Nunamiuts moved to Anaktuvuk Pass; later, the Killik River group moved there also. Anaktuvuk Pass is the only Nunamiut settlement. A federally-recognized tribe is located Anaktuvuk—the Village of Anaktuvuk Pass (a.k.a. Naqsragmiut Tribal Council).
by Norwegian explorer and author Helge Ingstad
. He stayed for a period in the Brooks Range in northern Alaska among the Nunamiut, and afterwards wrote Nunamiut - blant Alaskas innlandseskimoer (translation: "Nunamiut - Inland Eskimos of Alaska"). During the last few years of his life, he worked on categorizing and annotating the large quantity of photos and audio recordings (141 songs) he had made while living with the Nunamiut in 1950. The effort resulted in a booklet, Songs of the Nunamiut, with an accompanying CD containing the audio material. This is an extremely valuable contribution to the preservation of the Nunamiut culture, because it turned out that much of what he had gathered in the mid-20th century was now lost locally and was only preserved in his recordings.
, the Nunamiut depend on meat more so than any other living hunter-gatherer group. The annual cycle of Nunamiut life revolves around the annual migrations of caribou.
Spring: The main caribou migrations happen in March and April, when caribou move north through Anaktuvuk Pass to feed on the plains.
Summer: The plains thaw and become a marshland swarming with blackflies and mosquitoes.
Autumn: The caribou hunting cycle repeats in September and October when caribou retreat south again.
Winter: There are about 72 days of total winter darkness starting around November 15.
. In the late 1960s, University of California, Berkeley
undergraduate linguistics student (now Arctic explorer) Dennis Schmitt
was sent by Noam Chomsky
to the Nunamiut to study their dialect. There are few native speakers today.
The Nunamiut speak English. Their culture is contrasted by strong collectivist and individualist tendencies, both of which are a reflected in their "uncertainty language game". This involves one of five statements as part of a response: "I don't know," "maybe," "probably," I guess," and "might be." Choosing the neutral "maybe" over "yes" or "no" reflects the cultural importance of a collectivist community. It also reflects behavior avoidance of an individual making a false statement.
Eskimo
Eskimos or Inuit–Yupik peoples are indigenous peoples who have traditionally inhabited the circumpolar region from eastern Siberia , across Alaska , Canada, and Greenland....
s located in northern and northwestern Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, mostly around the Anaktuvuk Pass, Alaska
Anaktuvuk Pass, Alaska
Anaktuvuk Pass is a city in North Slope Borough, Alaska, United States. The population was 249 at the 2007 Census Bureau estimate.-Geography:...
, whose ancestors date back hundreds of years.
History
Early Nunamiut lived by hunting caribou instead of the marine mammals and fish hunted by coastal Inupiat. When caribou populations declined around 1900 and again in the 1920s, many Nunamiut moved to the coastal villages. In 1938, several Nunamiut families returned to the Brooks RangeBrooks Range
The Brooks Range is a mountain range in far northern North America. It stretches from west to east across northern Alaska and into Canada's Yukon Territory, a total distance of about 1100 km . The mountains top out at over 2,700 m . The range is believed to be approximately 126 million years old...
, around Chandler Lake and the Killik River
Killik River
The Killik River, which has its headwaters in the northern portion of Gates of the Arctic National Park and flows north on to the property of Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, is a river on the North Slope of the central Brooks Range in Alaska. The Killik is a tributary of the Colville River,...
. In 1949, the Chandler Lake Nunamiuts moved to Anaktuvuk Pass; later, the Killik River group moved there also. Anaktuvuk Pass is the only Nunamiut settlement. A federally-recognized tribe is located Anaktuvuk—the Village of Anaktuvuk Pass (a.k.a. Naqsragmiut Tribal Council).
Recording of culture and history
The Nunamiut were visited after World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
by Norwegian explorer and author Helge Ingstad
Helge Ingstad
Helge Marcus Ingstad was a Norwegian explorer. After mapping some Norse settlements, Ingstad and his wife Anne Stine, an archaeologist, in 1960 found remnants of a Viking settlement in L'Anse aux Meadows in the Province of Newfoundland in Canada...
. He stayed for a period in the Brooks Range in northern Alaska among the Nunamiut, and afterwards wrote Nunamiut - blant Alaskas innlandseskimoer (translation: "Nunamiut - Inland Eskimos of Alaska"). During the last few years of his life, he worked on categorizing and annotating the large quantity of photos and audio recordings (141 songs) he had made while living with the Nunamiut in 1950. The effort resulted in a booklet, Songs of the Nunamiut, with an accompanying CD containing the audio material. This is an extremely valuable contribution to the preservation of the Nunamiut culture, because it turned out that much of what he had gathered in the mid-20th century was now lost locally and was only preserved in his recordings.
Culture
According to archaeologist Lewis BinfordLewis Binford
Lewis Roberts Binford was an American archaeologist known for his influential work in archaeological theory, ethnoarchaeology and the Paleolithic period...
, the Nunamiut depend on meat more so than any other living hunter-gatherer group. The annual cycle of Nunamiut life revolves around the annual migrations of caribou.
Spring: The main caribou migrations happen in March and April, when caribou move north through Anaktuvuk Pass to feed on the plains.
Summer: The plains thaw and become a marshland swarming with blackflies and mosquitoes.
Autumn: The caribou hunting cycle repeats in September and October when caribou retreat south again.
Winter: There are about 72 days of total winter darkness starting around November 15.
Language
The native language of the Nunamiut is a dialect of the Inupiaq languageInupiaq language
The Inupiat language, also known as Inupiatun, Inupiaq, Iñupiaq, Inyupiaq, Inyupiat, Inyupeat, Inyupik, and Inupik, is a group of dialects of the Inuit language, spoken in northern and northwestern Alaska. The Iñupiaq language is a member of the Eskimo languages group. There are roughly 2,100...
. In the late 1960s, University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
undergraduate linguistics student (now Arctic explorer) Dennis Schmitt
Dennis Schmitt
Dennis Schmitt , is a veteran explorer from UC Berkeley who, in 2005, discovered a new island formed by the retreat of an ice shelf in East Greenland...
was sent by Noam Chomsky
Noam Chomsky
Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and...
to the Nunamiut to study their dialect. There are few native speakers today.
The Nunamiut speak English. Their culture is contrasted by strong collectivist and individualist tendencies, both of which are a reflected in their "uncertainty language game". This involves one of five statements as part of a response: "I don't know," "maybe," "probably," I guess," and "might be." Choosing the neutral "maybe" over "yes" or "no" reflects the cultural importance of a collectivist community. It also reflects behavior avoidance of an individual making a false statement.
External links
- Documentary- 50 Years of Northern Light, a look at Anaktuvuk Pass as reflected by the village church building. Directed by Caven Keith, 2011
- Documentary- Tradition Meets Modernity in Native Alaska, Wil Carson uses filmmaking to explore the changes in traditional Nunamiut village life, 1998
- Faces of the Nunamiut: Tourist Art and Traditional Knowledge in Northern Alaska- National Science FoundationNational Science FoundationThe National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
grant - Gates of the Arctic National Park Sights Page- the establishment of Gates of the Arctic National Park and PreserveGates of the Arctic National Park and PreserveGates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve is a U.S. National Park in Alaska. It is the northernmost national park in the U.S. and the second largest at 13,238 mi² , about the same size as Switzerland. The park consists primarily of portions of the Brooks Range of mountains...
in 1980 placed Anaktuvuk Pass, the Nunamiut's historic land, in the middle of a national park. - Interview with Dennis Schmitt-Dennis SchmittDennis SchmittDennis Schmitt , is a veteran explorer from UC Berkeley who, in 2005, discovered a new island formed by the retreat of an ice shelf in East Greenland...
, linguist, Arctic explorer, discoverer of Warming Island, researched the Nunamiut dialect in the 1960s, under Noam ChomskyNoam ChomskyAvram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and... - Mask making exhibit
- North Slope Borough School District- public school system
- Restore Nunamiut Kayak-The University of Alaska Museum, Fairbanks, and the Simon Paneak Memorial Museum, Anaktuvuk Pass, are restoring the only remaining Nunamiut (inland) kayak.
- Simon Paneak Memorial Museum- created by the Nunamiut people, located in Anaktuvuk Pass, Aipanni, the newsletter of the Simon Paneak Memorial Museum Endowment Campaign
- A heritage of whales and whaling among the Nunamiut Inupiat- ancient days, traditional times, commercial whaling, whaling today.