Initaq – Fish Rack Iqallut iniki initamen. – Hang the fish on the fish rack. Fish racks are an essential feature of Alutiiq communities. Although salmon, halibut and cod are abundant in Kodiak waters, each is seasonally available. Salmon return to islands waters in great numbers in summer and fall, and ocean fish move closer […]
Swaaciit; Kulusut – TlingitsSwaaciit imasinam akiani et’ut. – Tlingits are across the big ocean. The Tlingit Indians of southeast Alaska are the Alutiiq people’s eastern neighbors. Their homeland extends from Yakutat Bay at the entrance to the Alaska Panhandle to northern coastal British Columbia. Like the traditional Alutiiq societies, Tlingit communities were once large and […]
Aataq – Lupine Aatat suit’kait cucunartut. – Lupine flowers are beautiful. Lupine (Lupinus nootkatensis) is a common, brightly flowering plant than can grow up to three feet tall. It has a long, stout stem that supports a dense cluster of blue, pink, or occasionally white flowers. It grows clusters of six to eight silky leaves […]
Aluuwirmiu’at; tamallkuamiu’at – Alaska Peninsula PeopleAluuwirmiu’at yaqsisinartut. – People of the Alaska Peninsula are far away. The Alaska Peninsula is a cultural crossroads, a place where the peoples of the Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands, and Gulf of Alaska have long interacted. Archaeological data suggest that Alutiiq people moved west across the peninsula about 750 years […]