WAA’UT PITURNIRTAARTUT MIKELNGUT. – THE SMALL FLOUNDERS ARE TASTY. The starry flounder (Platichthys stellatus) is an abundant, bottom-dwelling fish found in Kodiak’s shallow ocean waters, brackish estuaries, and even intertidal areas of rivers. Like halibut, flounder have both eyes on one side of their head. The eye side of the flounder is typically brown or […]
Qiteq – Rain Sun’ami qitengtaartuq. – It rains all the time in Kodiak. From September to April, a winter storm crosses the Gulf of Alaska about every five days, bringing intense rain, high winds, and heavy seas. Surrounded by ocean and encircled by Alaska’s high coastal mountains, Kodiak is continually exposed to the full force of […]
Piturni’isuutet – Spices Neq’rkat piturni’isuutet ilaluki. – Add the spices to the food. Fresh and dried herbs are a staple of many recipes. From the peppery zing of parsley to the earthy taste of ground cumin, herbs provide flavor, texture, and color to dishes. Alutiiq chefs spice their cooking with a variety of Kodiak’s wild […]
The Alutiiq Museum’s gallery has reopened to the public. We invite you to view exhibits and shop in our store, knowing that we follow strict safety measures to keep our patrons safe. Our current hours are Noon to 4:00 pm, Tuesday through Saturday. Please wear a mask. Contact Djuna Davidson with questions, 844-425-8844, x20.
Qawangurtuaq – Dream Qawangurtuataartut. –They always dream. For Alutiiq people, dreaming is a magical state, one that draws people closer to the spirit world. Encounters between people and spirits often take place in dreams or as a person awakes from sleep. Shamans, people who interact closely with spirits, their apprentices through dreams, and dreams are thought […]
QALUTAQ – DIPPER, LADLE, BAILER MAQIWIGMI QALUTAT ATURTAAPET. – WE USE DIPPERS IN THE BANYA. Enter an Alutiiq steam bath and you will find an assortment of tools for bathing. Adjacent to a wood-burning stove fashioned from a fifty-five-gallon oil drum are large metal tubs for storing, heating, and mixing water; tongs for loading the stove […]
MAITAQ – SEPTUM PIERCING MAITARTUUMARTAALLRIIT ARNAT. – WOMEN USED TO WEAR SEPTUM PIERCINGS. In classical Alutiiq society, men, women, and children often wore nose rings. The placed these decorations through a perforation in the nasal septum, the piece of cartilage that divides the nose. In Alutiiq the septum is known as kucurwik, a word derived from […]
PAMYULEK – METEOR AKGUA’AQ PAMYULEGMEK TANGELLRIANGA. – THE OTHER NIGHT I SAW A METEOR. A meteor is a piece of space rock that burns as it falls through the Earth’s atmosphere, creating a bright streak in the night sky. The Alutiiq term for meteor—pamyulek—comes from the word pamyuq for tail or handle; something that extends […]
CISLLAT – PEG CALENDAR PAAPUKA GUI CISLLANGQ’RTAALLIA. – MY GRANDMOTHER HAD A PEG CALENDAR. Charting the passage of time was once a relative process. Alutiiq people noted the seasons by following changes in the natural environment and in the economic and social activities that accompanied the yearly cycle. With the introduction of Russian Orthodoxy, however, the Alutiiq […]