Meluuwaq; Cingaq; Pucuuq – Kiss Cingarnga. – Kiss me. Anthropologists have long speculated about the origins of kissing. Some believe it is learned behavior, a popular invention that spread widely in Roman times. Others think kissing is innate, a genetically encoded behavior that humans use to express affection and concern. Some biologists argue that when […]
Ulik – Blanket Una ulik aturnirtuq. – This blanket is comfortable. Before the introduction of western mattresses and blankets, Alutiiq people slept on piles of soft, dry grass and covered themselves with bear hides. These warm, insulating materials provided bedding both at home and while traveling. A person who had to camp unexpectedly simply collected […]
PiRaq; Alliqaruaq – Grass Mat PiRani qawartaartua. – I (habitually) sleep on a grass mat. If you were to enter a typical Alutiiq household of the seventeenth century, fine weaving would surround you. Woven mats would lie on sleeping benches, cover the walls, and hang in doorways. Woven containers for collecting, storing, and cooking food […]
-taar- – Always; Habitually Englaryumataartuq. – He is always smiling. A suffix is a letter or group of letters that can be added to the end of a word to create a new word. For example, if you add the suffix -able to the word excite, you get excitable! Alutiiq speakers build words with a […]