Yugtun is the most widely spoken native language in Alaska and the second largest in the United States, after Navajo. Bethel is the hub for Yugtun speakers, and the language is finally getting a curriculum and test that captures its core. This February, the Lower Kuskokwim School District (LKSD) rolled out an innovative Yugtun language […]
Wife-Nuliq Nulingr’tua.– I’ve got a wife. Everyone in Alutiiq society was expected to marry. Although marriages were not typically arranged, there were preferred marriage partners. According to anthropologist Birket-Smith, a young person was once particularly encouraged to marry a cousin. However, not all cousins were potential mates. Parallel cousins (your parents’ same-sex siblings’ children) were […]
JUNEAU – This fall the University of Alaska Southeast (UAS) will be offering free Alaska Native Language classes with no tuition or fees. Classes are offered in Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian languages at all levels — beginner, intermediate, and advanced. The free classes are for our non-credit courses, but credit can be received if a […]
QAUGLUK — EYEBROWS ILAIT QAUGLUTUTAARTUT.— SOME EYE BROWS ARE LONG. Faces are a common subject in Alutiiq sculpture and graphic art. Petroglyphs, paintings, incised drawings, masks, dolls, and other carvings show both human and animal faces. In all these mediums, artists use a distinctive design—a connected nose and brow motif. A straight line symbolizes […]