Akagwik – CloudberryAkagwingq’rtuten-qaa? – Do you have cloudberries? The cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus), also known as the lowbush salmonberry, is an herbaceous plant that grows in Kodiak’s meadows and bogs. These plants produce juicy, pale-orange berries that look like plump raspberries. Cloudberries are some of the first plants to fruit in the Kodiak region. They can […]
Paluwik – Port GrahamPaluwigmek taigua. – I am coming from Port Graham. Port Graham is one of three communities located on the southern tip of Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula. This small village of about 178 people rests on the inner coast of a narrow fjord, also known as Port Graham. The communities of Nanwalek and Seldovia […]
Pas’rsaq – PasagshakQuteq Pas’rsami cucunartuq. – The beach at Pasagshak is beautiful. Place names are like the layers of an archaeological sites, an accumulation of cultural information reflecting local history. Overtime, as events shape communities and cultures change, the names used to describe the landscape evolve as well. Some names stick, others fade. The resulting […]
Tuuciik – ElderberryTuuciiqutat alagnangq’rtaatut. – The elderberry bushes always have berries. Red elderberry (Sambucus racemosa) is a large shrub with toothed leaves and soft wood that grows up to twelve feet tall. This bush occurs throughout northern North America in both wooded and open areas. Around Kodiak, it is particularly fond of the rich organic […]