Tree — Uqgwik (deciduous), Napaq (spruce) Sun’ami maani napat amlertut, angsinarluteng cali. Kal’uni, Larsen Bay-mi napaitaartukut. – Here in Kodiak we have a lot of spruce trees and tall ones, but in Karluk and Larsen Bay we don’t have any. The Kodiak Archipelago lies at the ecological boundary of the windswept coastal tundra and the […]
Beak — Cug’eq Kum’agyam cugaa ipegtaartuq. – An eagle’s beak is always sharp. Elders recall that every Alutiiq hunter had at least two helping animal spirits, one for land hunting and one for sea hunting. These spirits provided luck and assistance and were frequently birds. The frequent use of bird imagery in Alutiiq art symbolizes […]
Weather, Sky, Outdoors, Universe, World — Lla Lla Asirtuq. – The weather is good. The world’s cultures have a great variety of beliefs about the sky. Tlingit people see the sky as an upside-down bowl with a hard surface. Their sky has layers that provide a home for the souls of those who died from […]
Pimple — Pupik Pupika puksuwaqa. – I pinched my pimple. From pimples and boils to burns, sores, and rashes, skin irritations are a common problem. The Alutiiq word pupik can be used to describe all of these conditions. Early accounts of Alutiiq communities report that skin ulcers were widespread, often caused by insect bites. Alutiiq healers lanced boils […]