Steam Bath, Banya — Maqiwik Maqiwik uqnaarllia. – The banya was hot. Alutiiq sod houses had a small side chamber designed specifically for steam bathing. This room had a low ceiling and a narrow, covered doorway that trapped steam. People carried hot rocks into the steam bath with special wooden tongs and piled them into […]
House, Cabin — Engluq (N), Ungluq (S) Nutaamek engluliyut. – They are building a new house. When Alutiiq people travel outside Alaska or meet visitors from distant places, they are often asked about igloos. “Do you live in an igloo? Do you know anyone who does?” This tired stereotype traces its origins to twentieth-century portrayals […]
Night — Unuk Agyat akirtaartut unugmi. – The stars are bright at night In the northern hemisphere, the autumnal equinox is the September day when the sun shines directly on the Earth’s equator, creating roughly equal periods of light and darkness. The equinox is the official first day of fall. In Alaska, however, the season […]
Buy — Igu’urluku KaaRamek igu’ullianga. – I bought a car. Before the development of a western cash economy, Kodiak’s Alutiiq people obtained many of the foods and materials they needed through trade. In good weather, men traveled by skin boat to communities to share their surplus goods and barter for items. Trade with the Alaska […]