Dance — Agnguaq Agnguart’skuk! – Let’s dance! Dancing was a favorite activity at Alutiiq winter festivals. Moving to the rhythmic beat of skin drums, Alutiiq men reenacted hunting scenes and women danced in praise of ancestors. Performances were held in the men’s house, a large single-roomed structure built and maintained by a wealthy chief. Here […]
Young Person, Teen — Sun’aa’aq Sun’aa’rausqak Nuniami et’aarllriik. – These two young people were in Old Harbor. All human societies recognize the teenage years as a time of transition, a period when young people grow from children into adults. Adolescence is also universally a period of preparation, where boys and girls are trained for marriage, […]
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 […]