KIA’IWIK – KIAVAK BAY KIA’IWIK YAQSIN’ITUQ NUNIAMEK. – KIAVAK BAY IS NOT FAR FROM OLD HARBOR. Kiavak Bay lies on the southeast coast of Kodiak Island. This long, narrow waterway stretches about 8 km west into the Kodiak Mountains. A spit divides the bay in two, creating distinct inner and outer environments. The outer bay […]
Imarpiaq – Shelikof Strait Imarpiamen qayanilu. – Don’t kayak in Shelikof Strait. Shelikof Strait runs along the west coast of the Kodiak Archipelago, separating the islands from the Alaska Peninsula. It stretches about 240 km from the entrance to Cook Inlet to the southwestern end of Kodiak Island. The straight is a glacial trough, deeply […]
TUMANAQ, UMNEQ – FOG TUMANAQ MARTUQ. (N); UMNEQ MARTUQ. (S) – THE FOG IS THICK. Each summer clouds of mist and sea fog envelop Kodiak’s coast. As warm summer air passes over the cool North Pacific Ocean, dense patches of fog build against the island, where they may sit for days. Because fog can seriously […]
Ceterluki – To mark (them) Kapsuutait cetertaallkait. – They used to mark their spears. The Alutiiq verb ceterluni can mean either to mark or to scratch. Today, some of the Alutiiq words for pencil, pen, and even signature are related to this term. In the past, however, ceterluki probably referred to making ownership marks. Across the north, coastal peoples identified […]
AIMQAQ – PORTAGE KANGIYAMEK PORTAGE BAY-MEN AIMQARTAALLRIIT. – THEY USED TO PORTAGE FROM KAGUYAK TO PORTAGE BAY. Traveling overland can be difficult on Kodiak. Thick brush, swampy lowlands, and steep slopes can make walking slow and frustrating. Fittingly, the Alutiiq verb for portage, aimqaq, literally means ‘vegetation broken off here and there’. However, there are […]
MANGAQ – PORPOISE AIWIAKAUT PARAGAUTAKUN MANGAT TAITAAARTUT, WAAMENGUARLUTENG. – WHEN YOU ARE GOING BY BOAT, PORPOISES COME AND KIND OF PLAY. Two varieties of porpoise frequent Kodiak’s coastal waters: the harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) and the Dahl porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli). These swift, muscular animals are members of the cetacean family, a group of marine mammals […]
UQGWIK – ALDER UQGWIT KUA’AKAMENG CILLKATAARTUT. – WHEN ALDERS BURN, THEY MAKE A CRACKLING SOUND. Sitka alder (Alnus crispa) is a large shrub that grows up to twenty feet tall. Found commonly across the Kodiak Archipelago, this plant thrives in a wide range of environments, from mountain slopes to coastal meadows and the banks of […]
Iqalluarpak – Herring Iqalluarpat amlertut kiagpak. – Herring are plentiful this summer. Pacific herring (Clupea pallasi) are small marine fish that inhabit the near shore and continental shelf waters of the Gulf of Alaska. They spawn in at least thirty-five bays around Kodiak, with concentrations in Marmot Bay, Chiniak Bay, Sitkalidak Strait, and the fjords of […]
ATEQ – NAME GUI ATQA SOPHIE. – MY NAME IS SOPHIE. In classical Alutiiq society, children were often named for a beloved and recently deceased relative. Before birth, a child’s father would choose two such names, one for a boy and one for a girl. The child was not thought to resemble its namesake or […]