Sitkalidak Island — Salliitaq, Saliitaq Agyunitua Saliitamen ernerpak. – I do not want to go to Sitkalidak Island today. Sitkalidak is the third largest island in the Kodiak region. Twenty-three miles long, this rugged, mountainous landform lies off the eastern coast of Kodiak Island. Sitkalidak covers 116 square miles with peaks up to 2200 feet tall and […]
Dry Them (to) — Kinert’slluki Agunanka kinert’stanka. – I am drying my clothes. The Gulf of Alaska is a storm graveyard, a place where low-pressure systems stall against high coastal mountains saturating the landscape with rain and wind. In this persistently rainy environment, staying dry is important. Wet conditions are very common and when combined […]
Nettle — Uqaayanaq Uqaayanat angtaartut. – Nettles are big. The stinging nettle (Urtica lyalli) grows widely across the northern hemisphere. It thrives in open meadows, flourishes in damp soil, and is found commonly in dense clusters in areas disturbed by human activity. In the Gulf of Alaska, nettles often grow on the surface of archaeological […]
Dwarf, Magical Little Person — Sungcuk Maani tang’rtaan’itukut sungcunek. – We never see any (magical) dwarves around here. The Alutiiq world is full of magical beings—giants who transform themselves by spitting, people who live on the smell of meat, wily sea monsters, enormous man-worms, evil shaman’s helpers with pointed heads, and dwarves. All of these […]