Caribou Inuit
Encyclopedia
Caribou Inuit, Barren-ground Caribou
hunters, are bands of inland Inuit
who lived west of Hudson Bay
in northern Canada's
Keewatin Region
of the Northwest Territories
, now the Kivalliq Region ("Barren Lands") of present-day Nunavut
between 61° and 65° N and 90° and 102° W. They were originally named "Caribou Eskimo" by the Danish
Fifth Thule Expedition of 1921 - 1924 led by Knud Johan Victor Rasmussen. Caribou Inuit are the southernmost subgroup of the Central Inuit
.
Ahialmiut relied on caribou year-round. They spent summers on the Qamanirjuaq calving grounds at Qamanirjuaq Lake
("huge lake adjoining a river at both ends") and spent winters following the herd to the north.
Akilinirmiut
Akilinirmiut were located in the Thelon River
area by the Akiliniq Hills (A-ki, meaning "the other side") to the north of Beverly Lake and also visible above Aberdeen Lake. Some lived northwest of Baker Lake (Qamani'tuuaq), along with Qairnirmiut and Hauniqturmiut. Many relocated to Aberdeen Lake because of starvation or education opportunities.
Hanningajurmiut
Hanningajurmiut, or Hanningaruqmiut, or Hanningajulinmiut {"the people of the place that lies across"} lived at Garry Lake
, south of the Utkuhiksalingmiut. Many Hanningajurmiut starved in 1958 when the caribou bypassed their traditional hunting grounds, but the 31 who survived were relocated to Baker. Most never returned permanently to Garry Lake.
Harvaqtuurmiut
Harvaqtuurmiut
were a northern group located in the region of Kazan River, Yathkyed Lake, Kunwak River
, Beverly Lake
, and Dubawnt River. By the early 1980s, most lived at Baker Lake
.
Hauniqtuurmiut
Hauneqtormiut, or Hauniqtuurmiut, or Kangiqliniqmiut, ("dwellers where bones abound") were a smaller band who lived near the coast, south of Qairnirmiuts, around the Wilson River and Ferguson River
. By the 1980s, they were absorbed into subgroups at Whale Cove and Rankin Inlet.
Ihalmiut
Ihalmiut
("people from beyond"), or Ahiarmiut ("the out-of-the-way dwellers") were located at the banks of the Kazan River, Ennadai Lake
, Little Dubawnt Lake
(Kamilikuak), and north of Thlewiaza (Kugjuaq; "Big River"). Relocations in the 1950s included to Henik Lake
, Whale Cove
, and by the 1980s, most were in Eskimo Point
.
Paallirmiut
Paallirmiut ("people of the willow"), or Padlermiut ("people from the Padlei
River region"), or Padleimiut were the most populous band. They were located south of the Hauniqtuurmiut and Harvaqtuurmiut bands. Paallirmiut were split into a coast-visiting (Arviat) subgroup who spent the hunting season on the lower Maguse River
, and an interior subgroup who stayed year round in the Yathkyed Lake to Dubawnt Lake area. After Hudson's Bay Company ships discontinued trading the Keewatin coast in 1790, Paallirmiut traveled to Fort Prince of Wales for trade. The Arvia'juaq and Qikiqtaarjuk National Historic Site
is the band's historic summer camping site. By the 1980s, most lived in Eskimo Point (Arviat).
Qaernermiut
Qaernermiut ("dwellers of the flat land"), or Qairnirmiut ("bedrock people"), or Kinipetu (Franz Boas
, 1901), or Kenepetu, a northern group, were located from the sea coast between Chesterfield Inlet
to Rankin Inlet across to their main area around Baker Lake and some even to Beverly Lake. By the early 1980s, most lived at Baker Lake.
Utkuhiksalingmiut
Utkuhiksalingmiut ("people who have cooking pots"), were located in the Chantrey Inlet area around the Back River
, near Baker Lake. They made their pots (utkusik) from soapstone
of the area, therefore their name. Their dialect is a variant of Natsilingmiutut, spoken by the Netsilik
.
(Tariurjuaq) for whaling and to fish during the winters. The Chipewyan
Sayisi Dene
were caribou hunters also, but they stayed inland year-round. Because of waning caribou populations during extended periods, including the 18th century, the Dene moved away from the area, and the Caribou Inuit began to live inland year-round harvesting enough caribou to get through winters without reliance on coastal life.
Regular contact began around 1717 after the establishment of a permanent settlement in Churchill, Manitoba
. The contact included access to guns, along with an introduction to trapping and whaling. Christian missionary, Father Alphonse Gasté, made diary notes about peaceful relations between settled Caribou Inuit and migratory Dene that he met along the Kazan River in the late 19th century. Explorer Joseph Tyrrell
estimated the "Caribou Eskimo" numbered nearly 2,000 when he led the Geological Survey of Canada's Barren Lands expeditions of 1893 and 1894. Eugene Arima classifies the Hauniqtuurmiut, Ha'vaqtuurmiut, Paallirmiut, and Qairnirmiut as Caribou Inuit "southern, latter" bands: through the end of the 19th century, they were primarily coastal saltwater hunters, but with firearm ammunition from commercial whalers, they were able to live inland year round hunting caribou without augmenting their diet on sea life. (Arima 1975)
Regular trade dates to the early 20th century and missionaries arrived soon thereafter, developing a written language, challenged by a variety of pronunciations and naming rules. In the Arctic spring of 1922, explorer/anthropologist Kaj Birket-Smith and Rasmussen encountered and reported on the lives of Harvaqtuurmiut and Paallirmiut. Some hunting years were better than others as resident caribou and migratory herds grew or declined, but Caribou Inuit populations dwindled through the decades. Starvation was not uncommon. During a bleak period in the 1920s, the Caribou Inuit made their way to Hudson's Bay Company
outposts and small, scattered villages on their own. Author/explorer Farley Mowat
visited the Ihalimut in the 1940s and 1950s, writing extensively about the Ihalmiut.
into strong walkers and sledders who carried loads of implements, bedding, and tents. Kayaks portage
d people and baggage in rivers and lakes.
Kayaks were also used for hunting at water crossings during annual migration. Wounded animals were tied together, brought ashore, and killed there to avoid the struggle of dragging dead animals. Every part of the caribou
was important. The antlers were used for tools, such as the ulu
("knife") and goggles
to prevent snow blindness
. The hides were used for footwear and clothing, including the anorak
and amauti
, using caribou sinew
to piece the articles together, and worn in many layers. Mittens were lined with fur, down, and moss. While spring-gathered caribou skins were thin, sleek, and handsome, summer-gathered caribou skins were stronger and warmer. Hides were used also for tents, tools, and containers.
Caribou Inuit lived within a patrilocal social unit
. The male elder, the ihumataq ("group leader"), was the centralized authority. There was no other form of authority within subgroups or within the Caribou Inuit in general. Like other Inuit, Caribou Inuit practiced an animist
religion, including beliefs that everything had a soul or energy with a disposition or personality. The protector was Pinga
, a female figure, the object of taboos, who brings the dead to Adlivun
. The supreme force was Hila ("air"), a male figure and the source of misfortune. Christian missionaries established posts in the Barren Lands between 1910 and 1930, converting (siqqitiq
) most Inuit from animists to Christians, though some, nonetheless, maintain remnants of their traditional shamanistic beliefs.
Caribou Inuit are Inuktitut
speakers. Inuktitut has six dialects, of which Caribou Inuit speak the Kivalliq dialect, and that is further divided into the subdialects, Ahiarmiut, Hauniqturmiut, Paallirmiut, and Qairnirmiut. The Utkuhiksalingmiut's dialect, Utkuhiksalingmiutut, is similar to but distinct from their neighbors' Nattilingmiutut. Like other central Canadian Arctic people, Caribou Inuit participated in nipaquhiit ("games done with sounds or with noises"). The Caribou Inuit genre lacked typical katajjaq
("throat sounds") but added narration missing amongst other Inuit groups.
There are several books written on the hardships and the 1950s federal government re-settlement of Caribou Inuit. With re-settlement to coastal communities, the nomadic nuunamiut ("people of the land") ways ended and Caribou Inuit joined tareumiut ("people of the sea"), the maritime Inuit being a more stable group. Even with federal assistance, adapting to displacement in fewer and larger towns proved difficult, resulting in high unemployment, domestic violence, sexual abuse, substance addiction, suicide, parental neglect, and lack of motivation.
Language
With the acquisition of English, native language loss is the primary threat to their cultural survival, while neither language is being mastered.
Art
On a positive note, artisan skills evolved and Caribou Inuit, such as Jessie Oonark
, are notable for their figurines of animal life. Another Inuit art
medium, also considered a game, and also associated with their religious beliefs, involves string figures (ajaraaq/ajaqaat [plural]).
Population
About 3,000 Caribou Inuit exist today, located in Chesterfield Inlet
, Rankin Inlet, Whale Cove, Eskimo Point, and Baker Lake.
Barren-ground Caribou
Barren-ground Caribou is a subspecies of the caribou that is found mainly in the Canadian territories Nunavut and the Northwest Territories and western Greenland. It sometimes includes the similar porcupine caribou, in which case the barren-ground caribou also is found in Alaska...
hunters, are bands of inland Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
who lived west of Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
in northern Canada's
Northern Canada
Northern Canada, colloquially the North, is the vast northernmost region of Canada variously defined by geography and politics. Politically, the term refers to the three territories of Canada: Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut...
Keewatin Region
Keewatin Region, Northwest Territories
The Keewatin Region was a region of the Northwest Territories, in use as an administrative and statistical division until the creation of Nunavut in 1999...
of the Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
, now the Kivalliq Region ("Barren Lands") of present-day Nunavut
Nunavut
Nunavut is the largest and newest federal territory of Canada; it was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the actual boundaries had been established in 1993...
between 61° and 65° N and 90° and 102° W. They were originally named "Caribou Eskimo" by the Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
Fifth Thule Expedition of 1921 - 1924 led by Knud Johan Victor Rasmussen. Caribou Inuit are the southernmost subgroup of the Central Inuit
Central Inuit
Central Inuit are the Inuit of Northern Canada, their designation determined by geography and their tradition of snowhouses , fur clothing, and sled dogs. They are differentiated from Alaska's Iñupiat, Greenland's Kalaallit, and Russian Inuit...
.
Bands
AhialmiutAhialmiut relied on caribou year-round. They spent summers on the Qamanirjuaq calving grounds at Qamanirjuaq Lake
Qamanirjuaq Lake
Qamanirjuaq Lake is a lake in Kivalliq Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is the first of several named lakes on the eastward flow of the Ferguson River through the eastern barrenlands...
("huge lake adjoining a river at both ends") and spent winters following the herd to the north.
Akilinirmiut
Akilinirmiut were located in the Thelon River
Thelon River
The Thelon River stretches across northern Canada. Its source is Whitefish Lake in the Northwest Territories, and it flows east to Baker Lake in Nunavut. The Thelon ultimately drains into Hudson Bay at Chesterfield Inlet.-Geography:...
area by the Akiliniq Hills (A-ki, meaning "the other side") to the north of Beverly Lake and also visible above Aberdeen Lake. Some lived northwest of Baker Lake (Qamani'tuuaq), along with Qairnirmiut and Hauniqturmiut. Many relocated to Aberdeen Lake because of starvation or education opportunities.
Hanningajurmiut
Hanningajurmiut, or Hanningaruqmiut, or Hanningajulinmiut {"the people of the place that lies across"} lived at Garry Lake
Garry Lake
Garry Lake is a lake in sub-Arctic Kivalliq Region, Nunavut, Canada. As a portion of the Back River waterway, Garry Lake originates directly east of Lake Pelly and drains to the east by the Back River. A set of rapids separate Buliard Lake from Garry Lake...
, south of the Utkuhiksalingmiut. Many Hanningajurmiut starved in 1958 when the caribou bypassed their traditional hunting grounds, but the 31 who survived were relocated to Baker. Most never returned permanently to Garry Lake.
Harvaqtuurmiut
Harvaqtuurmiut
Harvaqtuurmiut
thumb|right|Inuit [[inukshuk]] on the lower [[Kazan River]] used during the caribou hunt.Harvaqtuurmiut were a Caribou Inuit society in Nunavut, Canada. Predominantly, their inland existence was along the lower Kazan River section, by Thirty Mile Lake, that they called Harvaqtuuq...
were a northern group located in the region of Kazan River, Yathkyed Lake, Kunwak River
Kunwak River
The Kunwak River is a river of Nunavut, Canada. Historically the Kunwak has been inhabited by the Inuit peoples.The Harvaqtuurmiut are also known to have made their homes along the river....
, Beverly Lake
Beverly Lake (Nunavut)
Beverly Lake is a lake in Kivalliq Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is located north of the Arctic tree line about northwest of Baker Lake, Nunavut. The western half of the lake is within Thelon Wildlife Sanctuary. The Thelon River, at the confluence with the Dubawnt River, empties into the lake's...
, and Dubawnt River. By the early 1980s, most lived at Baker Lake
Baker Lake, Nunavut
Baker Lake , is a hamlet in the Kivalliq Region, in Nunavut on mainland Canada. Located inland from Hudson Bay, it is near the nation's geographical centre, and is notable for being the Canadian Arctic's sole inland community...
.
Hauniqtuurmiut
Hauneqtormiut, or Hauniqtuurmiut, or Kangiqliniqmiut, ("dwellers where bones abound") were a smaller band who lived near the coast, south of Qairnirmiuts, around the Wilson River and Ferguson River
Ferguson River (Nunavut)
The Ferguson River originates on the eastern bank of Ferguson Lake within the northern Hearne Domain, Western Churchill province of the Churchill craton, the northwest section of the Canadian Shield in Nunavut's Kivalliq Region....
. By the 1980s, they were absorbed into subgroups at Whale Cove and Rankin Inlet.
Ihalmiut
Ihalmiut
Ihalmiut
The Ihalmiut or Ahiarmiut are a group of inland Inuit who lived along the banks of the Kazan River, Ennadai Lake Little Dubawnt Lake , and north of Thlewiaza in northern Canada's Keewatin Region of the Northwest Territories, now the Kivalliq Region of present-day Nunavut...
("people from beyond"), or Ahiarmiut ("the out-of-the-way dwellers") were located at the banks of the Kazan River, Ennadai Lake
Ennadai Lake
Ennadai Lake is a lake in Kivalliq Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is long, and wide. It is drained to the north by the Kazan River.-Geography:The lake is within the Hearne Domain.-Flora:...
, Little Dubawnt Lake
Dubawnt Lake
Dubawnt Lake is a lake in Kivalliq Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is in size and has several islands. It is about 200 miles north of the point where Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Nunavut come together, about 300 miles west of Hudson Bay and about 250 miles south of the arctic circle. To the northwest is...
(Kamilikuak), and north of Thlewiaza (Kugjuaq; "Big River"). Relocations in the 1950s included to Henik Lake
Henik Lake
Henik Lake is located in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut, Canada. The lake is made up of two lakes, North Henik and South Henik with a narrows separating them...
, Whale Cove
Whale Cove, Nunavut
Whale Cove , is a hamlet located south of Rankin Inlet, north of Arviat, in Kivalliq Region, Nunavut, Canada, on the western shore of Hudson Bay....
, and by the 1980s, most were in Eskimo Point
Arviat, Nunavut
Arviat is a predominantly Inuit hamlet located on the western shore of Hudson Bay in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut, Canada. Arviat is derived from the Inuktitut word arviq meaning "Bowhead Whale"...
.
Paallirmiut
Paallirmiut ("people of the willow"), or Padlermiut ("people from the Padlei
Padlei, Nunavut
Padlei is a former community in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is located on the mainland on the north shore of Kinga Lake at the juncture of the Maguse River. Whale Cove is to the east, while the Henik Lakes are to the southwest....
River region"), or Padleimiut were the most populous band. They were located south of the Hauniqtuurmiut and Harvaqtuurmiut bands. Paallirmiut were split into a coast-visiting (Arviat) subgroup who spent the hunting season on the lower Maguse River
Maguse River
The Maguse River is located in the Kivalliq Region of northern Canada's territory of Nunavut. It originates at Maguse Lake and flows eastward to northwestern Hudson Bay. At one time, there was a trading post at the mouth of the river.-References:...
, and an interior subgroup who stayed year round in the Yathkyed Lake to Dubawnt Lake area. After Hudson's Bay Company ships discontinued trading the Keewatin coast in 1790, Paallirmiut traveled to Fort Prince of Wales for trade. The Arvia'juaq and Qikiqtaarjuk National Historic Site
Arvia'juaq and Qikiqtaarjuk National Historic Site
The Arvia'juaq and Qikiqtaarjuk National Historic Site contains two areas: Arvia'Juaq and Qikiqtaaruk. Arvia'juaq , an island in Hudson Bay, is located close to Arviat, Nunavut...
is the band's historic summer camping site. By the 1980s, most lived in Eskimo Point (Arviat).
Qaernermiut
Qaernermiut ("dwellers of the flat land"), or Qairnirmiut ("bedrock people"), or Kinipetu (Franz Boas
Franz Boas
Franz Boas was a German-American anthropologist and a pioneer of modern anthropology who has been called the "Father of American Anthropology" and "the Father of Modern Anthropology." Like many such pioneers, he trained in other disciplines; he received his doctorate in physics, and did...
, 1901), or Kenepetu, a northern group, were located from the sea coast between Chesterfield Inlet
Chesterfield Inlet
Chesterfield Inlet is an inlet in Kivalliq Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is an arm of northwestern Hudson Bay, and the end point of the Thelon River after its passage through Baker Lake. Cross Bay, a large widening of the inlet, occurs east of Baker Lake...
to Rankin Inlet across to their main area around Baker Lake and some even to Beverly Lake. By the early 1980s, most lived at Baker Lake.
Utkuhiksalingmiut
Utkuhiksalingmiut ("people who have cooking pots"), were located in the Chantrey Inlet area around the Back River
Back River
The Back River , is a river in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut in Canada...
, near Baker Lake. They made their pots (utkusik) from soapstone
Soapstone
Soapstone is a metamorphic rock, a talc-schist. It is largely composed of the mineral talc and is thus rich in magnesium. It is produced by dynamothermal metamorphism and metasomatism, which occurs in the areas where tectonic plates are subducted, changing rocks by heat and pressure, with influx...
of the area, therefore their name. Their dialect is a variant of Natsilingmiutut, spoken by the Netsilik
Netsilik Inuit
The Netsilik Inuit live predominantly in the communities of Kugaaruk and Gjoa Haven of the Kitikmeot Region, Nunavut and to a smaller extent in Taloyoak and the north Qikiqtaaluk Region...
.
Origin
Lacking an early written language, Caribou Inuit pre-history is unclear. There are three main theories:- Caribou Inuit are the descendents of an interior Eskimo culture that spread in Arctic North AmericaNorth AmericaNorth America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and GreenlandGreenlandGreenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
. (Birket-Smith, 1930; Rasmussen, 1930; Czonka, 1995) - Caribou Inuit are the descendents of Thule peopleThule peopleThe Thule or proto-Inuit were the ancestors of all modern Inuit. They developed in coastal Alaska by AD 1000 and expanded eastwards across Canada, reaching Greenland by the 13th century. In the process, they replaced people of the earlier Dorset culture that had previously inhabited the region...
who had migrated from Alaska. (Mathiassen, 1927) - Caribou Inuit were the 17th century descendents of a migratory subgroup of Copper Inuit from the arctic coast. (Taylor, 1972; Burch, 1978) While this is the most current hypothesis, it is still unproven. (Czonka, 1998)
History
Caribou Inuit ancestors originally went back and forth between the Barrenlands to hunt the Beverly and the Qamanirjuaq ("Kaminuriak") caribou herds during seasonal migrations; and the Hudson BayHudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
(Tariurjuaq) for whaling and to fish during the winters. The Chipewyan
Chipewyan
The Chipewyan are a Dene Aboriginal people in Canada, whose ancestors were the Taltheilei...
Sayisi Dene
Sayisi Dene
The Sayisi Dene, , are Chipewyan, a Dene First Nation Aboriginal peoples of Canada group living in northern Manitoba. They are members of the "Sayisi Dene First Nation " and are notable for living a nomadic caribou-hunting and gathering existence.-Origin:The Chipewyan's ancestral homeland...
were caribou hunters also, but they stayed inland year-round. Because of waning caribou populations during extended periods, including the 18th century, the Dene moved away from the area, and the Caribou Inuit began to live inland year-round harvesting enough caribou to get through winters without reliance on coastal life.
Regular contact began around 1717 after the establishment of a permanent settlement in Churchill, Manitoba
Churchill, Manitoba
Churchill is a town on the shore of Hudson Bay in Manitoba, Canada. It is most famous for the many polar bears that move toward the shore from inland in the autumn, leading to the nickname "Polar Bear Capital of the World" that has helped its growing tourism industry.-History:A variety of nomadic...
. The contact included access to guns, along with an introduction to trapping and whaling. Christian missionary, Father Alphonse Gasté, made diary notes about peaceful relations between settled Caribou Inuit and migratory Dene that he met along the Kazan River in the late 19th century. Explorer Joseph Tyrrell
Joseph Tyrrell
Joseph Burr Tyrrell was a Canadian geologist, cartographer, and mining consultant. He discovered dinosaur bones in Alberta's Badlands and coal around Drumheller in 1884....
estimated the "Caribou Eskimo" numbered nearly 2,000 when he led the Geological Survey of Canada's Barren Lands expeditions of 1893 and 1894. Eugene Arima classifies the Hauniqtuurmiut, Ha'vaqtuurmiut, Paallirmiut, and Qairnirmiut as Caribou Inuit "southern, latter" bands: through the end of the 19th century, they were primarily coastal saltwater hunters, but with firearm ammunition from commercial whalers, they were able to live inland year round hunting caribou without augmenting their diet on sea life. (Arima 1975)
Regular trade dates to the early 20th century and missionaries arrived soon thereafter, developing a written language, challenged by a variety of pronunciations and naming rules. In the Arctic spring of 1922, explorer/anthropologist Kaj Birket-Smith and Rasmussen encountered and reported on the lives of Harvaqtuurmiut and Paallirmiut. Some hunting years were better than others as resident caribou and migratory herds grew or declined, but Caribou Inuit populations dwindled through the decades. Starvation was not uncommon. During a bleak period in the 1920s, the Caribou Inuit made their way to Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
outposts and small, scattered villages on their own. Author/explorer Farley Mowat
Farley Mowat
Farley McGill Mowat, , born May 12, 1921 is a conservationist and one of Canada's most widely-read authors.His works have been translated into 52 languages and he has sold more than 14 million books. He achieved fame with the publication of his books on the Canadian North, such as People of the...
visited the Ihalimut in the 1940s and 1950s, writing extensively about the Ihalmiut.
Ethnography
Caribou Inuit were nomadic and summers were time of relocation to reach different game and to trade. In addition to hunting, they fished in local lakes and rivers (kuuk). Caribou Inuit northern bands from as far away as Dubawnt River travelled on trading trips to Churchill via Thlewiaza River for extra supplies. The nomadic nature made the people and their dogsCanadian Eskimo Dog
The Canadian Eskimo Dog is an Arctic breed of dog , which is often considered to be North America’s oldest and rarest remaining purebred indigenous domestic canine. Other names include Qimmiq...
into strong walkers and sledders who carried loads of implements, bedding, and tents. Kayaks portage
Portage
Portage or portaging refers to the practice of carrying watercraft or cargo over land to avoid river obstacles, or between two bodies of water. A place where this carrying occurs is also called a portage; a person doing the carrying is called a porter.The English word portage is derived from the...
d people and baggage in rivers and lakes.
Kayaks were also used for hunting at water crossings during annual migration. Wounded animals were tied together, brought ashore, and killed there to avoid the struggle of dragging dead animals. Every part of the caribou
Reindeer
The reindeer , also known as the caribou in North America, is a deer from the Arctic and Subarctic, including both resident and migratory populations. While overall widespread and numerous, some of its subspecies are rare and one has already gone extinct.Reindeer vary considerably in color and size...
was important. The antlers were used for tools, such as the ulu
Ulu
An ulu is an all-purpose knife traditionally used by Eskimo women, both Yupik and Inuit. It is utilized in applications as diverse as skinning and cleaning animals, cutting a child's hair, cutting food and, if necessary, trimming blocks of snow and ice used to build an igloo...
("knife") and goggles
Goggles
Goggles or safety glasses are forms of protective eyewear that usually enclose or protect the area surrounding the eye in order to prevent particulates, water or chemicals from striking the eyes. They are used in chemistry laboratories and in woodworking. They are often used in snow sports as well,...
to prevent snow blindness
Snow blindness
Photokeratitis or ultraviolet keratitis is a painful eye condition caused by exposure of insufficiently protected eyes to the ultraviolet rays from either natural or artificial sources. Photokeratitis is akin to a sunburn of the cornea and conjunctiva, and is not usually noticed until several...
. The hides were used for footwear and clothing, including the anorak
Anorak
An anorak or parka is a type of heavy jacket with a hood, often lined with fur or fake fur, so as to protect the face from a combination of freezing temperatures and wind...
and amauti
Amauti
The amauti is the traditional eastern Arctic Inuit parka designed to carry a child in the same garment as the parent so that the child is warm and safe from frostbite, wind and cold. The amauti can be made from a variety of materials including sealskin, caribou skin or duffle with a windproof...
, using caribou sinew
Tendon
A tendon is a tough band of fibrous connective tissue that usually connects muscle to bone and is capable of withstanding tension. Tendons are similar to ligaments and fasciae as they are all made of collagen except that ligaments join one bone to another bone, and fasciae connect muscles to other...
to piece the articles together, and worn in many layers. Mittens were lined with fur, down, and moss. While spring-gathered caribou skins were thin, sleek, and handsome, summer-gathered caribou skins were stronger and warmer. Hides were used also for tents, tools, and containers.
Caribou Inuit lived within a patrilocal social unit
Social unit
Social unit is a term used in sociology, anthropology, ethnology, and also in animal behaviour studies, zoology and biology to describe a social entity which is part of and participates in a larger social group or society....
. The male elder, the ihumataq ("group leader"), was the centralized authority. There was no other form of authority within subgroups or within the Caribou Inuit in general. Like other Inuit, Caribou Inuit practiced an animist
Animism
Animism refers to the belief that non-human entities are spiritual beings, or at least embody some kind of life-principle....
religion, including beliefs that everything had a soul or energy with a disposition or personality. The protector was Pinga
Pinga
In Inuit mythology, Pinga was a goddess of the hunt, fertility and medicine. She was also the psychopomp, bringing souls of the newly-dead to Adlivun, the underworld....
, a female figure, the object of taboos, who brings the dead to Adlivun
Adlivun
In Inuit mythology, Adlivun refers to both the spirits of the departed who reside in the underworld, and that underworld itself, located beneath the land and the sea. The souls are purified there, in preparation for the travel to the Land of the Moon , where they find eternal rest and peace...
. The supreme force was Hila ("air"), a male figure and the source of misfortune. Christian missionaries established posts in the Barren Lands between 1910 and 1930, converting (siqqitiq
Siqqitiq
Siqqitiq is the ritual of converting Inuit with shamanist beliefs to Christianity. This is usually accompanied by ritualistic consumption of foods held taboo by shamanist belief , to underscore the fact that such taboos no longer apply...
) most Inuit from animists to Christians, though some, nonetheless, maintain remnants of their traditional shamanistic beliefs.
Caribou Inuit are Inuktitut
Inuktitut
Inuktitut or Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, Eastern Canadian Inuit language is the name of some of the Inuit languages spoken in Canada...
speakers. Inuktitut has six dialects, of which Caribou Inuit speak the Kivalliq dialect, and that is further divided into the subdialects, Ahiarmiut, Hauniqturmiut, Paallirmiut, and Qairnirmiut. The Utkuhiksalingmiut's dialect, Utkuhiksalingmiutut, is similar to but distinct from their neighbors' Nattilingmiutut. Like other central Canadian Arctic people, Caribou Inuit participated in nipaquhiit ("games done with sounds or with noises"). The Caribou Inuit genre lacked typical katajjaq
Inuit throat singing
Inuit throat singing or katajjaq, also known as the generic term overtone singing, is a form of musical performance uniquely found among the Inuit...
("throat sounds") but added narration missing amongst other Inuit groups.
Modern-day adaptation
Re-settlementThere are several books written on the hardships and the 1950s federal government re-settlement of Caribou Inuit. With re-settlement to coastal communities, the nomadic nuunamiut ("people of the land") ways ended and Caribou Inuit joined tareumiut ("people of the sea"), the maritime Inuit being a more stable group. Even with federal assistance, adapting to displacement in fewer and larger towns proved difficult, resulting in high unemployment, domestic violence, sexual abuse, substance addiction, suicide, parental neglect, and lack of motivation.
Language
With the acquisition of English, native language loss is the primary threat to their cultural survival, while neither language is being mastered.
Art
On a positive note, artisan skills evolved and Caribou Inuit, such as Jessie Oonark
Jessie Oonark
Jessie Oonark, OC was a Canadian Inuit artist who is best known for her wall hangings and her prints.-Biography :...
, are notable for their figurines of animal life. Another Inuit art
Inuit art
Inuit art refers to artwork produced by Inuit people, that is, the people of the Arctic previously known as Eskimos, a term that is now often considered offensive outside Alaska...
medium, also considered a game, and also associated with their religious beliefs, involves string figures (ajaraaq/ajaqaat [plural]).
Population
About 3,000 Caribou Inuit exist today, located in Chesterfield Inlet
Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut
The community of Chesterfield Inlet is located on the western shore of Hudson Bay, Kivalliq Region, in Nunavut Canada at the mouth of Chesterfield Inlet. Igluligaarjuk is the Inuktitut word for "place with few houses", it is the oldest community in Nunavut...
, Rankin Inlet, Whale Cove, Eskimo Point, and Baker Lake.
Further reading
- Buikstra, J. E. 1976. "The Caribou Eskimo: General and Specific Disease". American Journal of Physical AnthropologyAmerican Journal of Physical AnthropologyThe American Journal of Physical Anthropology is a peer-reviewed scientific journal and the official journal of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists...
. 45, no. 3: 351-67. - Gordon, Bryan H. C. People of sunlight, people of starlight Barrenland archaeology in the Northwest Territories of Canada. Hull, Quebec: Canadian Museum of CivilizationCanadian Museum of CivilizationThe Canadian Museum of Civilization is Canada's national museum of human history and the most popular and most-visited museum in Canada....
, 1996. ISBN 0660159635 - Oakes, Jill E. Copper and Caribou Inuit Skin Clothing Production. Mercury series. Hull, Quebec: Canadian Museum of Civilization, 1991. ISBN 0660129094
- Rasmussen, Knud. Iglulik and Caribou Eskimo Texts. New York: AMS Press, 1976. ISBN 0404583008
- Steenhoven, Geert van den, and Geert van den Steenhoven. Research Report on Caribou Eskimo Law. The Hague: G. van den Steenhoven, 1957.
- Thule Ekspedition, and Kaj Birket-Smith. The Caribou Eskimos Material and Social Life and Their Cultural Position. Washington, D.C.: Brookhaven Press, 1978.