The Inuit civilization exists in Alaska, Greenland, and Northern Canada. They are believed to have migrated to North America from the Bering Strait around 6,000 BC to 2,000 BC. Early Inuits made small houses with walls and roofs made of sod, some Canadian Inuits used more recognizable igloos. The early Inuit diet consisted mainly of caribou, seals, and walruses.
Early Inuits tended to be nomadic and moved around depending on which animals they hunted at different points of the year. Groups in the far north had a less organized hunting schedule but hunted whale in the spring, while other groups hunted seal in the spring and caribou in the summer and fall. In the summer groups would come together and trade hunts.
Among the most popular of Inuit mythology is the tragic tale of Sedna, the Goddess of the Sea. While there are many variations of the story, they are mostly similar. Sedna's father is angered with her (often because she doesn't want to get married) and throws her into the sea, Sedna clings to the edge of the canoe but her father cuts off her fingers and she sinks to the bottom of the sea where she becomes the ruler of all the creatures in the sea. In all versions Sedna's fingers become sea creatures, mostly seals, however in some her fingers also turn into whales and walruses. Inuit hunters prayed to Sedna in hopes to receive a bountiful hunt.
On a happier note, the role of Inuit women was much less tragic. Women, like in most cultures, were given more domestic tasks such as making clothing and gathering food. While the men were away hunting, women created a culture of entertainment through means such as throat singing. Inuit throat singing consists of two women standing very close together, holding each others shoulders, and singing from the throat with one woman singing slightly behind the other. Women made throat singing into a fun game for themselves. You lose the "game" of throat singing if you run out of breath, stop singing, or laugh.
European settlers nearly destroyed Inuit culture in a multitude of ways. European whalers depleted Inuit food sources and main economic resource. They also brought diseases along with them, such as tuberculosis, that killed significant amounts of the Inuit population. Fur traders often traded contraband alcohol to Inuit traders which increased alcohol dependency and fetal alcohol syndrome among the population, to this day many Inuit villages have banned alcohol for this reason. In order to assimilate Inuit populations, European settlers convinced parents to send their children to far away boarding schools. In these schools children were taught English and punished for speaking in Inupiaq. More recently the Inuit are threatened by cancer by nuclear waste dumping from the Atomic Energy Commission.
The Inuit are still alive and well today. Inuit populations of Canada have been gaining more autonomy and in 1999 gained the territory of Nunavut (meaning "Our Home"). While most Inuit today live more modern lifestyles they are still connected to their roots. More recently there have been revivals in Inuit cultures in throat singing and traditional tattooing.
Crystal Links. “Inuit Myths About Creation.” Crystalinks, www.crystalinks.com/inuitcreation.html.
Jones, J. Sydney. “Inuit.” Countries and Their Cultures, www.everyculture.com/multi/Ha-La/Inuit.html.
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