The Arctic

Native American History

Brad Jones

Environment
Definition: A 6,000 mile long coastline from Southern

Alaska to Eastern Labrador, including Siberia and

Greenland.

Environment

Boundaries: The Pacific Ocean to the west, the Atlantic

Ocean to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and a
Tundra to the south.

Basically a treeless, snow covered tundra of lichens

and mosses

Often described as a Desert of Cold.

Only 4 inches of precipitation, which is snow.

Environment
Geographic Features

Fjords, created by glaciers in Greenland.

Islands that are rocky and flat barren grounds from the
Hudson Bay through Northern Alaska.

In Southern Alaska, from the coastline to the forest line, land

is barren (too poor to produce much or any vegetation)

Permafrost is year-round, little drainage to oceans, which

creates small ponds and lakes.

Summers are short and come with mud, fog and the break up
of pack ice

Winters are long and harsh

Fjords

Flat Barren Grounds

Tribes
Pre-contact population as around 80,000-85,000.
60,000-75,000 were Inuit, 15,000 were Aleuts.
Population density was 4/100 square kilometers.
Eskimo is a Cree word that means Eaters of raw

meat.
Inuit, the preferred name, means The People.
Nicknamed People on the Edge because of their

location and existence.

Inuit

Aluet

3 Sub Areas of Arctic

1) High Arctic- The western and northern

most. Has complete darkness 4 months of

the year.
2) Central Arctic- Has less darkness, the ice

actually melts, which provides for more open

water. Kayaks are used and there is inland
caribou hunting.
3) Sub Arctic (Arctic)- A milder climate,

includes Labrador, Southern Alaska, and

Subsistence & Economy

Seals are hunted throughout the Arctic.
Seals were an important source of subsistence for

Inuits. They obtained meat, oil, and fur from seals.

Caribou was hunted in the Central and Eastern Arctic.
Sea mammals, such as whales, walruses were also used

for subsistence, especially along the north and west

coasts of Alaska.
Winters last from October to May (8 months).
Summers are short, the peak being in June.

Subsistence & Economy

Winter
Inland lakes and streams as well as the oceans are

frozen.
Pack-ice can get up to 7 feet thick.
Seal hunting camps form along the ocean bay.
Hunting is a cooperative effort among men. Polyandry

was used to form alliances.

Seals have to breathe every 20 min through

breathing holes.
Hunters would wait for a seal to come up, then

harpoon it.

Subsistence & Economy

Winter-Spring

Detachable-head harpoons were used to drag

seals to the surface.

The seal was so important that the abundance of

seals would dictate the size of winter villages.

The Ringed Seal was the most important marine

mammal, because they were a year-round source

of food for the Inuit.
Also prized for their fur because of its warmth.

Subsistence & Economy

Summer Thaw
Mid-April in Central and Eastern Arctic: Thaw exposes

lichens and mosses that attract caribou from the Southern

Boreal Forest.
Mid-September: Caribou herds returned to the south. The

hides have more hair and are desired for winter clothing.
Hunters would wait near caribou crossings, then ambush

the herd.
Hunters would also set up decoys on islands, drive them

into ponds and lakes, then sail by in their kayaks and

spear them.

Seal Hunting

Caribou Hunting

Subsistence & Economy

Northern and Western Alaska: Walruses and whaling

expeditions from open umiaks during the summer
thaw.

Subsistence in the Arctic: Variations on a major theme

which is localized adaptations based on faunal
distribution and geography.

Bone tools were an important part of trade as well as

drift wood, which was highly sought after, because
wood was so scarce.

Dogsleds used for transportation.

Cultural Traits

South Alaskan Eskimo: In forest zones, they occupied semisubterranean sod houses.

Greenland Eskimo: Stone and sod dwellings.

Kayaks: Used for offshore sealing and caribou hunting.

Constructed for 1-2 men to fit in and covered with animal skin.

Alaskan Eskimos: Constructed umiaks which are larger opened

top boats.

Copper Inuit: Harvested native copper from the Coppermine

River and the Coronation Gulf and made copper tools for trade.

Kinship
Kinship was bilateral.
Households consisted of the nuclear family.
Settlements were near other families and would hunt

together.
Men were responsible for hunting and building the

houses.
Women cooked, dressed the animal skins, made

clothing, and looked after the children.