The Inuit Way Of Life

Source

Anon. 2010. “The Inuit Way of Life.” Youtube. Retrieved December 5, 2016 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Btz4LNaxF4c).

Modern Changes to the People

Shelter was important before the modern age. Inuits would build one big igloo for all spaces. Inuits have several rooms for storage and other uses for today. They can't build basements because of the permafrost. Shelter is so important that an Inuk man can't marry someone if they don't know how to build an igloo.

Clothing has changed by the material they use. They still use traditional clothing but with more modern materials. Inuits still make their own clothing suited to the environment they live in. They also prefer animal skins for hunting purposes. Inuits are fighting for Property rights of their clothing design because none Inuit people are making a profit from them.

Traditional travelling was by kayaks,walking,sleds, and umiaks. The modern day has put technology into the daily lives. Kayaks are now motorized. People use snowmobiles,ATV's,trucks and speedboats now. Cruises come by the coast a lot and transportation of goods are normal done by ship and barges. People still use dog sleds today but it's a lot fewer.

Customs of the people have changed. The majority of the religion values of Inuits are now Christianity. Their languages have changed to French, English and Inuktitut. Names are very important to the culture. When someone passes away the next child who is born will probably take on the deceased's name. People used to go to shamans for help but today shamans stay hidden in fear of the community.

Sources

http://icor.ottawainuitchildrens.com/node/48

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-x5QOSqP3E

The Inuit People and Myths

   The Inuit people of Canada have gone a great distance throughout the geographical landscape of Canada. They were here way before Canada was even thought to be called Canada. It is for this reason that it impacts Canadian identity as we know it.

    It was the Nunavut’s formation that set up the first form of government that Canada knows. This also led the way for many legends and myths that are still shared throughout, which were used to enlighten and enrich.

   The old teachings have undergone an resurgence due to the fact that the groups are aiming to preserve these teachings to continue to pass on through the generations. The Inuit mythology is entertaining yet instructive.

   The Inuit describe the powers of good and evil to deities living in the spirit world closely entwined with the beautiful northern landscape. Although oral traditions were most important in this tradition the Inuit people also used small carvings that served as illustrations for events. Inuit’s myths and legends are shorter stories filled with dramatics involving the creation, the heavens, birth, love, hunting, respect for the aged, polygamy, murder, infanticide, incest, death, and the afterlife.

How Does Gender Play A Role in Daily Life

   Any discussion of gender issues that arise in Inuit communities needs to be mindful of the gender model in Inuit society, where gender is “situational and contextual (Trott, 2006) In regards to the family structure and marriage. The Inuits practice polygamy where the male takes on multiple wives. The elders specifically males were held in high regard and were the heads of the family. The men usually make decisions in regards to the family and the elders made decision concerning the community.

   As far as daily activities such as hunting, gathering, preparing meals, and etc. under special circumstances were divided up between the men and the women. Generally, the men would do most of the hunting and gathering of the food, while the women would prepare the meals and take care of the home. If there wasn't or isn't any male offspring within a family, but instead they have a daughter, the daughter will then be taught to hunt and gather as well. Also, if the male is to travel outside of his normal territory for an extended period of time, it is expected of him to learn how to cook and sew for himself so that he can survive.

The woman's role has been to keep the Inuit tradition and customs alive and to pass it down from generation to generation. As time has progressed roles based on gender have altered somewhat, but all in all remain the same as they were in the past. Both males and females are able to obtain education.

   Women were able to maintain their traditional activities of caring for children and the household. Women were also able to adapt more readily to a rapidly changing society and to benefit from these changes, as demonstrated by their higher employment rates. These developments have led to certain imbalances in the status of Inuit men and women that have affected the relations between them. It is within this context that certain gender-related issues, notably domestic violence, can be understood. At the same time, the unequal status of Aboriginal women more generally in Canadian society must be considered as a contributing factor to the gender issues that arise specifically in Inuit communities .(Morgan,2006)

Sources

Trott, Christopher G. 2006. “The Gender of the Bear.” Études/Inuit/Studies 94.

Morgan, Clara. 2008. “The Arctic: Gender Issues .” Retrieved November 16, 2016 (http://www.lop.parl.gc.ca/content/lop/researchpublications/prb0809-e.htm).

Hunting and Gathering

  The Inuit’s of Canada use hunting and gathering as their form of collecting food and other materials they survive. Living in the arctic makes it hard to get food other than animals so vegetation wasn’t really on the table. Seeing as the Inuit’s were an arctic people, they had to hunt all year around, even in the harsh winters they experienced.

When it comes to hunting, the Inuit people use a variety of different tools. For fishing, the tribes would use things such as harpoons (the heads would be made out of Ivory), Fishing lines, Nets, three pronged spears and Leisters. They would also use a stone knife to cut holes in the ice and snow.

 For hunting animals on land, the Inuit’s had a lot in their arsenal to choose from. The Inuit’s were skilled with different weapons such as Bow and Arrows, (that looked somewhat like modern day cross bows) Knifes carved from bone and Ulu (muskox horn handle). Each tool would play a different role when it came to the hunting such as the bow and arrow being used to for hunting, and the Ulu would be using for skinning the animals.

   The Inuit’s had a variety of choices when it came to hunting. Depending on what season it was, it would change the types of Animals that the people could hunt. When it came to animals in the water, The Inuit’s would hunt walrus, Beluga Whales, Walrus, Hooded seals and during the winter seals were hunted. On the ground, animals such as the arctic hare, arctic bird, arctic fox, Musk Oxen, Polar bears, and the most important of them all, caribou (during the summer).

    

Music and Dance of the Canadian Inuits

The Canadian Inuits incorporate music and dance into their daily life in many ways. Music is perhaps, one of the most important, if not THE most important, aspect of the Inuit culture. They use it to celebrate, to grief, and to remember loved ones who have long passed away. They have special dances that distinguish what they are celebrating for, such as the drum dance, and others.
They have ways of singing that have originated from their culture such as throatsinging.

Throatsinging is exclusively performed by women because they tend to have the "better: voices for this task. It can require many months, even years to perfect the distinctive sound that is throatsinging. Two women stand in pairs, facing one another. The first woman makes noises in her throat to start the beat, while the other one creates the melody. Most beats imitate nature such as flowing water or animal sounds which shows their connectivity to nature and the spiritual world.

Their main form of dancing is called drumdancing. Drumdancing is composed of men holding and striking drums on the side which creates a sort of swaying motion which is the basis of the dance. Behind these men with the drums, are usually a group of singers, but there doesn't always have to be singers involved. This type of dance was associated with nearly all of the celebrations they had from a hunting celebration, to a wedding celebration. Drumdancing was also performed in some rituals.

As we can see, the Canadian Inuits love their music, but also don't neglect the dance aspect of their culture. They celebrate just about everything with either a song or a dance to delegate it's importance. If other cultures adopted this way of life, many may find that it's a great way to relieve tension within a culture. The Canadian Inuits have lived this way for many centuries, and have proved that they have evolved to survive in their situation.

Source:

 Anon. 2016. “Inuit Art Alive — Music.” Inuit Art Alive — Music. Retrieved December 6, 2016 (http://www.inuitartalive.ca/index_e.php?p=126).

Sociopolitical Organization of the Canadian Inuits (Post by Andrea Townsend via Jacqualine Walker)

   There are many different groups of Canadian Inuit, the main groups being: Labrador Inuit, Ungava or New Quebec Inuit, Baffin Island, Igloolik, Caribou, Netsilik, Copper and Western Arctic Inuit. The Inuit people live in small groups or bands consisting of family and friends. There is no official “chain of command” although the most skillful hunter might be considered a “leader”. Leadership is recognized at the household and family level. Broader leadership is given to those men recognized as great hunters and powerful shamans. Informal village councils composed of elder men of the village settle local level disputes. The sociopolitical structure was built around sharing and trade between families, multi-family settlements, bands, and regional groupings of bands. War and conflict was very rare between Inuit groups. Each of the Inuit groups value self-restraint and sharing as traits of their culture. With sharing as the basis of their culture, the Inuit people survive the harsh environment and elements by depending on each other for food, equipment, clothing and money between not only their family and friends, but also their communities.

    For many generations the Inuit have lived according to an unwritten system of self-governance. Members of Inuit tribes were expected to work selflessly for the common good and survival of the people. Those who threatened the safety and security of these once nomadic peoples, were dealt with in ways that ensured the stability of the community. This resulted in the tribes maintaining a relatively peaceful existence. All of this began to change as outsiders brought their laws to the northernmost regions of Canada. Along with the attempts to assimilate Aboriginal peoples into mainstream Canadian life, former practices were greatly disrupted.

   The term Nunangat refers to the Inuit homeland which comprises the land, water and ice contained in the Arctic region. “In 2011, approximately 73 per cent of all Inuit in Canada lived in Inuit Nunangat, with nearly half living in Nunavut, followed by Nunavik (in northern Québec), Nunatsiavut (located along the northern coast of Labrador), and the western arctic (Northwest Territories and Yukon), known as Inuvialuit.” The traditional Inuit practices included hunting and gathering. “Large regional groupings were loosely separated into smaller seasonal groups, winter camps (called "bands") of around 100 people and summer hunting groups of fewer than a dozen.” Bands were roughly identified based on their location.

   Over the course of 4000 years, the Arctic region has encountered the appearance of outsiders who brought with them continual cultural change, such as the Norse in the 11th century. “The subsequent arrival of explorers, whalers, traders, missionaries, scientists and others began irreversible cultural changes.” Acting as trail guides, survival guides, and traders, the Inuit actively participated in the exchange of culture. “Despite adjustments made by the Inuit over the past three centuries and the loss of some traditional features, Inuit culture persists — often with a greater reflective awareness.”

   The Indian Act: Canadian statute; registered Indians, their bands, Indian reservations. Passed in 1876, governs how Canadian state is to interact with bands and their members.

   The Inuit, never subject to the Indian Act, were largely ignored by the Canadian government until 1939. A court ruling that the Inuit were a federal responsibility but not to be subjected to the policies of the Indian Act. Instead, “what followed were policies that enforced assimilation into a Canadian way of life”. A nomadic peoples, their lives were transformed through forced relocation into sedentary communities. Disc numbers were introduced for an administrative need to replace the Inuit naming system. This system used location based serial numbers and was seen as fostering structural inequality.

   Beginning to organize politically in the 1960s and 1970s, in response to the assimilative policies and government restrictions on their ancestral lands, a group of Inuit people formed the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada. Created in 1971, this organization supports and advocates for the interests of all Inuit living in Nunangat. “Such interests represent an array of interconnected issues and challenges, including social, cultural, political, and environmental concerns.” With the passage of the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement Act in 1993, and the building of a strong political base of politically experienced leaders, a relatively smooth transition to the status of official territory was achieved in 1999. “Despite gains made in self-government and other fields like business, teaching, transportation, medicine and broadcasting, many Inuit in northern communities face significant challenges, such as living in some of the most crowded conditions in Canada.” The Inuit have lacked adequate housing and have suffered related health issues due to overcrowded conditions and lack of access to healthcare. With a suicide rate among Inuit youth much higher than that of for the rest of Canada, suicide prevention is a key component for continual cultural growth.

Sources

Anthony William Smith. (2013). Inuit - The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved from The Canadian Encyclopedia: http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com