Cultural Change in the Aleutian Islands

Aleut Raven Cultural Change in the Aleutian Islands:
Contact with Another Culture

A 6th Grade Social Studies Unit

APPENDIX A: AN OVERVIEW OF PRE-CONTACT ALEUT CULTURE
Prepared by Mary Ann Hanak, Indian Education Act Program

HOMES
Aleut homes varied in size, interior design, and materials. The following could be a general description of an Aleut dwelling or barabara - an oblong square pit 50 ft. long by 20 ft. wide. Wooden beams (driftwood) were set into the floor to support walls and the roof. Whalebone was sometimes used in construction. Grass mats were placed on top of the beams. On top of the grass mats were placed chunks of sod. The square openings were left in the roof, one being for light and the other used as a door opening with the use of a ladder. Around the sides of the house several families lived in separate apartments divided by grass mats. Benches ran the length of the house parallel to troughs where a majority of indoor activities took place. In the center of the house was a raised platform which was commonly used by all of the families for such chores as tanning hides, etc. However, not all houses had benches or raised platforms. The homes were heated by seal oil lamps.

FOOD
Crab, shrimp, sea urchins, limpets, mussels, chitons, snails, razor clams, butter clams, cackles, cormorants, emperor geese, albatross, ducks, puffins, shear-waters, bird eggs, especially murre eggs, sea otters, hair seals, sea lions, whales, fish such as rock greenling, Irish lords, Pacific cod, halibut, salmon, trout, berries, roots, many edible plants - i.e., kelp, and petrusky or wild celery.

OCCUPATIONS
Division of labor:
Women - cleaned fish, hung fish to dry, picked berries, collected roots for winter, did all of the sewing such as sewing the skins together for the boats or baidarkas, making the clothing, boots, and shoes. They also covered the baidarka with the sewn skins; wove mats, baskets, and stoles; extracted the sinew from the tendons of the large mammals to be used as thread, made dyes for ornamentation, embroidered designs with wool and hair, and danced in the ceremonies. Slave women did the menial tasks such as cooking, cleaning, etc.

Men - hunted, fished, carved wood and ivory figures, made the stone lamps; only men sang the songs at ceremonies, built the boat frames, were political leaders according to a well defined social structure and went to war against neighboring tribes.

TOOLS
Abraders and whetstones to sharpen knives and adze blades, needles, awls and bone points; fish shanks and bone hooks; flakers of sea otter ribs to chip small pieces of stone from a flake core rock from which knife blades, points and scrapers were made; hammer-stones for hammering, tapping, battering or crushing; harpoon and harpoon heads; ladles out of whale vertebrae or other large mammals; stone lamps, ivory mouth piece or plug for seal bladder floats; bone or ivory needles; paint grinders, root diggers, beamers, prying tools made of whalebone and sea lion ribs; sinkers for fish nets and lines; spear heads, stone points; wedges; baskets; mats.

CLOTHES
Knee-length waterproof kamleika shirts made of the intestines of the large sea mammals; fur trousers and boots; fur and bird feather parkas; wooden hats were worn by the men; women sometimes wore grass woven capes or pelerines.

TRANSPORTATION
Foot, baidar (a large open skin boat used for transporting families and goods to seasonal sites; like the Eskimo umiak), baidarki.

FAMILY AND SOCIAL LIFE
Birth - careful precautions taken during pregnancy, at birth and after birth of a child for the mother. Babies were taken care of by the older women in the house.

Child rearing - preparation for a rugged life began early.
Boys at age eight began their education pertaining to the making, use, and care of tools and weapons. The arts of fishing and warfare were constantly stressed. Boys' teachers were generally their uncles (mother's brother), or a male relative on their mother's side. Girls at an early age were taught to make any kind of clothing, to embroider, to weave baskets, mats, etc., to clean fish, to prepare any type of food; to collect berries, roots and other plants.

Puberty - girls were secluded for thirty days and tattooed on the chin. There were no special rites for boys.

Marriage - among traditional Aleut society the prevalence of the avunculate, the maternal cross-cousin marriage and sibling terms for parallel cousins are evidence of a matrilineal descent system. Cross-cousins were mother's brothers and father's sister's children and were preferred marriage partners in part because cross-cousins were never members of one's own matrilineal group. Polygamy, arranged marriage, the practice of the sororate when necessary, bride-service and patrilocal residence were also included.

Death - extreme care was lavished upon the dead. Death rites included mummification of bodies; decoration of tombs of honorables; burial of an honorable's prized possessions such as his weapons, tools, items indicating wealth along with him, preparing him for the next life. A wake for the dead was usually held for forty days. A memorial feast was held and remaining articles of the dead were given by his relatives to the guests. A short mourning period followed. Many taboos surrounding a dead person's relatives were observed.

GOVERNMENT
Most villages in the Aleutians were basically one large kinship group with the exception of slaves who were brought in as war captives. The society was composed of mainly three groups: the honorables and the elders of the community, the great bulk of the ordinary Aleuts, and the slave caste. A head chief or toyon was the leader of a district. He watched over the common welfare of his district, protected the boundaries of the group's hunting grounds and was commander-in-chief in time of war. All of the chiefs or toyons living on the same island decided upon war. Punishment for offenses committed by members of the group were meted out by all of the honorables. The toyon-ship was not hereditary. In most cases, the sons or nephews of the previous toyon succeeded in his place, but if such a descendant did not exist or proved unworthy, some other great hunter from the village was chosen as toyon. Being a toyon was a position of honor, importance and prestige, but no special treatment resulted. For example, the toyon shared the catch of fish or the hunt equally with the entire group; he did not take a larger portion than the others.

RELIGION
The Aleuts' pre-contact religion has been classified as "Animistic": that is, a religious belief system that all natural objects have spirits which must be respected and treated in certain prescribed ways. For instance, a spiritually "unclean" person (such as one in mourning) must not handle anything which had been or would be in contact with animals or fish, for this would offend the spirits of the animals or fish.

The Aleuts believed that the respect they showed the natural environment through the adherence to such rules of behavior would be returned to them when the natural environment provided them with food and shelter.

Each Aleut had his or her own personal amulets which provided a direct relationship with the spirit world, and there were shamans who specialized in this relationship as well.

Finally, the great amount of effort and time which the Aleuts spent on taking care of their dead indicates a belief that the spirits of the dead lived on in another world and must be made acceptable to that world.

APPENDIX B: Veniaminov's Version:
Song of an Atkan Aleut

(This song is sung by a person who is preparing to dance.)

As it is done by the timid that I might do likewise, I hid and departed.

And when I rode, gazing about, I saw the beast the sea lion, that he adroitly dives and comes up;

Stopping opposite him, I began to think:

Even for the timid one it seems possible to do with him one's will;

And thinking, that in my undertakings even I have had success, I took from the stern of my baidarka a javelin, stripped the sheath (from the point) and place (the javelin) before me.

I rode and drawing near to him, I shot at him, but did not place the javelin in him.

He became enraged and dived, I rode after him and shot at him, but could do nothing with him, but only spoiled the points on my javelins.

Although I had gone off with this (object) only, that I might not see anyone;

Yet I looked about, that I might see someone, and did not see (anyone).

And if there had been anyone with whom to weep, I would have so (wept), in such a condition was I.

Having stopped there, I rode home; having arrived, when I landed on the shore,

I turned my ears to hear that which I loved, and considered myself a master in, (I listened for) the voice of the tambourine and did not hear (it).

Yes! As I thought, so it is, for here you are.

And so take your tambourine and sing.

(Here the dancer ceases to sing and those sitting around begin to beat on the tambourines and to sing while he dances and represents the hunter.)

Reprinted from Veniaminov's Notes on the Atkin Aleuts and the Koloshi

APPENDIX C: LISTING IN ASD'S AVS CENTER
RELATING TO ALEUT CULTURE

F 1861 First Americans
F 4280 The Aleutians: Chain of Life
VT 360 Atka: An Aleut Village (preview first; the visual quality is low)
VT 371 St. Paul Island
VT 450 The Aleutian Story: World War II
VT 485 The Aleutian Story: A Matter of Record
UN 489 Outlook Unit
UN 517 Aleut Basketry (ask librarian to put in display case)
UN 521 Time of Change
UN 599 Aleut Social Studies Unit
UN 611 Aleut Resources Packet
UN 642 Far North Unit
UN 692 Aleut Material Culture Slide Show
UN 701 A Visitor in Unalaska Slide Show
UN 735 The Aleutians: Looking Back; Looking Forward

In addition, there are a number of films on specific natural resources indigenous to the Aleutian Islands.

APPENDIX D: JUVENILE LITERATURE ON ALEUT CULTURE

NOTE: The fact that this list is small is an indication of the scant amount of interest previously paid to this part of Alaska.

Aleutian Region School District Students (Sherry Spitler, Ed.) Taniisix, Anchorage, 1980.

Dirks, Moses and Lydia, Atxax; National Bilingual Materials Development Center; University of Alaska; Anchorage, 1978

Dirks, Moses, Niigugim Qalgadangis (Atkan Food); National Bilingual Materials Development Center, University of Alaska, 1980

Finney, Gertrude E., To Survive We Must be Clever ;New York; Davis McKay Company, Inc.; 1966. A novel.

Griese, Arnold, The Wind is Not a River; Thomas Y. Crowell; New York; 1978

Hudson, Ray, Stories Out of Slumber; Private printing; Unalaska, Alaska, 1979

Lynch, Kathleen, Aleut Basket Weaving Anchorage; Adult Literacy Laboratory, Anchorage Community College; 1974. A technical but readable illustrated manual on this art form.

Mensoff, Olga, and Moses Dirks, Akutanax; National Bilingual Materials Development Center; University of Alaska, Anchorage; 1977

Montgomery, Jean, Search the Wild Shore; Morrow; 1974. A historical novel.

Nevzoroff, John, Knut Bergsland and Moses Dirks, Kasakam Uniikangis (Russian Stories); National Bilingual Materials Development Center; Anchorage; 1978

Oliver, Ethel Ross, Aleutian Boy; Portland, Oregon; Binfords & Mort, 1959. A novel.

Unalaska City School, Cuttlefish One (and subsequent issues); Unalaska, Alaska; 1977. Excellent articles on the history and culture of the area, written by high school students.

APPENDIX E: BIBLIOGRAPHY ON ALEUTIAN ENVIRONMENT

I. Plants

Fernow, Bernhard, "The Forests of Alaska" in Forestry and Irrigation; February, 1902 Available at the USGS library, this article discusses reasons for the treelessness of the Aleutian Islands

Fernow, Bernhard, Harriman Alaska Expedition; Vol. II; Doubleday Page and Co.; 1901
An article by Bernhard Fernow discusses the flora of the
Aleutian Islands. The volume is available at the downtown Department of the Interior library in the USGS library.

Heller, Christine, Wild, Edible and Poisonous Plants of Alaska; Cooperative Extension Service, University of Alaska

Hultën, Eric, Flora of Alaska and Neighboring Territories; Stanford University Press

Kirk, Donald R., Wild Edible Plants of the Western United States; Naturegraph Publishers; Healdsburg, California; 1970

U.S.D.A. Government Printing, Alaska Trees and Shrubs; Agriculture Handbook #410

II. Animals

Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Wildlife Notebook Series;

Alaska Geographic, Alaskan Mammals; (Vol. 8, No. 2); Alaska Northwest Publishing Co.; 1981

Alaska Geographic, Whales; (Vol. 5, No. 4); Alaska Northwest Publishing Co.; 1978

Morrow, James E., Illustrated Keys to the Fresh Water Fishes of Alaska; Alaska Northwest Publishing Co.

Murie, Olaus J., Fauna of the Aleutian Islands and Alaska Peninsula; United States Fish & Wildlife Service

National Audobon Society, Alaskan Birds; (chart and handbook)

Ovington, Ray, Wildlife Illustrated; Follett Publishers

Sage, Byran L., Alaska and Its Wildlife; Viking Press

Selkregg, Lidia, Alaska Regional Profiles, Southwest Region; University of Alaska; Arctic Environmental Information and Data Center; 1976

Tryckare, Tre (Ed.), Whale; Simon and Schuster

United States Fish and Wildlife Service, To Have and To Hold: Alaska's Migratory Birds; U. S. Government Printing Office

III. General

Dirks, Moses and Lydia, Atkan Food (Niigugim Qalgadangis); National Bilingual Materials Development Center; University of Alaska; Anchorage, 1978.

Martinson, Charles, Aleut Settlements of the Makushin Bay Area, Alaska; University Microfilms; Ann Arbor; 1963. This was Martinson's doctoral dissertation and contains invaluable information on the natural environment of the area. It also proposes an explanation for the patterns of village location in the Aleutians.

APPENDIX F: ALEUT HISTORY AND CULTURE:
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR TEACHERS

Arnold, Robert, Alaska Native Land Claims; Anchorage; Alaska Native Foundation; 1976.

Bancroft, Hubert Howe, History of Alaska 1730-1885; Hafner Publishing Co.; Darien, Conn.; 1970.

Bergsland, Kriut, Aleut Dialects of Atka and Attu in Transactions of the American Philosophical Society; Volume 49, Part 3, 1959.

Berkh, Vasili, Chronological History of the Discovery of the Aleutian Islands in 1823; reprinted in Ricks, Melvin B., The Earliest History of Alaska; Cook Inlet Historical Society; Anchorage; 1970.

Black, Lydia T., "Ivan Pan'kov - An Architect of Aleut Literacy" in Arctic Anthropology; XIV-1, 1977.

Cook, Captain James, A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean; Second Edition, II, London; 1875.

Coxe, William, Account of the Russian Discoveries Between Asia and America; University Microfilms; Ann Arbor, Michigan; 1966.

Dilliplane, Timothy L., "Acculturation in Colonial Alaska: The Aleut Throwing Dart, Baidarka, and Sod House"; paper presented at the Alaskan Anthropological Association's 1978 Conference, Anchorage, Alaska.

Dumond, Don E., The Eskimos and Aleuts; Thames and Hudson, Ltd.; London; 1977.

Frey, Lucille (ed.), Alaska Native Land Claims Anchorage; AMU Press; 1976.

Garfield, Brian, The Thousand Mile War; Ballantine Books; 1975.

Golder, F.A., Bering's Voyages, Volumes I and II; Octagon Books, Inc.; New York; 1968.

Jochelson, Waldemar, History, Ethnology, and Anthropology of the Aleut; Carnegie Institute of Washington Publication No. 432, 1933.

Kushner, Howard, Conflict on the Northwest Coast; Greenwood Press; Westport, Connecticut, 1975.

Lantis, Margaret, "The Aleut Social System, 1750 to 1810, from Early Historical Resources" in Ethnohistory in Southwestern Alaska and the Southern Yukon; Margaret Lantis, ed., University Press of Kentucky, Lexington; 1970

Laughlin, William, The Aleuts; Holt, Rinehart and Winston; New York (383 Madison Ave., NY 10017), 1981

Ledyard, John, A Journal of Captain Cook's Last Voyage; Quadrangle Books, Chicago; 1973 (originally 1783)

Milan, Leda Chase,"Ethnohistory of Disease and Medical Care Among the Aleut" in Anthropological Papers of the University of Alaska; Vol. 16, No. 2; 1974

Morgan, Lael, (Chief Ed.), The Aleutians; Vol. 7, No. 3 of Alaska Geographic, Alaska Geographic Society; Anchorage, Alaska; 1980

Morgan, Lael, And the Land Provides; Anchor Press/Doubleday; New York; 1974. One chapter of this book is devoted to present-day Atka, and provides a good contrast and complement to studies of traditional Aleut life.

Paul, Archbishop of Finland, The Faith We Hold; St. Vladimir's Seminary Press; Crestwood, New York; 1980

Sarychev, Gavrila A., Account of a Voyage of Discovery to the North-East of Siberia, the Frozen Ocean and the North-East Sea; DeCapo Press; New York; 1969

Smith, Barbara S., Russian Orthodoxy in Alaska; Alaska Historical Commission; Anchorage; 1980

Torrey, Barbara Boyle, Slaves of the Harvest: The Story of the Pribilof Aleuts; The Tanadgusix Corporation; St. Paul Island; 1978

Unalaska City Schools, Cuttlefish; Unalaska, Alaska; 1977 ff.

University of Alaska, Arctic Environmental Information and Data Center, Community Profiles; May, 1978. There are profiles on Akutan, St. George, False Pass, Belkofski, Atka, Nelson Lagoon, King Cove, Nikolski, and St. Paul

Veniaminov, Ivan Evseievich Popov, Notes on the Islands of the Unalaska; District; St. Petersburg 1840 (Reproduced in the Human Relations Area Files, New Haven, Connecticut)

Veniaminov, Ivan Evseievich Popov, Notes on the Atkin Aleuts and the Koloshi; St. Petersburg 1840 (Reproduced in the Human Relations Area Files, New Haven, Connecticut)

Ware, The Orthodox Way; St. Vladimir's Seminary Press; Crestwood, NY; 1979

Waxel, Sven, The Russian Expedition to America; MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc.; New York; 1962

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