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Proquest Dissertations Sugpiaq Russian Orthodoxy---Conceptual Analogy In Religious Syncretism In Nanwalek Alaska Item Type Thesis Authors Csoba Dehass, Medea Download date 25/09/2021 03:52:59 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/11122/9006 SUGPIAQ RUSSIAN ORTHODOXY - CONCEPTUAL ANALOGY IN RELIGIOUS SYNCRETISM IN NANWALEK ALASKA A DISSERTATION Presented to the Faculty of the University of Alaska Fairbanks in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY By Medea Csoba DeHass, M.A. Fairbanks, Alaska December 2009 UMI Number: 3401170 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI Dissertation Publishing UMI 3401170 Copyright 2010 by ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This edition of the work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. uestA ® ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 SUGPIAQ RUSSIAN ORTHODOXY - CONCEPTUAL ANALOGY IN RELIGIOUS SYNCRETISM IN NANWALEK ALASKA By Medea Csoba DeHass RECOMMENDED: ~ r // s . / Advisory Committee Chair Chidr, Department of Anthropology APPROVED: Dean, College of Liberal Arts Dean of the Graduate School iU ^ /</, 2 ^ 1 Date Abstract Religious conversion is often highly unstable, can be nominal in nature, and may not have lasting effects on converted people and their culture. For the Sugpiaq of Nanwalek, however, Russian Orthodoxy has become “native” (and Native) in the sense that it has been incorporated into everyday Sugpiaq reality, and referred to as such by all in the community. Therefore, examining the unique history and practice of Orthodoxy in Nanwalek provides insight into the process of integration of a foreign religious idea into a new cultural environment. The focus of this dissertation is on contemporary Sugpiaq Russian Orthodoxy, as it is formulated in culture-specific analogies and conceptualized through the process of religious synthesis. In Sugpiaq Russian Orthodoxy, Russian traditions and Russian Orthodoxy are mediated through a Sugpiaq cultural logic to create and re-create a culturally specific religious identity. To better understand the process of internalization, this dissertation explores the interplay between Orthodox and traditional Sugpiaq understandings of power, hierarchy, social status, and authority. By doing so, it offers insight into how people interpret certain aspects of their religion according to their own ontological reality, in order to integrate foreign religious ideas into the local cultural context. Based on Sugpiaq Russian Orthodoxy, I propose a new term, conceptual analogy, which can be used to explore people’s thought processes in assigning cultural significance to religious meaning, as well as through cultural dynamics that govern the selection and maintenance of religious affiliations. Although conceptual analogy is not restricted to one particular religious or cultural tradition the analogy that is conceptualized is always culture-specific. Therefore, conceptual analogies can be found in all situations where an ongoing conversation develops through syncretism, which is an inherent aspect of religion, as cultural internalization and re-conceptualization. Conceptualizing Russian Orthodoxy through Sugpiaq understandings of reality and fully integrating it into their community made it possible for people in Nanwalek to maintain their Orthodox faith. Thus, Russian Orthodoxy is no longer a foreign religious concept in Nanwalek, but rather a significant component of Sugpiaq identity. iv Table of Contents Page Signature Page ............................................................................................................................................ i Title Page ....................................................................................................................................................ii Abstract......................................................................................................................................................iii Table of Contents......................................................................................................................................iv List of Figures...........................................................................................................................................vi Acknowledgments .................................................................................................................................. vii 1. Introduction.............................................................................................................................................1 1.1. “Do You Guys Have Enough Food?”.....................................................................................2 1.2. The Fieldwork Evidence........................................................................................................... 7 1.3. The “Theoretical Candor” ....................................................................................................... 17 1.3.1. Russian Orthodoxy in A laska.......................................................................................18 1.3.2. Religious Syncretism.................................................................................................... 25 1.3.3. On Conceptual Analogy................................................................................................36 1.4. Overview of Chapters.............................................................................................................. 42 2. Sugpiaq Past.........................................................................................................................................45 2.1. What is in a N am e? ..................................................................................................................46 2.1.1. Unegkurmiut...................................................................................................................47 2.1.2. Pacific Eskimo ................................................................................................................51 2.1.3. Aleut, Russian, Creole.................................................................................................. 53 2.1.4. Sugpiaq and Alutiiq.......................................................................................................58 2.2. Nanwalek - Aleksandrovskoe - English Bay - Nanwalek............................................... 62 3. Being Sugpiaq N ow ............................................................................................................................76 3.1. On the Importance of “Getting the Memo” ........................................................................76 3.2. The Readiness of the Opportunist ..........................................................................................82 3.2.1. Living with the Unexpected..........................................................................................85 3.2.2. When the Tide Comes Back: Channels of Communication .....................................88 3.3. In “Puusiq’s” House..................................................................................................................93 V Page 3.3.1. “There’s Church Today!” .............................................................................................96 3.3.2. “Sprasnikum!”..............................................................................................................100 3.4. "Who’s Your Mom?".........................................................................................................114 3.4.1. In the Family................................................................................................................. 115 3.4.2. Levels of Relatedness..................................................................................................120 4. Sugpiaq Etiquette............................................................................................................................. 127 4.1. “Don’t Be a Stranger Now” ...................................................................................................131 4.2. “Come Have Makeq” .............................................................................................................133 4.3. Know How to Ask .................................................................................................................. 137 4.4. “I’m Gonna Let Those Kids Help” .......................................................................................142 4.5. “They’re Not Like Us”: Images and Signs of Trueness ................................................... 145 5. The Power W ithin ............................................................................................................................. 156 5.1. Social Roles ............................................................................................................................. 157 5.1.1. The "Bureaucratic Enough" System......................................................................... 161 5.2. On Charisma ............................................................................................................................166 5.2.1. Personal Charisma ......................................................................................................
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