6853.1 ENG_Travel_Cover_Vol.2 5/1/06 11:29 AM Page 1 INUIT PERSPECTIVES ON THE 20TH CENTURY SurvivingTravelling on Our and Land Travelling and Surviving on Our Land INUIT PERSPECTIVES ON THE 20TH CENTURY 2 George Agiaq Kappianaq and Cornelius Nutaraq Edited by Jarich Oosten and Frédéric Laugrand 6507.5_Fre 5/1/06 9:11 AM Page 239 6853.1 ENG_Travel_Vol.2 5/1/06 11:26 AM Page 1 INUIT PERSPECTIVES ON THE 20TH CENTURY Volume 2 Travelling and Surviving on Our Land George Agiaq Kappianaq and Cornelius Nutaraq Edited by Jarich Oosten and Frédéric Laugrand 6853.1 ENG_Travel_Vol.2 5/1/06 11:26 AM Page 2 Inuit Perspectives on the 20th Century Volume 2 Travelling and Surviving on Our Land Copyright © 2001 Nunavut Arctic College, George Agiaq Kappianaq, Cornelius Nutaraq, Jarich Oosten, Frédéric Laugrand, Alexina Kublu and participating students (as listed within). Photos courtesy Frédéric Laugrand. Illustrations courtesy Terry Ryan in Blodgett, ed. “North Baffin Drawings,” Art Gallery of Ontario, 1964. Cover photo by Nick Newbery. Map courtesy Nunavut Planning Commission. Design and production by Nortext (Iqaluit). All rights reserved. The use of any part of this publication, reproduced, transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, or stored in a retrieval system, without written consent of the publisher, is an infringement of the copyright law. ISBN 1-896-6204-503 Published by the Language and Culture Program of Nunavut Arctic College, Iqaluit, Nunavut X0A 0H0. For order information: Nunavut Arctic College Library Box 600 Iqaluit, Nunavut X0A 0H0 6853.1 ENG_Travel_Vol.2 5/1/06 11:26 AM Page 1 Table of Contents MAP i INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 1: Agiaq: Recollections of the Past 13 CHAPTER 2: Nutaraq: Recollections of the Past 35 CHAPTER 3: Travelling in Alarnaarjuk, the Melville Peninsula 51 CHAPTER 4: Living on the Land in Tununiq, the Mittimatalik Area 103 GLOSSARY 169 26 25 24 23 22 20 6853.1 ENG_Travel_Vol.25/1/0611:26AMPage2 19 21 18 17 16 12 15 13 11 9 10 8 14 6 7 1 2 5 4 3 6853.1 ENG_Travel_Vol.25/1/0611:26AMPage3 1 nirlx6 Sanikiluaq Sanikiluaq 14 u5tmbo4 Pond Inlet Mittimatalik 2 r7uD5 Kimmirut Kimmirut 15 NiyF4 Nanisivik Nanisivik 3 wclw5 Iqaluit Iqaluit 16 w[loÛ3J4 Chesterfield Inlet Igluligaarjuk 4 X8i6©6 Pangnirtung Panniqtuuq 17 vq 6Oi6 Rankin Inlet Kangiq&iniq 5 er6b3Jx6 Qikiqtarjuaq Qikiqtarjuaq 18 trC3Jx6 Whale Cove Tikirarjuaq 6 r`Zw5 Cape Dorset Kinngait 19 x3Fx5 Arviat Arviat 7 vq6gÛW4 Clyde River Kangiqtugaapik 20 cmi5gx6 Baker Lake Qamanittuaq 8 n9o6 Coral Harbour Salliq 21 bl3Jx6 Taloyoak Talurjuaq 9 niC/4 Hall Beach Sanirajak 22 s6h6©6 Gjoa Haven Uqsuqtuuq 10 w[lo4 Igloolik Iglulik 23 wcl4©4tx6 Cambridge Bay Iqaluktuuttiaq 11 Ns÷5 Repulse Bay Naujaat 24 su1m4©6 Bay Chimo Umingmaktuuq 12 x3Fo[Jx6 Pelly Bay Arviligjuaq 25 ezs4 Bathurst Inlet Kingauk 13 gkiDy6 Arctic Bay Tununirusiq 26 d3l6g6 Kugluktuk Qurluqtuq 6853.1 ENG_Travel_Vol.2 5/1/06 11:26 AM Page 4 6853.1 ENG_Travel_Vol.2 5/1/06 11:26 AM Page 1 IntroductionHeading Travelling and Surviving on Our Land “Knowing the characteristics of the land is not that easy, especially in our land. It is very cold in deep winter. You have to know about surviving on the land and you have to know how to live on it, for example, how to hunt for food to survive. In order to do this, there are many things you have to know.” Cornelius Nutaraq or many years, Inuit traditions were developed and preserved by small nomadic groups spread over a wide territory. Each group had its own traditions. Frequent Fand intensive interactions between groups existed as people moved from one group to another, so different traditions influenced each other continually. The result was a dynamic pattern of variation and interaction between different groups. Contacts with qallunaat gradually changed patterns of residence and Inuit developed new modes of settling and adapted their lifestyles. In the 19th century, the presence of whalers attracted Inuit to the whaling stations, especially in South Baffin Island, but most Inuit managed to preserve their nomadic lifestyle. The arrival of trading posts, notably of the Hudson Bay Company, stimulated the development of small permanent settlements. Mission posts also gradually opened in most of these emerging communities. But the greatest changes came in the second half of the last century. In the area that is now known as the Nunavut territory, Inuit were encouraged, and sometimes even coerced by qallunaat, to settle down in large communities where churches, shops, schools and medical care could be provided. The policy sometimes went to the extent that forced migrations took place, e.g. the decision to move some Inuit groups from Northern Quebec to the Resolute Bay area. The consequences of this policy deeply affected Inuit life. Today, people no longer live in temporary camps or settlements located where game is available. Now the game is often far from the large modern communities, and hunting often requires long trips by skidoo. Skidoos, gas and specialized hunting equipment are expensive and not everyone can afford them. Many Inuit depend on paid jobs and social welfare, spending most of their time within the communities. The old tradition of visiting relatives in other communities also suffered. Most modern communities are far apart and air fare is expensive. The old nomadic lifestyle was replaced by a much more settled life, affecting the knowledge of the land as well as the attitudes towards it. Introduction – Travelling and Surviving on Our Land 1 6853.1 ENG_Travel_Vol.2 5/1/06 11:26 AM Page 2 The introduction of schools implied that new skills had to be learned. Knowledge of the land was not among them. The younger generation no longer learned the same skills their ancestors had acquired. In modern Inuit communities, the need is felt to preserve the knowledge of the land as it was developed over many generations and still exists among the elders, and to pass it on to younger generations. These younger generations should acquire the abilities that would allow them to follow the path of their ancestors, i.e. to travel and live out on the land. They should learn more about the traditional ways of life that enabled their ancestors to survive. In the Oral Traditions Course offered in January 2000, two elders from the North Baffin area agreed to share their knowledge with a group of young Inuit students. They explained how Inuit used to travel and live on the land. George Agiaq Kappianaq was 82 years old and lived in Iglulik. Cornelius Nutaraq was about six years younger, and was from Mittimatalik. Their background and upbringing were quite different. Agiaq was a Catholic who travelled extensively, particularly in Alarnaarjuk, the Melville Pensinsula. He not only discussed the geography of the land, but also the non-human beings that inhabit it. Nutaraq was an Anglican who travelled mostly in the Tununiq area, where he conducted historical and archeological research. Although it would have been nice to conduct interviews while travelling out on the land with the elders, that was hardly feasible. Thus, the interviews were conducted at Nunavut Arctic College in Iqaluit. A large map of the Tununiq and the Alarnaarjuk areas was compiled from survey maps provided by Peter Kusugak. Thus, the elders could point out the places they visited that were discussed in the interviews. The interviews were conducted by the students and simultaneously interpreted by Alexina Kublu. Susan Sammons was in charge of the project as a whole. The elders were well aware of the problems they were facing in conveying their knowledge of the land to a group of young students, all of them women. Agiaq emphasized that the interaction between him and the students would not be easy because of the significant generation gap: I know many things that happened before Christianity because I am a little older than Nutaraq. I cannot tell you about them if you don’t ask me. I know that you don’t know about these things, but I have heard about them and experienced them. Sometimes I know it must be difficult for young people to ask questions about the type of life our ancestors led. Since you are younger than I am, if I were to tell you to ask me questions regarding our ancestors, you would not know what to ask because you did not experience it. You don’t know what it was like. If I were a qallunaaq and I 2 Travelling and Surviving on Our Land 6853.1 ENG_Travel_Vol.2 5/1/06 11:26 AM Page 3 Agiaq and Nutaraq interacting with the students. told you to go and ask about the Inuit way of life, you would not know what to ask. I know it is difficult for young people to know what questions to ask. The elders were well aware that it was often difficult for them to understand the younger generation. Life has changed, but it has not necessarily become easier. Thus Nutaraq stated: I have been told recently that young people today don’t understand about losing a spouse to death anymore because they are always splitting up. I can’t talk about this because I have never experienced this. But I can talk about losing a spouse to death because I have experienced that. Coming to grips with the generation gap was one of the purposes of the course. The elders wondered about developments that are completely natural for the younger generation. Today, not only the communities have permanent houses, but Inuit are building more and more permanent shacks on the land.