Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1963 The etN si Kutchin: an Essay in Human Ecology. Frederick Hadleigh-west Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Hadleigh-west, Frederick, "The eN tsi Kutchin: an Essay in Human Ecology." (1963). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 861. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/861 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This dissertation has been 64—164 microfilmed exactly as received HAD LEIGH—WEST, Frederick,1928- THE NETSI KUTCHIN: AN ESSAY IN HUMAN ECOLOGY. Louisiana State University, Ph.D., 1963 Anthropology University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. THE NETSI KUTCHIN: AN ESSAY IN HUMAN ECOLOGY A THESIS Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of Geography and Anthropology by Frederick Hadleigh-West B.A., Tulane University, 1951 M.A., Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, 1956 June, 1963 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The aim of the work which follows, is to examine the ecological relations of a people whose native habitat lies in the far north of North America. The major focus is upon the cultural responses to a hostile environment. Although the term ecology is variously applied out­ side biology, the attempt is made here to apply the concept as originally set forth by Ernst Haeckel in 1869. Haeckel defined ecology to mean, the body of knowledge concerning the economy of nature — the investigation of the total relations of the animal both to its inorganic and to its organic environment; including, above all, its friendly and inimical relations with those animals and plants with which it comes directly or indirectly into contact — in a word, ecology is the study of all those complex interrelations referred to by Darwin as the conditions of the struggle for existence. ■*" Such is the orientation of this study. It is real­ ized that the application of biological ecology to man is beset with difficulties. These seem not to be insurmount­ able, nor to preclude man, or rather populations of men, -^Haeckel, Ernst, "Entwicklungsgang und Aufgaben der Zoologie." Jenaische Zeitschrift, Vol. 5, 1869, pp. 353-380. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. iii from ecological study. It is the possession of culture that makes man's ecological relations different from those of other organisms. A study of human ecology, therefore, must not only take into consideration that aspect of man's behavior but, indeed, must be based upon its study. The people who form the basis of this study are a group of Athabascan-speaking Indians living in the eastern Brooks Range of northern Alaska. The Netsi Kutchin are one of nine bands of Kutchin Indians who are related by a common language. Their territories formed a continuous band from the Mackenzie Flats of present day Northwest Territories and Yukon Territory westward through the south slope of the Brooks Range, and the great bend of the Yukon River to the headwaters of the Koyukuk River. Even among « their Kutchin congeners, the Netsi Kutchin were unique. Much of their uniqueness is ascribable to their extreme northern location. With the possible exception of the Hare Indians of Northwest Territories, the country of the Netsi Kutchin lay farther to the north than that of any other American Indian group. , , It is my pleasure to record my indebtedness and sincere appreciation to the following people: Mr. and Mrs, James Gilbert, Mrs. Alice Peter, Mrs. Sarah Tritt, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. iv Mr. and Mrs. Elijah Henry, Mrs. Nena Russel, Miss Florence Gilbert, Mr. and Mrs. Ezias James, Mr. William L. Russell, Mr. Trimble Gilbert, Mr. George Tritt, and Mr. Isaac Tritt — informants, interpreters, and friends, all of Arctic Village, Alaska; Mr. and Mrs. Robert Mott and Mr. Frank Stevens, teachers and former teacher, respectively at Arctic Village; Mr. Richard Mueller, linguist for the Wycliffe Bible Translators and resident at Arctic Village; the late Mr. Henry John, invaluable informant of Venetie, A laska. In addition, particular thanks are due Dr. Fred B. Kniffen, Department of Geography and Anthropology, Louisiana State University, who first stimulated the writer's interest in a study of this kind and encouraged its pro­ gress; Dr. William G. Haag, of Louisiana State University, who guided the work in its final stages; Dr. Ivar Skarland, who as head of the Department of Anthropology and Geography of the University of Alaska, allocated funds for support of the field work; and to my wife, Katherine, without whose help this could not have been written. It is my sincere hope that none of the above people will find in this work reason to regret their kindly attentions. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE ABSTRACT ........................................... xii I. INTRODUCTION .................................. 1 II. IDENTITY AND CULTURAL POSITION OF THE NETSI KUTCHIN ....................................... 12 Name and Language........................... 12 Territory..................................... 15 Population and Villages..................... 17 Contact History.............................. 20 Economy....................................... 22 Dwellings..................................... 23 Dress and Ornament ......................... 24 Transportation ............................• . 25 Social and Political Organization......... 25 Life C y c l e .................................. 31 Religion . ................................... 36 Culture T y p e ................................ 40 III. THE VEGETATIONAL MILIEU ....................... 46 Important Elements of the F l o r a ............ 46 Uses of Plants .............................. 58 v Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. vi CHAPTER PAGE Effects of Man Upon the Vegetation . 104 Assessment of the Culture Type According to Vegetational U s e s .................. 107 IV. THE FAUNAL MILIEU............................ 108 Representative Fauna of Netsai11......... 108 Methods of Taking......................... 125 The Uses of Animals and Animal Products. 171 Beliefs About Animals and Animal Lore. 192 D o g s ....................................... 201 M i s c e l l a n y ................................ 202 The Netsi Kutchin and the Faunal Milieu. 204 V. THE PHYSIOGRAPHIC MILIEU .................. 207 General Description....................... 207 Related Cultural Elements................ 219 VI. THE CLIMATIC M I L I E U ........................ 221 Classifications of North Alaskan Climate 221 A consideration of Selected Weather S t a t i o n s ................................ 273 Related Cultural Elements................ 283 VII. COMPARISON OF THE NETSI KUTCHIN WITH CERTAIN OTHER NORTHERN PEOPLES ......... 331 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. vii CHAPTER PAGE Sources of Information and Locations of Groups.................................. 332 Responses to the Biotic Milieu ........... 335 Responses to the Abiotic Milieu........... 347 Discussion . ............................. 369 FOOTNOTES.............................................. 385 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY................................ 397 APPENDIX A. Phonetic N o t e ......................... 409 APPENDIX B. Plant Names ........................... 410 APPENDIX C. Animal Names ........................ 414 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. LIST OF MAPS MAP PAGE 1. Northeastern Alaska: The Setting of Netsaln .............................. Frontispiece 2. Distribution of Kutchin Bands ................... 18 3. Distribution of Forest Growth ................... 57 4. Timber Source Areas .............................. 65 5. Movements of Caribou and Pounds ................... 136 6. Principal Hunting Areas .......................... 138 7. Arctic Village........................................227 8. Native Place Names, Trails, and Topography........................... (In pocket) Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ix LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE I. Climatic Data from Anaktuvuk ............... 278 II. Average Annual Snowfall from Five S t a t i o n s .................................... 279 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. X LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE PAGE 1. Vegetation Profile of Forest Tundra.......... 55 2. Sketch of Caribou