Over the next few months i will be doing small articles on the indigenous people of Canada. These are the origional Canadians, the people that roamed the praries, tundras and mountains for thousands of years, living off the land and being at one with mother nature.
The Inuit
Introduction
In one of the most remote places in the world, the Canadian Arctic, a people have survived over a thousand of years. They are the Inuit. For the Inuit, the Arctic is a place teeming with life. Depending on how far north they live, the Inuit find everything from caribou herds and polar bears to beluga whales. The Inuit have adapted themselves to the various regions they inhabit. At one time they were considered to be among the healthiest people in the world. This is no longer the case; the Inuit lifestyle has changed dramatically over the past decades. The arrival of southerners and modern technology resulted in big changes to the Inuit diet and way of life.
Today, the Inuit are rediscovering their rich heritage and they are learning to govern themselves in a modern world.
History
The name Inuit means "the people." When the first Europeans met the Inuit, they called them Eskimo. This was because the Europeans had heard that name from another Aboriginal group called the Cree. In the Cree language, "Eskimo" means "eaters of raw meat." The Inuit don't like to be called Eskimo. They prefer to be called Inuit or, for one person, Inuk.
Origins
The Inuit arrived in their territory around 1 000 years ago from the Alaska region. They had come east hunting the bowhead whale. Originally there had been another people living in the area where some of them settled, in the areas we now call the Northwest Territories, Northern Quebec and Northern Ontario. This other group has been called the Dorset culture by archeologists. An archeologist is someone who studies ancient societies by discovering what they left behind. It is believed that the Dorset culture left around the same time as the Inuit arrived. They may have fought one another.
What makes the Inuit unique? For one thing, they are the only Aboriginal people who can be found from one side of the country to the other. It is important to note that Inuit are not related to other Aboriginal groups. They are their own distinct people who arrived in the North hundreds of years ago.
Daily Life
When you live in an environment that has few plants, there is a very good chance you will become a hunter. The Inuit pride themselves on being great hunters. The Inuit had lots of sea and land animals to hunt. The most important of these were the caribou and the seal. These two animals provided the Inuit with food. Their skin was used for clothing, blankets, tents and boats and their oil was used for cooking and lamps. Bones, ivory and wood were used to make tools. Other animals the Inuit hunted were the walrus, whale, polar bear, musk ox, fox and wolf.
Language
The Inuit language is called Inuktitut. Inuktitut has several dialects. A dialect is certain way of speaking a language. Since the Inuit occupy such a large territory, there are different dialects spoken in different areas.
The Inuit use a form of writing called syllabics. Inuktitut syllabics were developed by Christian missionaries. Where English and French use the letter alphabet, syllabics uses symbols to represent the syllables of words
The Inuit
Introduction
In one of the most remote places in the world, the Canadian Arctic, a people have survived over a thousand of years. They are the Inuit. For the Inuit, the Arctic is a place teeming with life. Depending on how far north they live, the Inuit find everything from caribou herds and polar bears to beluga whales. The Inuit have adapted themselves to the various regions they inhabit. At one time they were considered to be among the healthiest people in the world. This is no longer the case; the Inuit lifestyle has changed dramatically over the past decades. The arrival of southerners and modern technology resulted in big changes to the Inuit diet and way of life.
Today, the Inuit are rediscovering their rich heritage and they are learning to govern themselves in a modern world.
History
The name Inuit means "the people." When the first Europeans met the Inuit, they called them Eskimo. This was because the Europeans had heard that name from another Aboriginal group called the Cree. In the Cree language, "Eskimo" means "eaters of raw meat." The Inuit don't like to be called Eskimo. They prefer to be called Inuit or, for one person, Inuk.
Origins
The Inuit arrived in their territory around 1 000 years ago from the Alaska region. They had come east hunting the bowhead whale. Originally there had been another people living in the area where some of them settled, in the areas we now call the Northwest Territories, Northern Quebec and Northern Ontario. This other group has been called the Dorset culture by archeologists. An archeologist is someone who studies ancient societies by discovering what they left behind. It is believed that the Dorset culture left around the same time as the Inuit arrived. They may have fought one another.
What makes the Inuit unique? For one thing, they are the only Aboriginal people who can be found from one side of the country to the other. It is important to note that Inuit are not related to other Aboriginal groups. They are their own distinct people who arrived in the North hundreds of years ago.
Daily Life
When you live in an environment that has few plants, there is a very good chance you will become a hunter. The Inuit pride themselves on being great hunters. The Inuit had lots of sea and land animals to hunt. The most important of these were the caribou and the seal. These two animals provided the Inuit with food. Their skin was used for clothing, blankets, tents and boats and their oil was used for cooking and lamps. Bones, ivory and wood were used to make tools. Other animals the Inuit hunted were the walrus, whale, polar bear, musk ox, fox and wolf.
Language
The Inuit language is called Inuktitut. Inuktitut has several dialects. A dialect is certain way of speaking a language. Since the Inuit occupy such a large territory, there are different dialects spoken in different areas.
The Inuit use a form of writing called syllabics. Inuktitut syllabics were developed by Christian missionaries. Where English and French use the letter alphabet, syllabics uses symbols to represent the syllables of words
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