Eskimo

The word Eskimo is a term that refers to two groups of Indigenous peoples: the Inuit and the Yupik. The Inuit include groups such as the Alaska Native Iñupiat, the Canadian Inuit, and the Greenlandic Inuit. The Yupik live in parts of eastern Siberia and Alaska. These groups, along with the Aleuts who live on the Aleutian Islands, share a common ancestor and speak languages from the Eskaleut family. They have traditionally lived in the Arctic and subarctic areas from Siberia in Russia all the way to Alaska in the United States, Northern Canada, Nunavik, Nunatsiavut, and Greenland.

Some people from these groups find the term Eskimo to be offensive, though it is still used in historical, linguistic, and cultural discussions. Governments in Canada and the United States have tried to stop using this term in official documents. In Canada, the term Inuit is used instead for the Indigenous people in the northern areas. In the United States, the term Alaska Native is used for tribal members who are Yupik, Inuit, Aleut, Tlingit, Haida, Eyak, Tsimshian, and several northern Athabaskan/Dene peoples.

There are between 171,000 and 187,000 Inuit and Yupik people today, with most living close to their traditional lands. In the United States, about 53,785 live there, in Canada around 70,545, in Greenland about 51,730, and in Russia around 1,657. Additionally, about 16,730 people in Denmark were born in Greenland. The Inuit Circumpolar Council, a non-governmental organization, says it represents around 180,000 people Inuit Circumpolar Council. The Eskaleut language family includes both Inuit and Yupik languages, with several Yupik languages still spoken in the Russian Far East, St. Lawrence Island, and parts of Alaska.

Nomenclature

Further information: Native American name controversy

A variety of ideas exist about where the word Eskimo comes from. One idea suggests it may come from a word used by the Innu people meaning 'a person who laces a snowshoe'. Some feel this word sounds like eskimo and that’s where the name came from.

Some people think the word Eskimo is not a good name because it might mean 'eaters of raw meat'. Many of the people groups called Eskimo feel this word is not a good name to use. Because of this, many people now use the word Inuit instead of Eskimo when talking about these groups.

The word Eskimo is still used by some to talk about both the Inuit and Yupik peoples, as well as other Indigenous groups in Alaska and Siberia. In places like Canada and Greenland, many prefer the word Inuit instead. In Alaska, the word Eskimo is still used because it includes both Inuit and Yupik groups there.

In 1977, a group called the Inuit Circumpolar Conference decided to use the word Inuit instead of Eskimo. Not everyone agreed with this change. Some scientists have started using Inuit instead of Eskimo in their work, but others are still deciding what words to use.

History

Genetic evidence shows that people first came to the Americas from northeastern Asia in several groups. Most Native American peoples come from one early group, but the Inuit, Indigenous Alaskan groups, and Na-Dené peoples also have ancestors from later groups that came from far northeastern Asia. For modern Eskimo–Aleut speakers, these later ancestors make up almost half of their genetic background.

Very old groups called Paleo-Eskimo lived in places like Alaska, Siberia, and Canada about 5,000 years ago. They developed from people in eastern Asia who had moved to Alaska thousands of years earlier. Over time, new cultures grew, such as the Yupik in Alaska and the Unangan (Aleut) culture. Around 1,500 to 2,000 years ago, the Thule people developed in northwestern Alaska and spread widely among Eskimo peoples.

Languages

Main article: Eskaleut languages

The Eskimo–Aleut language family, also called Eskaleut or Inuit–Yupik–Unangan, has two main branches: Aleut (Unangan) and Inuit–Yupik.

The Aleut branch has fewer cases compared to the Inuit–Yupik branch. Languages in the Inuit–Yupik family have special sounds at the bilabial, coronal, velar, and uvular positions, except for Aleut, which has lost some of these sounds.

The Inuit–Yupik family includes the Inuit and Yupik language groups. The Inuit languages form a group where speakers from nearby areas can usually understand each other, but those far apart may have trouble. The Yupik languages, including Alutiiq, Central Alaskan Yup'ik, Naukan, and Siberian Yupik, are different from each other and from Inuit languages.

There is a discussion about whether the Inuit–Yupik languages have many words for snow. Today, most agree that these languages have more than fifty words for snow.

Diet

Inuit

Further information: Inuit and Lists of Inuit

Not to be confused with the Innu, a First Nations people in eastern Quebec and Labrador.

The Inuit live in cold places near the Arctic and along the northern coasts of the Bering Sea. They are found in Alaska in the United States, and in Canada in areas such as the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Quebec, and Labrador, as well as in Greenland, which is linked with Denmark. For a long time, their way of life stayed very similar across these areas. They hunted fish and animals like seals, whales, and walrus for food, warmth, light, clothing, and tools. They used special tools called harpoons to hunt on the ice. Their clothes were made from animal skins to keep warm in very cold weather. The Inuit have their own special culture.

Greenland's Inuit

Main article: Greenlandic Inuit

In Greenland, most people are Inuit. They are part of three main groups: the Kalaallit in west Greenland, the Tunumiit in east Greenland, and the Inughuit in north Greenland. Each group speaks its own language.

Canadian Inuit

Main article: Inuit

In Canada, many Inuit live in a place called Inuit Nunangat, which is their traditional home. Some also live in southern parts of Canada. The Inuvialuit live in the northern part of Yukon and the Northwest Territories. Most Inuit in Canada live in Nunavut, Nunavik in Quebec, and Nunatsiavut in Labrador.

Alaska's Iñupiat

Main article: Iñupiat

The Iñupiat are Inuit who live in Alaska, mainly in the Northwest Arctic and North Slope areas, and the Bering Straits region. Utqiaġvik, the northernmost city in the United States, is in their area. They speak the Iñupiaq language. Today, they live in 34 villages across their lands, including places in the North Slope Borough, Northwest Arctic Borough, and the Bering Straits area.

Yupik

Main article: Yupik peoples

The Yupik are Indigenous groups who live along the coast of western Alaska. They are found especially around the Yukon-Kuskokwim delta and the Kuskokwim River, in southern Alaska, and along the eastern coast of Chukotka in the Russian Far East, including St. Lawrence Island. Their traditional way of life has depended heavily on hunting marine animals such as seals, walrus, and whales.

Main article: Yup'ik

The Central Alaskan Yup'ik people live in western and southwestern Alaska, from Norton Sound to Bristol Bay, including the Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta and Nelson Island. They speak the Central Alaskan Yup'ik language, which has many speakers and several dialects.

Main article: Siberian Yupik

The Siberian Yupik live along the Bering Sea coast of the Chukchi Peninsula in Siberia and in villages on St. Lawrence Island in Alaska. They speak a language very similar to that spoken by their neighbors, and many children on St. Lawrence Island grow up learning it at home.

Main articles: Naukan people and Naukan Yupik language

The Naukan people come from Chukotka in Siberia. Though only a few still speak their language, it has been recorded since 1732 and helps connect two other Yupik languages from Alaska.

Sireniki

Main article: Sirenik Eskimos

Some people who spoke Siberian Yupik used to speak a different language in the past. These speakers lived in places like Sireniki, Imtuk, and small villages along the south-eastern coasts of the Chukchi Peninsula. They lived near Siberian Yupik and Chukchi peoples.

Imtuk was a place where Sireniki and Ungazigmit people, who are part of the Siberian Yupik, lived together as early as 1895. Sirenik culture and language were influenced by the Chukchi people. Stories and language from Chukchi also affected Sirenik traditions.

This special language was very different from others nearby. In the past, Sireniki people had to use the Chukchi language to talk to Siberian Yupik. Many words in Sirenik came from different roots than in Siberian Yupik, and even the grammar was unusual. For example, Sirenik did not use the "dual number" that most nearby languages used.

Not much is known about why this language was so different. It may have been because Sirenik people were separated from others for a long time and mostly spoke with people who did not share their language. The Chukchi language clearly had an impact on Sirenik.

Because of these differences, it is still not fully known where Sirenik belongs in the language family. Some think it might be its own branch of the Inuit-Yupik languages, while others think it belongs to the Yupik branch.