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Katie Nugent and Caitlin Reeser The Inuit Culture Language The Inuit manly speak Nanuvut. although some of the Inuit dialects were recorded in the 18th century they could not write or read their own language until near the twenty first century. Their written language comes from the Anglican missionaries John Horden and E.A. Watkins who used the Roman syllables to create a phonetic form of writing. There are many different dialects and the language has not been “standardized”. This is because many different speakers feel that their own dialect is right. All in all though speakers of different dialects can communicate with each other after a few minor adjustments. Although, having standardization in technical terms, where is needed, would not cause much controversy.

Beliefs To the Inutit Eskimo view their hunt as a form of religion. They base the success of their life on how well of a hunter they are or how well a hunter the have married. From a child this is what all young kids strive for, being the best hunter possible. All young girls fantasise about marrying a great hunter. When a child is born the birth must happen in a hut not lived in by the family or hey must leave the hut they are living in. The mother has to stay in solitude for a certain amount of time based on the sex of the child. After eight days the child is given the name of a recently deceased person. If the child is unwanted then it can be killed and it is not considered murdered if it is before the eight days and the child does not have a name. They believe that in the after life they will have an abundance supply of hunt and they will not have to work hard for it.

Values: The Inuit people believe in living in a peaceful society. They like the idea of being united together. Even though their main way of getting a food supply is to hunt they do not like the killing of other humans. Family and community are a vital concept to grasp when talking about the Inuit. The Inuit have a strong family bond within their community. When one family is in need of help in the society all of the other families come together to gather what they need. The idea of sharing and helping when someone is need is a strong value held in the Inuit people. This shows that the Inuit believe in working as a team for society purposes. Another strong value the Inuit have is the land. They want to use their resources wisely so that future generations will be able to gain the same things the people have now. This demonstrates the character of the people. They are always thinking about others and what is best for the community as a whole. Inuit cherish the land, making great use out of whatever they can get. A final value to the Inuit is the plants and animals. Hunting rules and regulations help maintain a way to keep the animals from extinction. The Inuit are strong hunters and gathers so the plants and animals hold a strong value within their way of life. They are dependent upon the plants and animals to live. Overall the family unit and ideas of preserving the land, animals and plants are strong values within the Inuit society.

Behaviors: The males in the Inuit are made to be strong hunters and gathers. They want to be the main provider for their families when it comes to providing the main meat for the meals. Women gather and put together the meals itself. The Inuit like to have big families and encourage the idea of both nuclear and extended families. The areas in which they live are welcoming and close knit communities. They spend their free time doing crafts and carving ivory and bone as well as dancing and gathering to fill up their time. The Inuit live a similar lifestyle to us except for the fact that most of the male adult time is spent hunting and fishing. The children go to school just like us, for an education. The Inuit behavior is effected by their surroundings and they have learned to adapt with the climate.

Cultural change: Overall the Inuit have been improving their lives through technology, travel, and commercialism. They have adapted to the new lifestyle to what people have going around them. They longer have to live in the stereo-typical igloo that most people believe they live in. They have become more modern by living in homes. Their use of the snowmobiles has helped them get around in a more advanced way. With their use of similar things like snowmobiles they have been keeping up with the improving world around them. So when you think about the Inuit don’t think of the stereo-typical igloo snow covered people. Think about all the rich culture going around in their lives. Their lives are not that much different than ours.

technology: Many of the Inuit have switched to more modern things. Instead of using a dog sled or canoe many now use things like a snowmobile. In some ways this has changed their view of how hard simple tasks could be. One of their tools that has not changed is the harpoon. Although now it is made out of steel and other metals the use and design has stayed the same. During the annual whale hunt traditional small wooden boats are used as well has modern boats. Living in a remote place has kept the Inuit from being to greatly affected by technological changes. travel: The Inuits forms of travel are a Kayak, dogsled and snow shoes. A more modern method is the snowmobile. The Inuit are restricted from the snow so there options of travel are limited. Inuits generally stay Inuit and stay where they were born. Inuits don't grow up and move away they stay where their family has lived their whole lives. People don’t normally go and move into a Inuit tribe, it is very isolated. They mostly stay put and are not really affected by travel.

Commercialization: Originally the Inuit made their traditional economy work by trading goods with the Europeans. They used to trade rich furs and weapons with the European explorers. Now today they are developing more as an economy. No longer are they trading just rich furs they have now begun to trade things like crafts, carvings out of soapstone, which people were interested in buying. As more and more people come to visit the Inuit homes in areas like Canada and Alaska there has been an increase in tourism. Bringing in the tourists and showing the people the Inuit land has become a way for the Inuit to advance in their economy. It has helped them bring in more money that they were not used to before. The Inuit have had a cult ure change in their aspect of what they trade. Now the Inuit exchange their carvings and old artifacts for new weapons. They no longer need to use their old tools. They have been keeping up with their new economy and making a better, more advanced society.

Works cited

Print source

Ahmed, Iftikhar, Brodsky, Herbert, et. al. (2004) World Cultures: A Global Mosaic. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey. We used this source because it gave a simple explanation of how remote and old the Inuit culture is.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">secondary source

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">"Inuit / Eskimo Society." Pomona College Astronomy Program. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. <http://www.astronomy.pomona.edu/archeo/alaska/eskimo.html>.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">We chose this source because it gave and easy to understand explanation of the Inuits beleifs. .

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Kublu, Alexina, and Mick Mallon. "Nunavut 99 - Our Language, Our Selves." Welcome to Nunavut.com Web Site. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. <http://www.nunavut.com/nunavut99/english/our.html>.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">We chose this source because it gave good incite to the language of the Inuit.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">"Inuit Culture." Artic Anuksuk. Arcticinuksuk. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. <http://www.arcticinuksuk.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=4>.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">We chose this website because it gave a unique look into the values of the Inuit.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">"Inuit - Introduction, Location, Language, Folklore, Religion, Major Holidays, Rites of Passage, Relationships, Living Conditions." Countries and Their Cultures. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. <http://www.everyculture.com/wc/Brazil-to-Congo-Republic-of/Inuit.html>.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">We chose this source because it not only gave information on the behaviors of the Inuit but also other useful information.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">"Inuit." INDIANA MARKETING. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. <http://www.indianamarketing.com/anglais/nations/inuit.htm>.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">We chose this source because it gave great information on the Inuits changing society.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Primary sources

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Inuit Eskimo. 2009. Photograph. American Museum of Natural History.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">We chose this picture because it gave a visual of a Inuit with a spear.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Whale-Hunt. 2010. Photograph. Alaska-In-Pictures.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">We chose this picture because it gave a visual of the traditional boats used by the Inuit.