| Newsletter - Summer 1999 |
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In this issue:
Editorial: Research in Greenland - A Danish Perspective
EDITORIAL Research in Greenland - a Danish Perspective The long-waited report on Danish research institutions working in Greenland has been published by a committee set up by the Danish Minister for Research. It isolates a number of research institutions which are suggested to be strengthened in order to secure continuity and a healthy research environment. The report is primarily focusing on research institutions in Denmark and mentions only different Greenlandic institutions as partners.
Department of Eskimology (Copenhagen) as well as the Department of Ethnography and Social Anthropology (Aarhus) were among those 13 institutions chosen as central in the Danish research environment, and the report suggests that both institutions receive funding for a senior researcher for a period of five years. The committee has outlined specific research projects of these senior researchers without consulting the departments in questions. None of these senior researchers will be based in Greenland.
However, Greenland may find the suggestion to change the composition of the Commission on Scientific Research in Greenland more interesting when it comes to attraction of research funding. The new composition of the Commission for Danish-Greenlandic Research Cooperation (KODAGS), as the new commission will be called, places Greenland in a much better position.
First of all, the number of members is reduced from 18 to 11. The new commission consists of one chairperson and five members elected by Greenland and five members elected by Denmark. Thus, compared to the old commission where Greenlandic elected members were in minority, Greenland gets a much better position in the new Commission.
All in all, it is a report which will change and hopefully improve the research environment. But the report only constitutes a suggestion which now has to be negotiated between relevant Government Departments, and necessary funding for the researchers has to be found. Frank Sejersen
IASSA secretariat new address Please note that the IASSA secretariat has a new address. It is now located at: IASSA secretariat Tel.: (418) 656-7596, FAX: (418) 656-3023
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Circumpolar Arctic Social Sciences (CASS) Ph.D. Network The 1999 course of the Circumpolar Arctic Social Sciences (CASS) Ph.D. Network was held in Canada between September 6 and 24. The first week of the course took place in the Quebec City region. The rest of the academic activities was given during a 10-day period in Kuujjuaq, Nunavik. This year, the course was based on the theme "Self-Government and Self-Sufficiency in the North."
Professor Gérard Duhaime, director of the GÉTIC at Laval University, Canada, was in charge of the course, along with Professor Rasmus Ole Rasmussen from Roskilde University, Denmark. Nick Bernard, also from the GÉTIC, insured the coordination of the event. Fourteen students coming from various nordic countries (Canada, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and USA) attended the workshop.
Six professors from different universities (Institut de g?raphie alpine de Grenoble, Roskilde University, Universit? Laval, University of Alaska Fairbanks, University of New Hampshire, and University of Northern British Columbia) also attended the event.
The 1999 course was based on four major activities: lectures (given by the professors); individual presentation of Ph.D. dissertation projects; presentations from different key-actors on their role in self-government and economic development in the North; and team work on various themes related to the workshop that will lead to the publication of papers after a peer review process.
The 2000 course of the CASS Ph.D. Network will be held in Alaska. Professor Richard A. Caulfield, from University of Alaska Fairbanks, will be in charge of the organisation. You can contact him at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Nick Bernard
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Working Group on Rapid Cultural and Social Change in the Circumpolar North At the initiative of IASSA, a work group on "Rapid Cultural and Social Change in the Circumpolar North" was established under the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC). This work group has drafted a research priority programme which was reprinted in the Fall 1998 issue of the IASSA Newsletter. A call for project proposals from institutions and individuals following the decisions and final research priority suggestions from the work group was also included in the last Newsletter.
As of April 1999, the working group had received information about six project proposals from researchers. These proposals will be reviewed in the upcoming meeting of the working group in Iqaluit, Canada. The results of the meeting will be covered in our Fall issue.
University of the Arctic The University of the Arctic is the future of higher education in the emerging circumpolar region. Designed to meet the needs of northern peoples as they face the challenges of increasing global influences, the University is
There is also a new e-mail information service, with periodic updates with news about the University and its activities. You can subscribe to this service by sending a message to
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. In the body of the message type: Please feel free to contact the Coordination Office of the University of the Arctic if you have any comments or questions:
UArctic Coordination Office
Scott Forrest,
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CONFERENCES
12th Inuit Studies Conference The 12th Inuit Studies Conference will be held at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland between 23-26 August 2000. The central organising theme of the conference will be the increasingly complex and problematic relationship between people, resources, the environment and global processes in the North. The natural resources of land and sea are under pressure from growing human demand, unsound environmental practices, pollution, climate change, tourism development, and global models of environmental management. While affecting the North as a region, these issues cannot be viewed in isolation, but must be seen in relation to global social, economic and political processes, which are the specific underlying causes of the global dimensions of environmental change and resource pressure. Such processes impact upon and threaten the economic and cultural viability of numerous Inuit communities, where people depend on resource extraction for their livelihoods.
At the same time, self-determination, globalisation, modernity and resource development all bring positive challenges for Inuit communities as they seek appropriate forms of sustainable livelihoods. The conference will examine some of the following questions which pertain to the future of Inuit communities and the Northern environment.
For more information, please contact: Dr. Mark Nuttall
18th Polar Libraries Colloquy The 18th meeting of the Polar Libraries Colloquy will be held in June 2000 in Winnipeg, hosted by the Hudson's Bay Company Archives. The theme of the conference will be Gateways: Polar Archives and Libraries into the Next Millennium. Members of the Colloquy represent archives and libraries housing polar collections from all disciplines. It is expected that delegates will attend from around the world.
This is a five-day conference which includes a one-day trip to the historic Interlake Region of Manitoba after touring Lower Fort Garry. Tours of the Winnipeg Art Gallery, the Manitoba Museum of Man and its HBC collection of artifacts, as well as the HBCA are planned. Inquiries can be directed to Dr. Barbara Kelcey at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Anne Morton, HBCA at mailto: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
The 8th North American Fur Trade Conference Hosted by the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne in partnership with the Mohawk Nation Council of Chiefs For more information: Akwesasne Mohawk Territory Fax: (613)575-2884 Phone: (613)575-2348 ext. 157
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CALL FOR PAPERS
Stabilizing Indigenous Languages
The 7th Stabilizing Indigenous Languages conference will be held May 11-14, 2000, at the Toronto Colony Hotel, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, hosted by the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) of the University of Toronto.
The theme of the 2000 meeting will be "Language Across the Community", emphasizing the many ways in which all community members can become involved in indigenous language activities. As always, it is expected that school programs will play an important part, with discussions and demonstrations related to various roles that the indigenous language can play in the school, together with discussions of teacher education and professional development, and materials and activities development. Special issues of administration for schools in which an indigenous language plays a role will come up, and a section of the program will be devoted to immersion programs.
The registration fee will be $125 Canadian ($100 US) before March 31, 2000, and $150 Canadian ($125 US) after that date. Student rates are $50 Canadian ($40 US).
Presenters should submit a 250-word abstract, 25-word summary, and 50 word biographical sketch, together with registration. Deadline for submission of presentations is March 31, 2000. For further information contact: Barbara Burnaby, Modern Language Centre, OISE/UT, 252 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1V6, CANADA
Views from Within: Ethnographic Perspectives on Post-Communist Culture and Society
Soyuz, The Research Network for Post-Communist Cultural Studies, and The Harriman Institute of Columbia University invite abstracts for our annual Symposium.
By providing ground-level, close-up and long-term perspectives on local communities, ethnographers have greatly expanded scholarly understanding of social practices, cultural systems, rapid change, and the power of tradition in post-communist states. This year's annual symposium in post-communist cultural studies highlights the value of ethnographic field research as a means of understanding experiences of post-communist life from within the rich contexts of local cosmologies and interpretive frameworks.
Presentations may be from any discipline (anthropology, sociology, folklore, political science, history, media studies, etc.) and may focus on any aspect of social life - religion, politics, economics and exchange, kinship and the family, gender, the arts - but must be based on extended field research, and should explore the particular power of ethnography for post-communist studies. Limited housing and travel subsidies for foreign presenters may be provided. The publication of conference proceedings through the Anthropology of East Europe Review will be encouraged.
Please send abstracts of 250 words or less, preferably by e-mail, to: Bruce Grant Fax: 610-328-7754
The deadline for receipt of abstracts is November 1, 1999. If you have any questions or would like further information, please contact: Bruce Grant This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Sixth National Student Conference on Northern Studies / Sixiéme Conférence nationale des étudiants en études nordiques
Presented by the Association of Canadian Universities for Northern Studies (ACUNS)
The 6th National Student Conference on Northern Studies will take place at Université Laval in Québec, on 6-7 May 2000. This conference, which occurs once every three years, is sponsored by the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and the Association of Canadian Universities for Northern Studies. At Université Laval, the conference is organised by the Groupe d'etudes inuit et circumpolaires (GÉTIC) and the Centre d'etudes nordiques (CEN). Senior undergraduate and graduate students from any discipline, whose research interests concern any aspect of northern research or Polar Studies (including Native Studies) are invited to participate. Presentations may take the form of oral communications or poster presentations. The conference fee for all participants is $75 and includes a book of abstracts, refreshment breaks and lunches. Travel and accommodation subsidies will be available.
The 6th National Student Conference on Northern Studies offers student researchers a unique opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with others who share similar research interests. It also presents an occasion to broaden one's understanding of the diversity and wealth of northern research currently underway at Canadian universities.
To obtain a registration form, or for further information, please contact: 6th National Student Conference on Northern Studies Email :
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Registration forms, accompanied by abstracts for oral or poster presentations, must be returned to the GÉTIC by 15 October 1999.
National Council on Public History 2001 Annual Meeting, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada April 18-22, 2001 The National Council on Public History invites proposals for sessions, papers, panels, roundtables, poster sessions, and workshops for the 2001 Annual Meeting to be held in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The Program Committee encourages presentations that emphasize the role of public history in shaping national culture, national identity, or cultural identity, and that address the conference theme, Belonging: Public Historians and Place.
Broad topic suggestions include:
Complete session and panel proposals are encouraged, although the Program Committee will make reasonable effort to construct sessions from topically related individual presentation proposals.
Workshop proposals should follow guidelines, which are available on the website:
The Program Committee encourages electronic sessions in which case proposals should be transmitted to all members of the committee simultaneously (email addresses listed below). If using regular mail, please submit FIVE copies of each proposal to: 2001 Program Committee, National Council on Public History, 327 Cavanaugh, University Boulevard, Indianapolis, IN 46202 5140. Deadline for Proposals: February 15, 2000.
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AWARDS
The Fourth Annual ARCUS Award for Arctic Research Excellence
THE AWARD
Each winner will receive:
THE CONTESTANTS
THE PAPERS
THE DEADLINE For the list of Representatives, contact ARCUS or visit the ARCUS web site http://www.arcus.org/.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
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JOB ANNOUNCEMENT
Social-Cultural Anthropology - University of Alberta The Department of Anthropology, University of Alberta, seeks a social-cultural anthropologist to maintain and enhance its focus on the north. This is a tenure-stream appointment, rank is open, and appointments above the rank of Assistant are normally made with tenure. A PhD and established research profile are required. Preference will be given to those with a record of successful graduate supervision. We are especially interested in recruiting a colleague whose work demonstrates integration of theory and practice. The successful candidate will be expected to contribute to both the undergraduate and graduate programs.
Review of applications will commence in September, but we will continue to accept applications until November 30. In accordance with Canadian immigration requirements, this advertisement is directed to Canadian citizens and permanent residents. If suitable Canadian citizens and permanent residents cannot be found, other individuals will be considered. Applications, including a letter describing areas of teaching and research interest, a curriculum vitae, samples of publications and assessments of teaching performance if available, and the names of three referees, should be send to the Chair, Department of Anthropology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 2H4, Canada. Applications by fax to (780) 492-5273 or by email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it are acceptable if followed by hard copy.
Information about the Department can be obtained at
The University of Alberta is committed to the principle of equity in employment. As an employer, we welcome diversity in the workplace and encourage applications from all qualified women and men, including Aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities, and members of visible minorities.
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NEW PUBLICATIONS
Franz Boas among the Inuit of Baffin Island 1883-1884. Journals and Letters. Edited and introduced by Ludger M?Wille. Translated by William Barr and with a preface by Valerie Pinsky. xvi, 298 p., photographs and figures. ISBN 0-8020-4150-7 (C); CIP: C98-931821-4. Size: 6''x 9'' Price: Canada - $50.00; U.K./European: e 37.50 Orders: htpp://www.utpress.utoronto.ca/ - click Distribution Services
Illustrated with some of Boas's own photos and maps of his field area, this book is a valuable addition to the historical and anthropological literature on southern Qikirtaaluk ("Baffin Island") in today's Nunavut, the Inuit, Scottish and American whalers, and the emergence of arctic social sciences at the end of the 19th century.
Ludger Müller-Wille has transcribed Franz Boas's journals and letters to his fiancee, Marie Krackowizer, parents and sisters, and woven the texts into a sequential narrative. The result is a fascinating study of one of the earliest examples of participatory observation among the Inuit.
From the Preface: "I have always wanted to read my great-grandfather's Baffin Island journals and letters, so it was with enormous excitement and anticipation that I first opened the pages of this translation... M?Wille's skillful arrangement and sensitive editing of the Baffin Island material highlight the rich material and insight with which Boas wrote about this field experience and its significance for him at the time. Moreover, M?Wille's introduction provides an important backdrop for our own appreciation of the original text. It is widely recognized that this trip signaled a crucial turning point for Boas personally, intellectually, and professionally, and that it was the primary context within which he developed his ethnographic field methods and began to articulate the more fundamental philosophical and moral attitudes that would form the core of his mature anthropological viewpoint."
Valerie Pinsky, Archaeologist Ludger Müller-Wille is an associate professor of geography at McGill University (Montreal, Canada) and the past chair (1990-95) of the International Arctic Social Sciences Association. His book 'Franz Boas. Bei den Inuit in Baffinland 1883-1884. Tagebucher und Briefe.' was first published in German in Berlin in 1994.
William Barr is a professor of geography at the University of Saskatchewan (Saskatoon, Canada). He is editor and translator of 'A Frenchman in Search of Franklin: De Bray's Arctic Journal. 1852- 1854' by Emile Frederic de Bray, and 'Overland to Starvation Cove: With the Inuit in Search of Franklin. 1878-1880.' by Wilhelm Klutschak.
Sustainable Development in the North. Local Initiatives vs Megaprojects, Circumpolar Arctic Social Sciences Ph.D Network, Proceedings of the Second Conference, Gérard Duhaime, Rasmus Ole Rasmussen et Robert Comtois (eds), Gétic, Université Laval , Québec, 1998, 393 p. Available at $23.54 (for Canadians outside Quebec), $24.61 (for Canadians inside Quebec), $25.00 (Outside Canada)
These figures are in Canadian dollars and include postage. If interested, please send your payment by cheque or money order to: GÉTIC, Laval University, Pavillon De-Koninck, local 0450, Quebec City (Quebec), Canada G1K 7P4
Arctic Identities. Continuity and change in Inuit and Saami societies, edited by Jarich Oosten and Cornelius Remie, 1999 Research School CNWS, Leiden University, The Netherlands. Can be obtained from: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
The European Union and the Baltic States. Visions, Interests and Strategies for the Baltic States, edited by Mathias Jopp and Sven Arnswald, 1998 It is the second volume of the Programme on the Northern Dimension of the CFSP and can be obtained from: The Finnish Institute of International Affairs or Institut fur Europaische Politik
The Planned Development of Greenland, 1950-1979. Papers by Jes Adolphsen and Tom Greiffenberg. Department of Development and Planning, Aalborg University, 1998. Can be obtained from: Department of Development and Planning
Impacts on the Nenets Autonomous Okrug Regional Development and Social/Economic Conditions of the Nenets Population, by Elena Andreeva, ISBN 82-7613-333-9. 114 pp. NOK 160. Mar.-99.
The Northern Sea Route and Local Communities in Northwest Russia: Social Impact Assessment for the Murmansk Region, by Yulien Konstantinov. ISBN 82-7613-337-1. 62 pp. NOK 110. Mar.-99.
The Sami People and the Northern Sea Route: Juridical, Social and Cultural Concerns, by Lars-Nila Lasko with Gail Osherenko. ISBN 82-7613-340-1. 108 pp. NOK 160. Mar.-99. Orders can be sent to: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
The complete list of INSROP (International Northern Sea Route Programme) reports is available on the Internet: http://www.fni.no/insrop For more information contact: Anne Ragnhild Berteig,
Bicultural Education in the North: Ways of Preserving and Enhancing Indigenous Peoples' Languages and Traditional Knowledge. Erich Kasten (ed.), 1998, 308 pages (price: 23 USD*)
Resursy tradicionnogo prirodopolzovaniya narodov Severa i Dalnego Vostoka Rossii. Erich Kasten and Elena Dulchenko (eds.), 1996, 155 pages (price: 15 USD*) * including postage. Can be obtained from: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Communities and conservation: natural resource management in south and central Asia. Edited by Ashish Kothari, Neema Pathak, R.V. Anuradha, and Bansuri Taneja. Sage Publications and UNESCO, New Delhi. 1998. 508 pages, Indian price: Rs. 495 (hardcover); Rs. 325 (paperback). Overseas price: US$35.
Tundroviki: ekologiia i samosoznanie Taimyrskikh Evenkov i Dolgan, by David G. Anderson. Price 25 RUR/ $12 CAD Russian translation of David Anderson's ethnographic study of identity in Taimyr, Siberia. This 272 page, illustrated volume documents the result of long-term fieldwork with a mixed Evenki and Dolgan reindeer herding brigade near the community Khantaiskoe Ozero. The work was translated under the direction of Nikolai Vakhtin at the Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg. Aside from being one of the only thnographic works on this region of Siberia it is one of a few English language ethnographic works about Russia to be translated for a Russian audience.
The book can be purchased in Russia by mail-order: Library of the Academy of Sciences telephone: +7-3822-66-26-42
In Canada and the US, the book can be ordered from the author at the following address: Dr. David G. Anderson tel.:+1-780-492-9746
Arctic Social Sciences: Opportunities in Arctic Research, published by the Arctic Research Consortium of the United States (ARCUS) for the National Science Foundation Arctic Social Sciences Program. In 1990, the National Science Foundation (NSF) created the Arctic Social Sciences Program in response to the broad federal agency recommendations made in "Arctic Social Science: An Agenda for Action," prepared in 1989 by an interdisciplinary committee established by the Polar Research Board. The NSF program, initiated to support Arctic social sciences research within the NSF scope, was guided by the three themes articulated in "Agenda for Action": human-environment interactions, community viability, and rapid social change.
"Arctic Social Sciences: Opportunities in Arctic Research" was developed through a dedicated workshop, sponsored by NSF and organized by ARCUS, in October 1997. The draft document was subsequently reviewed by workshop participants and others in the arctic social science community. It is intended to build on the "Agenda for Action," to stimulate creative thinking and interaction about a variety of research areas, and to expand and augment the work done so far under the Arctic Social Sciences Program.
The writers of this report thank all who contributed their ideas and expertise to make the report stronger, from the participants in the initial workshop to those who commented on the drafts and contributed photographs and illustrations.
Copies of the plan are available on the web at: ARCUS
The Yamal Peninsula in northwestern Siberia is one of the few remaining places on earth where a nomadic people retain a traditional culture. Here in the tundra, the Nenets--one of the few indigenous minorities of the Russian North--follow a lifestyle shaped by the seasonal migrations of the reindeer they herd. For decades under Soviet rule, they weathered harsh policies designed to subjugate them. How the Nenets successfully resisted indoctrination from a powerful totalitarian state and how today they face new challenges to the survival of their culture--these are the subjects of this compelling and lavishly illustrated book.
The authors -one is the head of a team of Russian ethnographers who have spent many seasons on the peninsula, the other an American attorney specializing in issues affecting the Arctic- introduce the rich culture of the Nenets. They recount how Soviet authorities attempted to restructure the native economy, by organizing herders into collectives and redistributing reindeer and pasture lands, as well as to eradicate the native belief system, by killing shamans and destroying sacred sites. Over the past century, the Nenets have also witnessed the piecemeal destruction of their fragile environment and the forced settlement of part of their population. To understand how this society has survived against all odds, the authors consider the unique strengths of the culture and the characteristics of the outside forces confronting it.
Today, the Yamal is known for a new reason: it is the site of one of the world's largest natural gas deposits. The authors discuss the dangers Russian and Western developers present to the Nenets people and recommend policies for land use which will help to preserve this remarkable culture.
Here is what REVIEWERS have said: "This book tells the story of the most successful indigenous resistance to modern state pressure across the entire eight-time-zone span of Siberia and perhaps the entire Arctic. The saga of the Nenets people on Yamal is a powerful message of unprecedented importance to all who are concerned about minority cultural survival."--Igor Krupnik, Research Anthropologist, Arctic Studies Center, Smithsonian Institution.
"Yamal is a land of continuous permafrost underlain by enormous deposits of natural gas over which the Nenets have served as responsible stewards for a millennium. Their prospects for continued survival-with the arrival of powerful players like Gazprom, the Russian gas monopoly, and the escalating sounds of foreign companies clamoring for access to the resources-range from reasonable to impossible, depending on whom you talk to. This book will enable readers to approach the debate well informed. The book is a gripping read, whatever one's background."--Bruce Forbes, Senior Scientist, Arctic Centre, University of Lapland
"Andrei Golovnev and Gail Osherenko show us how the colonial intrusions from the South in the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries only strengthened the inventiveness of the Nenets, due in no small part to flexible social patterns that allowed women as well as men to provide leadership. The authors also argue convincingly for creative economic and social policies that protect property rights and decision-making autonomy for the Nenets while at the same time improving an ailing Russian economy."--Elise Boulding, author of The Underside of History: A View of Women through Time. Can be ordered from: http://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/
Finland's Arctic Research Strategy, published by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, 1999. ISBN 951-738-492-6. Can be obtained from: Ministry of Trade and Industry
Neotraditionalism in the Russian North: Indigenous Peoples and the Legacy of Perestroika, edited by Aleksandr Pika, Russian Academy of Sciences, Edited for the English edition by Bruce Grant, Swarthmore College. With a new Afterword by Boris Prokhorov, Russian Academy of Sciences, Canadian Circumpolar Institute at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, and the University of Washington Press, 1999.
The advent of perestroika and the subsequent collapse of the Soviet Union have had an enormous impact on indigenous peoples in the Russian Arctic. Neotraditionalism in the Russian North probes the attendant cultural, political and economic issues guiding Russian state policy toward Siberian peoples in the post-Soviet age. Growing from a report first submitted to the Russian parliament, it became a major building block for new legislation on the treatment of northern minority peoples in the new Russia.
For this English edition, seven translators in North America (David Anderson, Gail Fondahl, Bruce Grant, Patty Gray, Christina D. Kincaid, Alexander D. King and David Koester) edited and annotated the original Russian text, first published in 1994. New translations of selected Russian legislation affecting Siberian indigenous peoples, a guide to
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Saqiyuq: Stories from the Lives of Three Inuit Women, by Nancy Wachowich, in collaboration with Apphia Agalakti Awa, Rhoda Kaukjak Katsak, and Sandra Pikujak Katsak, McGill-Queen's Native and Northern Series, 1999, 368 pp, 6 x 9, Cloth ISBN 0-7735-1887-8, $34.95. From the book: "Ok, yes, I will start talking now. I am Apphia Awa. Now I will start ... At that time we had caribou skin for our clothing, nothing else. Even during the summer we wore caribou skin clothing ... there were no fabrics back then for us to make clothing, nothing at all, only caribou skins." - Apphia Agalakti Awa.
"I moved in off the land and went to school when I was eight years old. That is when they started trying to teach me how to become a Qallunaaq." - Rhoda Kaukjak Katsak.
"I guess I have always felt that I wasn't Inuit enough ... I know that what I am doing right now is good, learning my roots, learning to sew, learning tough Inuktitut words ... Sometimes I think what I would like to do is to absorb as much traditional knowledge as I can and be like my name, be a Pikujak and take care of my family." - Sandra Pikujak
Saqiyuq is the name the Inuit give to a strong wind that suddenly shifts direction; Saqiyuq: Stories from the Lives of Three Inuit Women is a vivid portrait of the changing nature of life in the Arctic during this century. Through their life stories a grandmother, daughter, and granddaughter take us on a remarkable journey in which the cycles of life - childhood, adolescence, marriage, birthing and child rearing - are presented against the contrasting experiences of three successive generations. Their memories and reflections give us poignant insight into the history of the people of the new territory of Nunavut.
Apphia Awa, who was born in 1931, experienced the traditional life on the land while Rhoda Katsak, Apphia's daughter, was part of the transitional generation who were sent to government schools. In contrast to both, Sandra Katsak, Rhoda's daughter, has grown up in the settlement of Pond Inlet among the conveniences and tensions of contemporary northern communities - video games and coffee shops but also drugs and alcohol.
During the last years of Apphia's life Rhoda and Sandra began working to reconnect to their traditional culture and learn the art of making traditional skin clothing. Through the storytelling in Saqiyuq, Apphia, Rhoda, and Sandra explore the transformations that have taken place in the lives of the Inuit and chart the struggle of the Inuit to reclaim their traditional practices and integrate them into their lives.
Nancy Wachowich became friends with Rhoda Katsak and her family during the early 1990s and was able to record their stories before Apphia's death in 1996. Saqiyuq: Stories from the Lives of Three Inuit Women will appeal to everyone interested in the Inuit, the North, family bonds, and a good story.
"Wachowich skillfully brings together the life stories of three generations of related Inuit women in a manner that highlights the great changes that have taken place in the North. From Apphia's dominant voice to Sandra's poignant recognition of the difficulties young people face in what is now Nunavut, this unique collaboration makes a fresh contribution to our understanding of the Inuit and life in the North." Dorothy Harley Eber, author of Images of Justice, winner of the 1998 Canadian Authors' Association Prize for History.
"I was absorbed in the stories, they flowed well, and I think the book will be an excellent addition to the ... literature about, and by, Inuit." Jean L. Briggs, Professor Emeritus, Department of Anthropology, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
Nancy Wachowich is completing a Ph.D. in anthropology at the University of British Columbia. Apphia Agalakti Awa spent most of her life on the land in the Eastern High Arctic. She passed away in September 1996. Rhoda Kaukjak Katsak lives in Pond Inlet and works as the Assistant Senior Administrative Officer for the hamlet. Sandra Pikujak Katsak lives in Pond Inlet and works as a legal assistant for Maliiganik Tukisiiniakvik legal aid office in the settlement.
Orders can be emailed ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) or faxed (514-398-4333) to the attention of Sylvie O'Halloran. Orders can also be sent by regular mail at:
Shamanism and Christianity: Native Encounters with Russian Orthodox Missions in Siberia and Alaska, 1820-1917, by Znamenski, Andrei A., Greenwood Press. 09/99. 320 pages. 0-313-30960-4. $65.00 http://info.greenwood.com/books/0313309/0313309604.html
Assesses the interaction of 19th-century Russian missionaries with three indigenous groups--the Chukchi and Altaians in Siberia and the Dena'ina Indians in Alaska--and examines the relationships as a dialogue about spiritual, political, and ideological power.
To place an order - US and Canada only: Email:
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Festins d'mes et robes d'esprits. Les objets chamaniques siberiens du Musée de l'Homme. par M.-L. Beffa et L. Delaby, 1999, M? Mus. natn. Hist. nat., 181 : 1-000. Paris ISBN : 2-85653-513-5. Soul banquets and spirit gowns. Siberian shamanic paraphernalia of the Mus?de l'Homme. This work describes and analyses the 177 Siberian shamanic ritual objects in the Mus?de l'Homme (Asian department) in Paris. The objects are not classified either geographically or ethnically because of the relative homogeneity of Siberian shamanism. Rather we group the objects according to function. Each chapter treats a different theme, with an introduction treating the myths and beliefs regarding the spirits inhabiting the objects, followed by a discussion of their ethnographic context and practical use. There are four sections. The first presents the accessories of the shaman: sticks, drums, costumes, head-gears, and masks. The second deals with the ritual accessories of non-shamans: cloths providing protection against misfortune, dishes for ritual offerings, and objects used only during festivals. The third section deals with ongons: zoomorphic, anthropomorphic, groups of ongons, and objects which may be ongons or possibly toys. The fourth section treats the objects used in divination or soothsaying. At the end there is a bibliography, an ethnographic map of Siberia with notices on each of the ethnic groups mentioned in the text, tables of the various families of indigenous languages, and five short biographical notices recounting the lives of the principal original collectors.
All the objects are reproduced photographically, the more complex ones with several photos from different angles, and the most remarkable ones in colour. We also present two unpublished photos of natives from the beginning of the century.
Can be ordered from: Delphine HENRY European countries only: 342,80 FF or 52,26 Euros (HT / VAT excluded) + port / postage: 48,97 FF or 7,46 Euros. TOTAL: 391,77FF or 59,72 Euros.
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IASSA INFORMATION SUMMER 1999
Foundation IASSA was founded in 1990 in Fairbanks, Alaska, at a meeting held in conjunction with the 7th Inuit Studies Conference. The creation of IASSA follows the suggestion, made at the Conference on Coordination of Research in the Arctic held in Leningrad in 1988, to establish an international association to represent Arctic social scientists. From its foundation in 1990 until 1992, IASSA's secretariat was housed at the Department of Geography, McGill University, Montreal, Canada. The following three years the secretariat was situated at the Arctic Center, University of Lapland, Rovaniemi, Finland. Then from 1995 to 1998, it was housed at the Department of Eskimology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Objectives The Arctic is defined as all Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of the world. The social sciences encompass disciplines relating to behavioral, psychological, cultural, anthropological, archaeological, linguistic, historical, social, legal, economic, environmental, and political subjects, as well as health, education, the arts and humanities, and related subjects. The objectives are: o to promote and stimulate international cooperation and to increase the participation of social scientists in national and international arctic research; o to promote communication and coordination with other research organizations; o to promote the active collection, exchange, dissemination, and archiving of scientific information in the Arctic social sciences; o to promote mutual respects, communication, and collaboration between social scientists and northern people; o to facilitate culturally, developmentally, and linguistically appropriate education in the North; o to follow the IASSA statement of ethical principles for the conduct of research in the Arctic.
Administration IASSA is governed by an elected seven-member Council and a General Assembly consisting of all members having paid their membership. The secretariat is presently based at the GÉTIC (Groupe d'?des inuit et circumpolaires), Laval University , Quebec City, Canada), and the secretariat is run by Murielle Nagy.
IASSA Council Members Gérard Duhaime
Noel Broadbent
Jens Dahl (ex officio, past chair)
Oscar Kawagley
Ludger Müller-Wille
Marit Myrvoll
Frank Sejersen
Nikolai B. Vakhtin
Membership Membership is open to anyone interested in Arctic social sciences. Membership is required to participate to the ICASS (International Congress in Arctic Social Sciences). Members receive the IASSA Newsletter 2 times a year and can subscribe to an email server-list. Membership fees are in US dollars or in Canadian dollars: 2 years: $35 US or $53 Ca. Please write your cheque or money order to IASSA, fill the membership form and send to: IASSA Secretariat Tel.: (418) 656-7596, FAX: (418) 656-3023
Meetings IASSA held its First International Congress of Arctic Social Sciences (ICASS I) in Ste-Foy, Quebec, Canada, on October 28-31, 1992. The congress was held on the campus of Laval University immediately following the 8th Inuit Studies Conference. More than 300 people participated to ICASS I, 235 of which presented papers. Sixteen countries were represented by paper presenters. The next IASSA congress (ICASS II) was held jointly in Rovaniemi, Finland, and Kautokeino, Norway, in the summer 1995. Abstracts and presentations of keynote speakers from ICASS II can be ordered without charge from the IASSAsecretariat. ICASS III took place in May 1998 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Abstracts and presentations of keynote speakers from ICASS III can be ordered without charge from the IASSA secretariat. The next ICASS IV will be held May 16-20, 2001, in Quebec City, Canada.
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NEXT IASSA NEWSLETTER To submit anything to our next IASSA Newsletter, please contact Murielle Nagy, the IASSA secretary and editor of the Newsletter, at: IASSA Secretariat, GÉTIC, Université Laval, Pavillon De-Koninck, local 0450, Quebec City (Quebec), Canada G1K 7P4, Tel.: (418) 656-7596, FAX: (418) 656-3023, email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it |