The Yupik or, in the Central Alaskan language, Yup'ik, are indigenous or aboriginal peoples who live along the coast of western Alaska, especially on the Yukon-Kuskokwim delta and along the Kuskokwim River (Central Alaskan Yupik), in southern Alaska (the Alutiiq) and in the Russian Far East and St. Lawrence Island in western Alaska (the Siberian Yupik). They are Eskimo and are related to the Inuit. The term has no universal, standard or fixed definition. ... Official language(s) English Capital Largest city Juneau Anchorage Area  Ranked 1st  - Total 663,267 sq. ... Map of the Yukon River watershed The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. ... The Kuskokwim River is a river, approximately 650 mi (1,110 km) long, in southwest Alaska in the United States. ... The Alutiiq (plural: Alutiit), also called Pacific Yupik or Sugpiaq, are a southern, coastal branch of Alaskan Yupik. ... Far Eastern Federal District (highlighted in red) Russian Far East (Russian: Д́альний Вост́ок Росс́ии; English transliteration: Dalny Vostok Rossii) is an informal term that refers to the Russian part of the Far East, i. ... St. ... Siberian Yupik are an indigenous people who reside along the coast of the Chukchi Peninsula in the far northeast of the Russian Federation and the St. ... It has been suggested that Esquimaux race be merged into this article or section. ... The Inuit Circumpolar Conference defines its constituency to include Canadas Inuit and Inuvialuit, Greenlands Kalaallit people, Alaskas Inupiaq and Yupik people, and Russias Yupik. ...

The Central Alaska Yup'ik are by far the most numerous group of Yupik. The Central Alaska Yup'ik who live on Nunivak Island are called Cup'ig. Those who live in the village of Chevak are called "Cup'ik". Nunivak Island is the second largest island in the Bering Sea, 48 km (30 miles) offshore from the delta of the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers, at about 60° North latitude. ...

Culture

Traditionally, families spend the spring and summer at fish camp, then joined with others at village sites for the winter. Many families still harvest the traditional subsistence resources, especially salmon and seal. The Chinook or King Salmon is the largest salmon in North America and can grow up to 58 long and 125 pounds. ... subfamilies Otariidae Phocidae Odobenidae Pinnipeds are large marine mammals belonging to the Pinnipedia, a family (sometimes a suborder or superfamily, depending on the classification scheme) of the order Carnivora. ...

The men's communal house, the qasqig, was the community center for ceremonies and festivals which included singing, dancing, and storytelling. The qasqig was used mainly in the winter months, because people would travel in family groups following food sources throughout the spring, summer, and fall months. Aside from ceremonies and festivals, it was also where the men taught the young boys survival and hunting skills, as well as other life lessons. The young boys were also taught how to make tools and qayaqs during the winter months in the qasqig. This article or section seems not to be written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia entry. ...

The women's house, the ena, was traditionally right next door, and in some areas they were connected by a tunnel. Women taught the young girls how to sew, cook, and weave. Boys would live with their mothers until they were about five years old, then they would live in the qasqig. Each winter, from anywhere between three to six weeks, the young boys and young girls would switch, with the men teaching the girls survival and hunting skills and toolmaking and the women teaching the boys how to sew and cook.

Yupik group dances are often with individuals staying stationery in place, with all the movement done with rhythmic upper body and arm movements accentuated with hand held dance fans very similar (oddly enough) to Cherokee dance fans. The limited movement area by no means limits the expressiveness of the dances, which cover the whole range from graceful flowing to energetically lively to wryly humorous. This writer has seen young boys bouncing up and down with so much energy that they lose feathers out of their dance fans.

Language

The five Yupik languages (related to Inuktitut) are still very widely spoken, with more than 75% of the Yupik/Yup'ik population fluent in the language. The Yupik people speak five distinct languages, depending on their location. ... Note: This page contains phonetic information presented in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) using Unicode. ...

Through a confusion among Russian explorers in the 1800s, the Yupik people bordering the territory of the unrelated Aleuts were erroneously called Aleuts, or Alutiiq, in Yupik. This term has remained in use to the present day, along with another term, Sugpiaq, which both refer to the Yupik of Southcentral Alaska and Kodiak. The Aleuts (self-denomination: Unangax) are the indigenous people of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, U.S.A.. The homeland of the Aleuts includes the Aleutian Islands, the Pribilof Islands, the Shumagin Islands, and the far western part of the Alaska Peninsula. ... The Alutiiq (plural: Alutiit), also called Pacific Yupik or Sugpiaq, are a southern, coastal branch of Alaskan Yupik. ... The Alutiiq (plural: Alutiit), also called Pacific Yupik or Sugpiaq, are a southern, coastal branch of Alaskan Yupik. ...

See also

• List of Native Alaskan Tribal Entities
• Siberian Yupik

This is a list of Native Alaskan Tribal Entities which are recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs. ... Siberian Yupik are an indigenous people who reside along the coast of the Chukchi Peninsula in the far northeast of the Russian Federation and the St. ...

Bibliography

• Campbell, Lyle. (1997). American Indian languages: The historical linguistics of Native America. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-509427-1.
• Mithun, Marianne. (1999). The languages of Native North America. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-23228-7 (hbk); ISBN 0-521-29875-X.
• de Reuse, Willem J. (1994). Siberian Yupik Eskimo: The language and its contacts with Chukchi. Studies in indigenous languages of the Americas. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. ISBN 0-87480-397-7.