Knowing places the Inuinnait, landscapes, and the environment

2006·54.2 MB·English

by  Collignon, Béatrice

Knowing Places:

The Inuinnait, Landscapes
and the Environment

by Béatrice Collignon

adapted from the translation of Les Inuit. Ce qu’ils savent
du territoire by Béatrice Collignon (L’Harmattan 1996)
(translation and scientific editing by Linna Weber Müller-Wille)

Circumpolar Research Series No. 10
Canadian Circumpolar Institute
(CCI) Press

March 2006
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Collignon, Béatrice
Knowing Places: The Inuinnait, Landscapes, and the Environment /
Béatrice Collignon; translator Linna Weber Müller-Willie.

(Circumpolar Research Series, ISSN 0838-133X; no. 10)
Translation of Les inuit, ce qu’ils savent du territoire.
Includes bibliographical references.
Includes summary in Inuktitut.
ISBN 1-896445-33-0
1. Inuit—Canada. 2. Inuit—Canada—Social life and customs. 3.
Inuit—Canada—Folklore. 4. Human geography—Canada. I. Weber Müller-
Wille, Linna. II. Title. III. Series.

E99.E7C66613 2006 971'.004971 C2006-901327-6
*Authorized translation of the original French (Les Inuit, ce qu’ils savent du ter-
ritoire, by Beatrice Collignon. Paris and Montreal: L’Harmattan 1996) © Linna
Weber Müller-Wille 2003, Myriad Pursuits, St. Lambert (Québec) Canada
Scientific editing by Linna Weber Müller-Wille
**English adaptation of the translation of the French text © Béatrice Collignon,
edited by Mick Mallon and final review by Janine Debanné
Illustrations © Ulukhaktok Eskimo Co-Op (used with permission of the artists)
Cartography © Béatrice Collignon [with the assistance of Alban Rideau (and
Delphine Digout for maps 17, 18, 21 and 24)]
Cover illustration courtesy the author.
Cover design by Art Design Printing, Inc.
Printed in Canada by Art Design Printing, Inc.
ISBN 1-896445-33-0 © 2006 CCI Press
ISSN 0838-133X Circumpolar Research Series No. 10
All rights reserved.
Translation of the original French text was made possible with funding from the
International Council for Canadian Studies (ICCS)
‘Ouvrage publié avec le concours du ministère de la Culture – Centre national
du livre’ [This publication was made possible with funding from the Ministry of
Culture – National Book Centre (Paris)]

Cover Photo: Barbara Memogana, Ulukhaktok (Ulukhaqtuuq), on a quiet
evening in August 2004. Photo credit Béatrice Collignon
For Susia Kablusiak Memogana:
To the lively little girl I first met in the early 90s, whose laughter accompanied
me my main year of fieldwork and still resonates in my ears.
To the growing child and teenager I have enjoyed finding anew on each of my
trips to Ulukhaktok since.
To the wise adult she’ll soon be.
And to all the Inuinnait children, of yesterday, today and tomorrow.

Table of Contents
Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Author’s Note . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi
Translator’s Note . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xii
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Vignette : Tatiik – Chronicle of a Fall Camp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Chapter One: Setting the Stage: The Inuinnait and Their Land. . . 19
Chapter Two: Geographic Information: Learning
Through Practices and Oral Tradition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Chapter Three: Toponyms: What’s in a Place Name?. . . . . . . . 101
Chapter Four: Enacted Knowledge: How Inuinnait Live
their Geography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Chapter Five: Inuinnait geographic knowledge
and Cultural Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Epilogue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Appendices. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Appendix A : Toponymic inventory and place name translations 231
Appendix B : The scientific context: methods and sources ....... 259
Extended Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289
List of Figures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295
List of Insets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297
Inuinnaqtun Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299

Acknowledgements
As the results of this research are about to be published in this English
version, my thoughts first go out to the Inuinnait. I want to express all
my gratitude to them. Without the trust they gave me, this research
would not have been possible. I am particularly indebted to the elders,
who took time to patiently teach me their geography. I wish to thank
all of them here, notably Aime Ahegona, Simon Kadlun, Moses Koihok,
Jimmy Memogana, Agnes Nerigyok, Mona Ohovilok, Sam Oliktoak and
Nicholas Oloakiuk. Unfortunately, some of them are no longer with us.
I wish to give particular thanks to the whole community of
Ulukhaktok, where the arctic side of my life began 26 years ago, when
it was still called Holman. The teenager that I was then, later the young
adult, and the person that I am today has been greatly influenced by our
enduring relationship. I owe to the Ulukhaqtuurmiut not only a part of my
professional achievements, but also, and more importantly, who I am as
a person today. Indeed, koana to all of you.
I specially acknowledge the invaluable support of the whole
Memogana family: Jimmy and Hayulak of course, and particularly
Beverly and Wilma; Simon Kataoyak and his children, specifically Jack
and Linda; Roger; Wilma’s children Kevin, Justin and Bryann; Barbara
and Mathew Kuptana and their daughters Susie and Sandy; Roberta; and
Buddy Alikamik. But above all, I am indebted to Mary Uyarartek. Her
many comments, observations and explanations during the course of all
my surveys contributed greatly to this research and others that followed.
She also put her mark on the person I am today.
In the other settlements I also received a warm welcome and
support, and especially thank, in Kugluktuk, Susie-Marie Tigiktok, as
well as Martha Atigikyoak and her daughter Mavis, Donald Havioyak,
Rosemarie Meeyok and Josie Tuktoo; and Agnes Allan, who very effect-
ively and good-naturedly translated for me during the place name survey.
In Umingmaktok, Amy Kaomayok and her family, Philip and Agy Kadlun,
Nancy Kadlun, Joseph and Gwen Tikhak readily opened their homes to
me. In Cambridge Bay, Betty-Ann Kaiyogana and Beatrice Bernardt were
very helpful, as well as the Roman Catholic Mission and Rose Eider.
I am indebted to organizations that graciously made space avail-
able to me locally for the duration of my surveys: Cambridge Bay Arctic
Coast Tourist Association, Ulukhaktok Hamlet Office, Kugluktuk Hunters
and Trappers Association, and all the Umingmaktuurmiut, who let me
spread my maps on their floors.
Carrying a project to completion is always a joy. This, though does
not erase the memory of those who, for reasons that we will never fully
vii
Knowing Places
understand, chose one day to leave forever. Among them I particularly
think of David Akhiatak, Christa Kitekudlak and Amos Ekpakohak.
I extend sincere thanks to Professor Ludger Müller-Wille (McGill
University), who hosted me at the Geography department of McGill
University (Montréal), and his wife Linna Weber, first for their very valu-
able guidance in the research methodology, then for their most helpful
comments on my work while it was in progress and, last but not least,
for their accessibility. In 1991, Linna gave me an adapted version of the
database program that she had been developing and marketing for place
names surveys, the Nuna-Top Program. In 2001 she agreed to under-
take the translation of this work, adjusting the price of her services to the
budget at our disposal. While we worked together on the manuscript, she
also gave me valuable lessons on the nuances of the English language.
Her work went beyond translating: she was an attentive reader, providing
the work of a true editor and greatly improving the original manuscript.
One part of the analysis would not have been possible if, first,
Mick Mallon (Arctic College, Iqaluit) in February 1992 in Cambridge Bay,
then Michèle Therrien (Institut des Langues Orientales, Paris), and later
Alexina Kublu (Arctic College, Iqaluit) had not taken the time to help me
grasp the beautiful logic and the thousand subtleties of the Inuit language.
Alexina Kublu also lent me her expertise during the delicate transcription
of the Inuinnait toponyms in the standard orthography defined by the
Inuit language commission and enhanced by the Inuit Cultural Institute
(ICI). I would like to express my gratitude to all three. The final edition of
this translation was another opportunity to work with Mick, and appreci-
ate again his sense of humor and his receptiveness, and I know Kublu
often got involved.
I also thank the Canadian Circumpolar Institute (University of
Alberta, Edmonton) and its former Director Professor Cliff Hickey. He
received me in 1991 and in 2000 agreed to take on the project of publish-
ing the translation, which is now seeing the light of day. I extend my grati-
tude to Elaine Maloney, who followed the project, assisting with fundrais-
ing and seeing through the final editing and layout of the manuscript. In
the last months, she took her place as a working partner.
Professors Philippe Pinchemel and Denise Pumain, both of the
Panthéon-Sorbonne University (Paris 1) originated this research and al-
ways kept a watchful and interested eye on its progress. My meeting with
late Professor Joël Bonnemaison (Paris-Sorbonne University, Paris IV)
and the many subsequent discussions we enjoyed played an important
role in the preparation of this text. His unexpected disappearance left a
large void. From the day he sat in my PhD. jury, Professor Paul Claval
(Paris-Sorbonne University, Paris IV) has been an attentive reader of
my work and has repeatedly provided support for its recognition. I am
also indebted to Professors Anne Buttimer, Frédéric Laugrand, François
viii
Acknowledgements
Trudel and again to Ludger Müller-Wille for recommending the transla-
tion project for funding.
The translation of a book is a tremendous endeavour that relies
on important input along the way. I wish to thank geographer Ilima
Pi’ianaia for her insights on chapter four, shared during lengthy discus-
sions in 2003. Furthermore, I gratefully acknowledge Professor Janine
Debanné (Carleton University, Ottawa) for the ongoing dialogue about
my research, and for kindly reading through the final manuscript, offer-
ing meaningful comments and proposing insightful clarifications at this
crucial stage of the project.
My thoughts also go to Jean-François and Maryke Le Mouël, who
invited me to join their archaeological team at Nauyat (30 miles East of
Ulukhaktok) back in 1980. Without their trust in the teenager I then was,
everything that followed would never have unfolded.
I wish to extend thanks to the Canadian institutions that hosted me at
various stages of my research: the Department of Geography of McGill
University (Montréal), the Groupe d’etudes inuit et circumpolaire (GETIC)
[now the Centre interdisciplinaire d’études et recherches autochtones
(CIERA)] of Laval University (Québec), the Canadian Circumpolar
Institute of the University of Alberta (Edmonton), the Arctic Institute of
North America at the University of Calgary, and the Territorial Toponymy
Program of the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre (Yellowknife).
I do not forget those who contributed from afar to make possible my long
sojourn in the Arctic and my fieldwork in 1991-92. First of all was Jacques
Sirois (Yellowknife), but as well the whole Debanné family (Edmonton,
Ottawa, Montreal), most particularly Janine, and Kathleen Knötsch
(Montreal). In Paris, Stéphane Audeguy and Jean-François Staszak, with
their careful listening and criticisms, contributed greatly to the final out-
come of this work as a respected PhD. But above all I thank my husband,
Alban Rideau.
Finally, I would like to mention the organizations that gave financial support
to this research and its publication: The French Department of Research
(research grant, 1990-1993); the Club des explorateurs—Minister Alice
Saunié-Séïté presiding—associated with the journal Express (Express-
Exploration Award, 1991); Count Jean de Beaumont (Exploration Award,
1991); the Commission on Geographical Names of the Department of
Natural Resources (which, through the Territorial Toponymy Program of
the Government of the Northwest Territories, supplied the 530 maps I
needed); the cultural section of the Canadian Embassy in Paris, (research
grant for an Inuktitut course in Iqaluit, 1996). In addition, the research
ix