Continuity of caribou harvests is critical for Northern peoples. Kendrick (2003:196) states that:
Rangifer (caribou and reindeer) continue to be the most important terrestrial subsistence resource for northern Aboriginal peoples. Traditional caribou-hunting communities in the Canadian North are bound in their relationship to caribou to many other circumpolar societies, including more than two dozen aboriginal cultural groups in Eurasia and North America
The Denesųłiné emphasis on caribou is not unique. The BQCMB (2002b:25-26) state that:
Apart from purely economic factors, the use of caribou is important to the culture and traditional lifestyle of aboriginal people. This importance cannot be fully evaluated and quantified using the analytical …show more content…
I was able to connect these practices to historical records and ethnoarchaeological sites at Wholdaia Lake. Spearing caribou at watercourse crossings is the most respectful hunting practice. Spearing caribou was common practice in the 1970s. I was the first individual taught by the Ethen Eldèli Denesųłiné how to spear caribou in more than 20 years. Denesųłiné do not spear caribou anymore. Besides myself, the last time a hunter was trained to spear caribou was in the 1990s, when a single novice Denesųłiné hunter was taught. Denesųłiné treat caribou heads with respect. At caribou kill sites, Harvesters remove heads during the first stage of caribou butchery. They keep heads separate from caribou meat. They bring heads through the back door of tents and houses. Denesųłiné leave heads near houses, and generally burn other caribou remains in hearths or deposit them in lakes. Antlers remain at kill sites. Antlers also mark meat caches. Antlers are made into tools, including awls, fishing spears, and lance heads. Notably, no archaeological evidence is present of antler or bone lance heads in the Taltheilei …show more content…
My community partners live a traditional lifestyle out of necessity. My community partners have the lowest education attainment in Northern Canada, They have the lowest economic income. Significant ecological change has occurred in the range evidenced by fluctuations in caribou herd populations. Knowledge holder AD10, while touching a caribou head and poking it in the eye with a finger, told me that “he saw whenever the opportunity presented itself. I focused on caribou”. He saw that “I didn 't spend time fishing” (AD10-1). He shook my hand-and thanked me for what I was doing. “As far as he was concerned you are the first person to seriously document the Denesųłiné connection to caribou” (AD10-1). The informant told me that “your work is a wake-up call to the Denesųłiné” (AD10-1). AD10-1 told me that they understand what I am doing and is supportive and
Rangifer (caribou and reindeer) continue to be the most important terrestrial subsistence resource for northern Aboriginal peoples. Traditional caribou-hunting communities in the Canadian North are bound in their relationship to caribou to many other circumpolar societies, including more than two dozen aboriginal cultural groups in Eurasia and North America
The Denesųłiné emphasis on caribou is not unique. The BQCMB (2002b:25-26) state that:
Apart from purely economic factors, the use of caribou is important to the culture and traditional lifestyle of aboriginal people. This importance cannot be fully evaluated and quantified using the analytical …show more content…
I was able to connect these practices to historical records and ethnoarchaeological sites at Wholdaia Lake. Spearing caribou at watercourse crossings is the most respectful hunting practice. Spearing caribou was common practice in the 1970s. I was the first individual taught by the Ethen Eldèli Denesųłiné how to spear caribou in more than 20 years. Denesųłiné do not spear caribou anymore. Besides myself, the last time a hunter was trained to spear caribou was in the 1990s, when a single novice Denesųłiné hunter was taught. Denesųłiné treat caribou heads with respect. At caribou kill sites, Harvesters remove heads during the first stage of caribou butchery. They keep heads separate from caribou meat. They bring heads through the back door of tents and houses. Denesųłiné leave heads near houses, and generally burn other caribou remains in hearths or deposit them in lakes. Antlers remain at kill sites. Antlers also mark meat caches. Antlers are made into tools, including awls, fishing spears, and lance heads. Notably, no archaeological evidence is present of antler or bone lance heads in the Taltheilei …show more content…
My community partners live a traditional lifestyle out of necessity. My community partners have the lowest education attainment in Northern Canada, They have the lowest economic income. Significant ecological change has occurred in the range evidenced by fluctuations in caribou herd populations. Knowledge holder AD10, while touching a caribou head and poking it in the eye with a finger, told me that “he saw whenever the opportunity presented itself. I focused on caribou”. He saw that “I didn 't spend time fishing” (AD10-1). He shook my hand-and thanked me for what I was doing. “As far as he was concerned you are the first person to seriously document the Denesųłiné connection to caribou” (AD10-1). The informant told me that “your work is a wake-up call to the Denesųłiné” (AD10-1). AD10-1 told me that they understand what I am doing and is supportive and