The Inuits of the Arctic

781 Words4 Pages
Imagine living along $5,000 miles of the Arctic Circle in a country like Russia, Alaska, North Canada or Greenland. You live in a marginal environment where it is impossible for individuals to cultivate food due to environment hindrances. You would have to rely on the environment for hunting and gathering so you would never stay in one place long, and could not have any material possessions, in fear of becoming encumbered when moving from place to place as the seasons change. This is how the Inuit culture of the Artic live. The Inuit’s of the Arctic have a driving force to survive and their success is primarily due to their settlement patterns and because their environment of a cold desert, they have an immediate return system so their consumption of food and other resources occurs immediately. Having a close kinship helps, especially when the winter months come and the food and resources are becoming scarce. It is common for the Inuit’s to band together with up to 15 neighboring households which is optimal for hunting seals and sharing resources. They will give someone what they need if a neighbor is running low on supplies reducing stress on the environment and the possibility of resources growing scarce, with no expectation of getting anything back, in hopes of knowing being left behind. While banded together in the winter months, Inuit’s practice healing rituals and ceremonies as a significant part of their social life. During the summer months, the Inuit’s disperse out of the groups and collect berries and roots while small groups of men go out fishing. Having minimal people in a group is a key to having a successful hunt. Two practices that people of different cultures may not agree with that the Inuit culture practices are Infanticide and Geronticide. Infanticide is the practice of killing babies if they are deformed, or if the mother is
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