Inuit presence linked to Canada’s Arctic claims /New atlas details aboriginal place names, routes BOB WEBER THE CANADIAN PRESS The Canadian Arctic is often called the trackless tundra. New research proves it is anything but. Fraser Taylor of Carleton Uni¬versity is a co-author of a new atlas that documents hundreds of traditional Inuit place names and thousands of kilometres of routes through the sea ice, coastlines and vast expanses of the Canadian North from Lake Winnipeg to the tip of Ellesmere Island. The atlas, released this week after more than 15 years of work, combines interviews with dozens of elders as well as explorer and trader accounts to trace the trails, some hundreds of years old and many still in regular use. The result, says Taylor, re¬defines our understanding of Inuit culture and firms up a plank in Canada’s case for sovereignty over the Northwest Passage. “Inuit occupancy and Inuit use of those sea routes is a clear ex-ample of ‘use it or lose it,’ said Taylor, referring to Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s working defini¬tion of Arctic sovereignty. “We show that this is very much Canadian territory, both in land terms and in sea terms. The atlas is a joint project of Carleton’s Cartographic Research Centre, the Marine Affairs Pro¬gram at Halifax’s Dalhousie Uni¬versity, and the geography depart¬ment at Cambridge University. Researchers spent weeks and months in Arctic communities, earning over the course of years the trust of local elders. In some cases, communities came to them asking for help in documenting local knowledge. “We start from a philosophy of building from the bottom up, not from the top down, Taylor said. “We’re not outside researchers coming in to exploit the Inuit . We literally and metaphorically give voice to local people. Each trail and place name, said Taylor, represents a story. “The journey is a story of what happened, who you met, who you saw, what kinds of things happened to you on that route. And every story is different, even though they’re moving along the same route. “These geo-narratives are vi¬tally important in understanding the richness of that journey. The extent of the web of routes and the depth of those combined stories present a very different view of traditional Inuit culture, Taylor said. “It should change the idea of the Inuit of an isolated group of people living in small hamlets by the side of the frozen sea into a thriving community which has moved and evolved and interac¬ted over the course of time. It’s confirming what the Inuit have been telling us for generations and we haven’t really listened. The trails were used for trading, following game, and just keeping in touch, Taylor said. “You name it, they’re exchan¬ging it — material goods, stories, myths. The atlas, released Wednesday, is already getting rave reviews from aboriginals and academics alike
Posted on: Fri, 13 Jun 2014 17:33:33 +0000
Trending Topics
© 2015