Central Yup'ik Eskimos - Economy



Subsistence and Commercial Activities . Traditionally, the Central Yup'ik Eskimos were hunters and gatherers, relying on the region's varied ecology to support a social and Ceremonial complexity unmatched in any other part of the Eskimo world. The shallow coastline is rich in seals, walrus, beluga whales, and saltwater fish including herring, halibut, and cod. The rivers were the spawning grounds for no less than five species of salmon. The coastal wetlands hosted Millions of migratory waterfowl during the summer season. Small furbearers including fox, muskrat, mink, and otter were trapped, and caribou were hunted along the river drainages. From the establishment of Russian trading posts in the early 1800s, trapping provided supplemental income to native residents. Reindeer herding was also introduced around 1900 but had disappeared everywhere by the 1940s except on predatorfree Nunivak Island. Commercial fishing began to play a major role in the economy of the region in the 1890s in Bristol Bay and by the 1930s along the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers. The rich salmon fishery and the relatively new herring and bottom fisheries are the most important private-sector commercial activities in the region today. Along with the commercial fishery, income is largely derived from employment in state and federally funded jobs and public assistance programs on which the regional population is markedly dependent. This cash income is in turn used to support the substantial harvest of fish and game for local use.

Except for dogs, there were no important domesticated animals in aboriginal times. Reindeer herding was introduced by missionaries at the end of the nineteenth century but continues only on Nunivak Island. Musk-oxen were also introduced onto Nunivak Island in the 1940s and a small herd subsequently begun on nearby Nelson Island. Both of these herds have prospered and are now the subject of regulated hunting by both nonnative and local hunters.

Industrial Arts. Aboriginally, all men carved both wood and ivory, and all women were adept at sewing skins and weaving grass into articles for household use. Today some men continue to carve ivory jewelry and wooden fish traps and women to knit and sew skins both for home use and for sale. Men also carve decorative wooden masks, and women weave grass baskets for sale to tourists and collectors.

Trade. Precontact trade in native articles, including furs and sea mammal products, was maintained between riverine and coastal groups within the region as well as between the Central Yup'ik Eskimos and the Athapaskan peoples to the east. Russian trade goods first entered the region by Siberian trade routes across the Bering Strait, and in the mid-1800s Russian trading stations were established along the rivers. During the nineteenth century, trade largely consisted of luxury goods, including tea, tobacco, and beads. By the early 1900s, the increased river traffic resulting from the Klondike gold rush along with rising fur prices dramatically increased both native buying power and the inventory of goods that were available for trade.

Division of Labor. Just as men and women lived and worked in different social spaces in the traditional winter Village, they were responsible for different productive activities. Men hunted and fished during the day. In the men's house they carved and repaired tools, kayak frames, and objects of everyday use, as well as training young men and boys in these tasks. Women's work included processing their husbands' catch, preparing food, gathering plant materials, making clothes, fashioning pottery, weaving grass, and rearing Children. Ritual and medicinal activities were assigned to both men and women. This basic division of labor remained in effect until the modern era. Today women are increasingly employed outside the home, although they retain primary responsibility for food preparation and child care. Men also continue to actively harvest fish and game.

Land Tenure. Aboriginally, land tenure and land use were based on prior use. An individual had the right to use a particular site because of his relationship to previous generations of users who had harvested at that site in the past. Early nonnative interest in the region focused on small mining claims and trading and cannery sites, and these claims rarely conflicted with traditional patterns of land use. In 1971, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act created regional and village native corporations, which were given corporate title to a portion of their traditional holdings, while substantial acreage was retained for state and federal use. At the same time, federal and state laws increasingly regulated the harvesting of fish and game in the region. These regulatory constraints and new legal boundaries are increasingly in conflict with historic patterns of land use and are the focus of considerable controversy in the region today.


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