AMERICAN HISTORY

The

of Alaska
Respect for nature and ancestors
marked the Tlingit culture

By Deborah White

^^H orcenruries, cheTlin- showed their gratitude with songs

^M git (CLlNK-it) Indi- and ceremonies. AJterward, they
^^1 ^ ans of Southeastern returned the bones of the salmon
^ ^ B ^ ^ l Alaska believed that people to the sea to be reborn.
^ ^ H ^ ^ the salmon teeming The Tlingit, whose name means they fed and clothed themselves with
^^H in their waters "people of the tidelands," migrated the meat and skins of seals, sea otters,
^^H belonged to a sacred from Asia across the Bering Land deer, beavers, and other animals.
^^1 race of people. The Bridge thousands of years ago. They No animal was killed needlessly
^Hi "salmon people" settled in the Alexander Archipel- or wasted. The Tlingit believed that
swarmed up the rivers in invisible ago, a small chain of windswept every creature had a soul. Giving
canoes each spring, offering them- islands along the coast of the Alaska thanks and treating animal remains
selves to humans as food. The Tlingit Panhandle (see map, p, }}). In this (dead bodies) with respect ensured
region of rolling waves, rugged that their spirits would return.
Words to Know coastlines, and lush rain forests,
archipelago (AHR-kuh-PEHL-uh-goh): they created a unique culture. The Raven and the Eagle

A
a group of islands. From the forests they cut towering mong the creatures the Tlingit
cnsT: an animal or plant used as a red cedar trees. They used the wood held most sacred were the
symbol for a family or clan. to build houses and canoes, and to crafty raven and the noble
totem pole: a collection of crests carve totem poles, becoming master eagle. The Tlingit themselves were
carved from a sin^e log.
woodworkers. From the sea and land divided into two groups, or moieties

B JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC
 This painting depicts a potlatch celebrating the raising of a totem pole.

(MWAH-eh'tees). One side was the mother, rather than the father. The WAinter Village

T
represented by a raven, the other hy Normally, a man's wealth would be raditional Tlingit life revolved
an eagle. inherited by his sisters children around the seasons. In late
The strongest bond in Tlingit instead of his own. spring, people traveled to
life, however, was with an individ- All children had to go through ini- hunting and fishing camps, where
ual's clan, or extended family. Each tiation rites. When a boy was about they remained until the fall.
clan considered itself related 10 years old, he went to live with his In autumn, the Tlingit gathered
through a legendary ancestor. Each mothers brother. The boy's uncle again in their villages. Each Tlingit
had its own stories and its own instructed him in the history of his village held several large houses. Such
crest, an animal symbol that repre- clan and taught him how to carve buildings, called longhouses, could
sented the family history. In cere- wood, hunt, ajid fish. Lighting the accommodate a number of families
monies, it was used to symbolize or fire in the home each winter morning from the same clan. The longhouse
communicate with ancestral spirits. was the boy's special responsibility. was the focal point of Tlingit social
The Tlingit culture was one of Girls learned their clan's legends life, with the clans noble family liv-
the few where lineage (family and skills such as cooking and basket ing in the back, near a storeroom of
descent) was passed down through weaving from female elders. the clan's sacred treasures.

SEPTEMBER SO . 2004
 Traditional Tlingit life revolved around the
seasons. In late spring, villages emptied as
people moved to hunting and fishing camps.
The eldest man iti this family led The Old Ways Vanish

T
the entire household. Other femiUes he Tlingits' first contact with
from the clan lived along the sides of whites came with the arrival of
the house. The Tlingit also kept Russian traders in the mid-
slaves, many of whom had been cap- 1700s. Europeans and Americans
tured in war, who slept by the front soon followed. The Tlingit built a
door. In the middle of the hotise was strong trading economy, based in
a large hearth where meals were part on their skill with canoes.
cooked for the house chief or for For a long time, they fiercely
guests attending celebrations. resisted attempts to control them.
The most important celebration But diseases brought in by settlers
was the potlatch, a great feast usu- devastated the tribe, especially the
ally given by the clan chief to mark smallpox epidemics (widespread
a significant event. Potlatches were outbreaks) of 1835-1840. About
held at weddings, house raisings, half of the roughly 15,000 tribal
totem pole raisings, and funerals. members died from the disease.
Each potlatch featured dancing, By then, some Tlingit had mar-
singing, feasting, and storytelling. ried the new settlers and adopted
The potlatch was also an expres- their ways, which included joining
sion of the chief's status. (The word the Russian Orthodox Church.
potlatch comes from the Chinook In 1867, Russia "sold" Alaska
word for "giving.") Many gifts were including Tlingit lands-to the
offered at a potlatch, including furs, United States. Americans soon
rare shells, and blankets. A chief's descended on the Indians' homeland
prestige (importance), in fact, de- and took control. U.S. companies
pended on how much he gave away! seized the major salmon streams and

Modern-day Tlingit youth in traditional regalia.

TO JUNIOR SCHOLASTIC
 Homelands
of the Tlingit,
Haida, and
Tsimshian

VANCOUVE|. Alaska became a state in 1959i the

ISLAND " Author Deborah White is a member of
Tlingit joined with other Alaska the Tsimshian tribe (see map). She
Natives to stop even more land from lives in Ketchikan, which has been
being taken by the state government. home to her family since 1886. White's
In 1971, the Alaska Native Claims grandmothers instructed her in the
WASHINGTON
Settlement A a gave the combined arts of basketry, regalia making, bead-
tribes of Alaska a settlement of money ing, leatherworking, and doll making.
built canneries (amiuiig t and land. Instead of establishing
Later, in the "gold rushes" of the reservations, the act made the Indians
Your Turn
1880s and 1890s, thousands more stockholders in corporations that
outsiders overran the area. manage the land for profit. When the WORD MATCH
In a relatively brief time, the process is complete, the Tlingit will 1. crest A. family descent
Tlingit lost their traditional way of have reclaimed some 500,000 acres 2. clan B. feast
life. Villages were abandoned as through about 11 corporations. 3. lineage C. importance
people moved to the cities to seek The 2000 Census estimated the 4. prestige D. animal symbol of
work in the canneries. At first, even number of Tlingit in Alaska to be a family or clan
these jobs were denied them. fewer than 10,000. Among some 5. potlatch E. extended family
tribal members there is a growing
The 2Oth Century effort to reclaim their language and THINK ABOUT IT

D
espite setbacks, however, the traditions. Frederick "Eric" Lauth, 13, 1. What did Tlingit boys learn dur-
Tlingit never gave up their (see cover) is proud of his Tlingit her- ing their initiation rites? What did
claims co their ancestral lands. itage. He performs Native dances at a Tlingit girls learn?
Beginning with the work of a Tlingit cultural center in Saxman, Alaska. 2. Do you think the Tlingit could
lav^er named William Paul in the "For me," says the eighth-grader, ever regain their traditional way
1920s, they fought for their rights "love of family and respect for elders of life? Why or why not?
and won some victories. When are what matter most." J S

SEPTEMBER 2Q. 2OO4 11