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Native Pathways to Education
Alaska Native Cultural Resources
Indigenous Knowledge Systems
Indigenous Education Worldwide
 

Yup'ik RavenMarshall Cultural Atlas

This collection of student work is from Frank Keim's classes. He has wanted to share these works for others to use as an example of Culturally-based curriculum and documentation. These documents have been OCR-scanned. These are available for educational use only.

 

 

 

 

Ircaqurluk
The Yupik Teacher

Long ago there was a village on the south side of the Yukon River. During this time, Yupiks didn't know how to hunt or fish. They had to gather whatever plants or animals they could. In this village there was a young man who lived with his mother. His name was "Ircaqurluk". Ircaqurluk means bad heart.

One spring day, Ircaqurluk went across the Yukon towards the mountains looking for something he might find to eat. When he saw marten tracks over two hills, Ircaqurluk followed the marten up a third hill. He also noticed that beside the marten tracks were human footprints. Although he was a little afraid, Ircaqurluk followed the tracks up the hill. When he got to the top of the hill he saw that the marten went inside a very small qasgiq through the opening on top of the house. Ircaqurluk peeked in and saw tiny people dancing. When the dwarfs were done dancing, they started working on fishnets, fishtraps, spears and other hunting and fishing equipment.Ircaqurluk

Ircaqurluk watched how they made these things for a very long time. When he got tired of watching the little people, he looked up and noticed that the river ice was drifting away. He was at the top of the hill,but when he saw a huge chunk of ice he ran to the beach and jumped on the ice. When he landed on the ice, he ran and jumped and landed on the other side of the river. Ircaqurluk must have been some sort of shaman to be able to jump that far. He walked down the river and came to his village. When he reached the village, he stopped outside his mother's house and told her he was alright and instructed her to make a grass mat and bring it to the qasgiq, because he wanted to talk to the other men.

When Ircaqurluk's mother was done with the grass mat, she brought it to Ircaqurluk who was waiting outside the qasgiq. When everyone was inside the qasgiq Ircaqurluk went in and set the grass mat in the center and sat down on it. When he sat on the mat, he became a willow, then an alder, then a cottonwood, then a birch, then after changing to a spruce tree he changed back to himself.

He then taught the people how to make fishtraps, nets, traps, spears,bows and arrows and other things he had seen the dwarfs making. Then he taught Yupiks how to hunt and fish with these things. Since then,the Yupik people have been hunting and fishing.

Story by: Nick Issac
Interviewed by: Carmen
Pitka

How Dog Got His Big Ears A Dog I Am A Day In The Life Of A Dog My Life Story
A HUSKY I am Too Old to Play A Dog for a Day Dream Dog
A Day For Little Legs Ever Since I was Born...

 

The Day My Life Ended as a Fox If I Were A Fox A Fox I Am PARANOID
Sense of Where You Are Through the Eyes of a Fox A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A FOX In The Life of A Fox

THROUGH THE EYES OF A TURKEY Sue the Turkey Till Death Becomes Thee Through the Eyes of a Wild Turkey
Eye of a Turkey A Turkey's Life My Crazy Life as a Turkey Through the Eyes of A Turkey

TIME FOR A CHANGE OUR LOST LAND A Killer Bee is Who I Am Killer Bees Attack Humans
A Bee I Am Channel Bee News KILLER BEES OF AMERICA Attack Of The Killer Bee's

 

OUR SCARY EXPERIENCE The Witch... One Cold Dark Night Freaking Out
One Scary Night… A Crazy Fishing Trip With Norma The Night Of Halloween House of Halloween

 

…and
some
stories…

How the Chicken Got Its Name How The Ptarmigan Changed The Seasons How Moose Got Its Antlers How Dogs Started to Bark...
How the Fox Got His Red Coat How Raven Got Its Black Feathers How The Bear Lost His Tail Kidnapped Daughter
Of Wolf and Man Why Wolves Are So Big The Monkey Man Ircaqurluk: The Yupik Teacher
The Old Woman Statue How the Red Fox got its Colors The First Bear The Last of the Thunderbirds
The Bear Skin How The Raven Got Black Wolf Spots The Bear and the Two Weasles

 

 

Christmastime Tales
Stories real and imaginary about Christmas, Slavik, and the New Year
Winter, 1996
Christmastime Tales II
Stories about Christmas, Slavik, and the New Year
Winter, 1998
Christmastime Tales III
Stories about Christmas, Slavik, and the New Year
Winter, 2000
Summer Time Tails 1992 Summertime Tails II 1993 Summertime Tails III
Summertime Tails IV Fall, 1995 Summertime Tails V Fall, 1996 Summertime Tails VI Fall, 1997
Summertime Tails VII Fall, 1999 Signs of the Times November 1996 Creative Stories From Creative Imaginations
Mustang Mind Manglers - Stories of the Far Out, the Frightening and the Fantastic 1993 Yupik Gourmet - A Book of Recipes  
M&M Monthly    
Happy Moose Hunting! September Edition 1997 Happy Easter! March/April 1998 Merry Christmas December Edition 1997
Happy Valentine’s Day! February Edition 1998 Happy Easter! March/April Edition 2000 Happy Thanksgiving Nov. Edition, 1997
Happy Halloween October 1997 Edition Edible and Useful Plants of Scammon Bay Edible Plants of Hooper Bay 1981
The Flowers of Scammon Bay Alaska Poems of Hooper Bay Scammon Bay (Upward Bound Students)
Family Trees and the Buzzy Lord It takes a Village - A guide for parents May 1997 People in Our Community
Buildings and Personalities of Marshall Marshall Village PROFILE Qigeckalleq Pellullermeng ‘A Glimpse of the Past’
Raven’s Stories Spring 1995 Bird Stories from Scammon Bay The Sea Around Us
Ellamyua - The Great Weather - Stories about the Weather Spring 1996 Moose Fire - Stories and Poems about Moose November, 1998 Bears Bees and Bald Eagles Winter 1992-1993
Fish Fire and Water - Stories about fish, global warming and the future November, 1997 Wolf Fire - Stories and Poems about Wolves Bear Fire - Stories and Poems about Bears Spring, 1992

 

 
 

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Last modified August 23, 2006