This paper explores how the First Nations commercial fishers on the Northwest Coast fish, consume, and consider halibuts. The following discussion illustrates two types of their significance to the fishers: halibut fishing as a “minor subsistence ” and halibut meat as special luxury food. It is apparent that the above significance of halibuts is closely related to “modernity,” which the fishers have experienced mainly through commercial fishing operation utilizing a large high-tech fleet and through the introduction of market systems. On the one hand, the fishers have gradually lost a strong tie to nature or natural environment by the introduction of mechanization and a large fleet. Halibut fishing, therefore, is considered as an activity, through which fishers can regain their relationship to nature. On the other hand, high evaluation of halibuts in the market seems to affect the valuation of their taste among the First Nations people themselves. There used to be a lot of First Nations commercial fishers. Nevertheless, only a small portion of the population, who usually has a large high-tech fleet, now remains in the fishing operation with the decrease of salmon and a labor-intensive policy announced in the mid-20th century.

抄録全体を表示

The Chukchi are an indigenous people of the Chukot Peninsula in the northeastern part of Russia. The population of the Chukchi in 1989 was about 15,000. In the latter half of the nineteenth century, the Chukchi were divided by ethnographers into two groups, one group tending herds of reindeer and the other group living along the coast and depending on hunting sea mammals for their subsistence. However, due to the spread of socialism in the Soviet era, many of Chukchi work on state-run farms. Cultural anthropologists have conducted some studies in recent years to examine changes in sea-mammal hunting in Russia following the collapse of the Soviet Union (Kerttula 2000). That particular study by Kerttula presented some information of sea-mammal hunting related to the ethnography at Sireniki village in the Russian Federation's Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. This report is intended to describe and present analyses of the current practice of sea-mammal hunting among the Chukchi. It presents the socioeconomic roles in the settlement from an ecological anthropology perspective. This report is based on a survey conducted by the author at Lorino Village, located in the Chukotsky District of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. The Lorino village is located along the Bering Strait; it lies within the territory of a vast inland tundra. According to data for 2004, villagers are engaged in sea-mammal hunting, reindeer herding, handicraft production, fur factories, etc. Sea-mammal hunters are 32 among 175 people belonging to the municipal unified enterprise of agricultural workers. They have hunted various sea mammals: gray whales, bowhead whales, walruses, bearded seals, ringed seals, etc. They have one hunting camp aside from the main fishing village. In recent years, new hunting organizations have emerged and have begun hunting sea mammals in that area. This report describes and clarifies hunting activities and the conflict between municipal enterprises and new organizations.

抄録全体を表示

The reindeer-herding Koryak in the Severo-Evensk district, Magadan region, Russia, have developed a very rich classification nomenclature for domestic reindeer according to age, sex, forms of ear cutting, color, and fur coat. Further, they assign specific names to each draft reindeer trained for drawing sledges. This paper aims to conduct a linguistic anthropological analysis of the Koryak classification nomenclature and to investigate the principle on which it is based. This investigation will enable us not only to clarify the relationship between Koryak reindeer herders and their domestic reindeer but also to conduct a comparative study between the Koryak and other neighboring indigenous peoples with regard to the history of the adoption of reindeer herding in Siberia.

抄録全体を表示

In the taiga, domesticated reindeer have been, and remain, the most important livestock used for travel, transport, and milk production. However, the research about reindeer herding in the taiga is sparse and much about reindeer management methods is yet unknown. This article reports reindeer herding methods of the Tsaatan, who live in the taiga area of northern Mongolia. This article details seasonal changes of daily herding processes and livestock-leading techniques. Also the two major characteristics of reindeer herding in this area are indicated. First, dairy does are grazed in day-trip herding from spring to autumn. This method is favorable for daily milking, as the does can be gathered around the camp site regularly. Pastoralists need a variety of effective procedures to tie livestock to the camp site for day-trip herding. To do so, the Tsaatan used the “kidnap” method in spring and summer, and the herd leading method in autumn. Second, in spring and autumn reindeer are grazed two by two in order to restrict their mobilities. Reindeer are highly mobile in these seasons because of their dietary and reproductive ecology, so restriction of mobilities is important for herders to graze reindeer safely.

抄録全体を表示

While staying in an Inuit community in the Canadian Arctic, I was often asked ‘quvianaa? (Is it fun?)’ or ‘quvianai? (Is it no fun?)’, by many Inuit. Indeed, it is no wonder that my acquaintances often said ‘lots of fun?’ to me in such events as feasts and games held by the hamlet office during the Christmas holidays. However, they often used these phrases to me when I was just thinking about something or spending idle time. It was sometimes burdensome to me especially when I was tired from interviews with elders. I was never bored or unhappy. I just wanted to enjoy my private time. Then, I sometimes became oversensitive and eventually suspected I was constantly under surveillance, and sometimes became bothered by these phrases. Why should I be always happy and having ‘fun’? There seems to be no doubt that ‘quvia- (fun or happiness) ’ is one of the crucial concepts to the Inuit people. In this paper, I examine the meaning of the concept ‘quvia- (fun or happiness) ’, in the cultural context of Inuit society from the viewpoint of ‘structuralism’. Based partly on my own research in Kugaaruk (Pelly Bay), Nunavut, Canada, and partly on other studies of Inuit culture and society, I propose a hypothetical model of the relationship between ‘nature’ and ‘culture’ in the Inuit worldview. Then, I will show that ‘quvia- (fun or happiness)’ is more than the concept indicating emotional conditions and includes an ‘ethical=moral’ connotation, in which sharing happiness and fun is one form of a return gift to the wild-life giving their meats and furs as gifts (niqinmarik: real food) to Inuit. Moreover, it will be shown that sharing happiness and fun relates to ‘prohibition of accumulation’ = ‘order of sharing’, and plays a crucial role in maintenance of the relationships between Inuit and wildlife, as well as among the Inuit society. Indeed, a person should be happy anytime in order to make requital to wildlife and thereby maintain ecological and social relationships. Finally, I will briefly consider what we could learn from this concept sharing between the human and non-human worlds to depart from the present regime of market supremacy.

抄録全体を表示

To dance is, for the Cup'iks, one of the indigenous peoples in Alaska, to represent their “culture”. But the configuration of dance performances varies depending on the occasion. This study analyses the configuration of three dance performances in a Cup'ik village, and argues that the attributes of the audiences determine the ways of performing dances. The three cases analyzed and compared are 1) the dance performance on the occasion of an Olympic gold medalist visiting the village for a lecture, 2) the dance performance at an annual event in which neighboring villagers were invited, and 3) the dance performance after the funeral for a village elder. After identifying who were the audiences on each occasion, these performances are compared with each other with regard to the dancers, the choice of songs to perform, the clothes and adornments to wear, and the spatial dispositions of the dancers and the audiences.

抄録全体を表示

Museums which own ethnographical collections have undergone a big change for their exhibitions and activities since the later twentieth century, especially after 1970's. Processes of collecting artifacts have been strongly challenged, and repatriation claimed by their original owners. And exhibits of indigenous cultures from viewpoint of dominant societies have been criticized and boycotted by indigenous peoples. Museums have not been played a role as only enough conservation of artifacts and explanation the culture in historic contexts. Today Indigenous peoples' idea have been reflected in museum activities, such as building partnerships between museums and indigenous communities, increasing of museums (and/or culture center) which operated by themselves in countries like Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Then indigenous traditions have been represented as living part of contemporary societies as though the past. This paper looks at some examples of how Canadian museum exhibitions have been changing in relation to Northwest Coast First Nations, drawing on backgrounds such as social condition, indigenous activity, law, budget, and a trend of study. Beside this report intends to overview transition of exhibiting Ainu culture in Japan.

抄録全体を表示