The Subarctic Natives

The subarctic natives were nomads living in a forbidding climate they had to endure great famines and some of the coldest winters in Canada yet somehow these people survived and adapted to form cultures

Environment The environment these people had to endure was incredibly harsh and violent winters were extremely cold and windy and if that wasn’t enough, food was scarce and they had to follow their pray across the country

Landforms and Vegetation No mountains, a flat cold desert tundra area with no trees and little vegetation Most vegetation is moss, lichens and low- growing shrubs

Animal Habitats and Food People often hunted moose because they were plentiful in the Mackenzie river basin the caribou however would leave the bushlands inhabited by the Dogrib to go north with the Dogrib in pursuit also plentiful were woodland and barren-ground caribou as well as mountain sheep

Tools and Weapons A common weapon for hunting was a bow and arrows another weapon used was a spear the Kutchin bow could fell a target at 30 meters while the hare, Yellowknife and Dogrib used bows of approximately 1.5 meters in length some arrows were blunt so as to stun prey

Clothing Clothing was usually made of caribou, moose, deer or sheep skin it took 10 pelts to make a complete outfit for one man men essentially wore wide shirts that hung to the knees and were decorated with rows of fringe

Dwellings The homes of the subarctic natives consisted of several large poles laid against each other at equal lengths and covered with hide or birchbark in this way a conical or domelike structure is formed

Religions and Beliefs The natives believed that their creator Kitche Manito created rock, fire, wind, then water And after he had made the stars, planets and other creatures, he made Man One time the Earth flooded and Kitche Manito blew on some dirt and the Earth was revived

Burial Customs First the body was wrapped in birch bark and placed on a platform for four days The body was then buried with its feet pointing west (ningabian) A tombstone was then carved with the family symbol and turned upside down to identify that the person was dead Then a great feast was held

Shamans and Dreams Shamans were people who were in contact with spirits It was believed that dreams were advice and knowledge from spiritual guardians in animal form

Politics People were organized in two groups: local bands and regional bands Local bands consisted of 2 to 12 extended families and contained from 10 to 75 people A regional band was made up of two local bands that joined to exploit food or other resources There was no political infrastructure except for family organization and earned superiority, though a wise man would in most cases assume a leadership role

Today Today, centuries later, there are little or no natives left This is because most of them have been forced onto reserves and committed suicide A magnificent civilization has drawn to a close

Bibliography Microsoft Encarta 98 Encyclopedia. Microsoft Corporation,