| General Description : |
The Subarctic cultural area extended from the Labrador coast, through Quebec, northern Ontario and the northern prairies across the Mackenzie River basin and into Alaska. Living in this vast region were Indians of two language groups, the Athapaskan, distantly related to certain Asian languages, and the Algonkian. The Athapaskans were the western group and included Kutchin, Hare, Dogrib, Yellowknife, Kaska, Slave, Skani, Beaver and Chipewyan Indians. The Algonkians included Ojibwas, Crees, Mistassini-Crees, Montagnais, Naskapis and Beothuks. The Beothuks are extinct. In the harsh Subarctic, where food was scarce, people were widely scattered. During winter they hunted, in groups of around twenty relations, in their own isolated territories. When summer arrived, the hunting parties which formed a single band came together, often at a good fishing spot or a trading post. A senior male led this band. He was usually an outstanding hunter and a skillful bargainer or perhaps a noted shaman. Generally, the leader had more influence than power. With no police courts, jails or other civil and religious institutions to control the Subarctic Indians, they relied on anxiety to regulate personal conduct. Starvation was the penalty for those who failed in the almost daily task of extracting sustenance from the meagre environment. The people hunted, fished and snared but ate little plant food. Caribou and rabbits were especially important dietary items although there were regional variations. While certain tribes despised fishing, those of the far west depended heavily on the salmon they caught using a trap derived perhaps from the Russians. |
Alain Martineau
