On top of it all, Inuktitut works best in syllabics, not in the Roman alphabet. So please bear in mind, as you read on, that this guide is very rough; meant to at least give crude sound impressions for throats untrained in Inuktitut pronunciation.
a: “uh” sound, as in “supper”
u: soft “oo,” as in “cook”
i: “ih” sound, as in “hitch”
j: “y” sound, as in “yellow”
r: indistinct, pronounced in the back of the throat
q: pronounced in the back of the throat
doubled vowels/consonants: lingering emphasis
Glossary
ANGAKKUQ (pronounced “u-nguk-kooq”; spelled ᐊᖓᒃᑯᖅ in syllabics): This is a shaman, a man or woman (sometimes a child) with magical powers, who can see into the unseen world of magical creatures. Shamans have been important in nearly all cultures of the world, though Inuit have particularly strong and recent memories of their shamanic traditions. Contrary to popular opinion, shamanism was not religious to Inuit; instead, the shaman was something more like a tradesperson. Shamans could use their powers for good or evil, but they were important for their ability to explain or manipulate unseen powers on behalf of ordinary humans.
ANGULA (pronounced “u-ngoo-lu”; spelled ᐊᖑᓚ in syllabics): This word means “to chew on skin or pluck feathers with one’s teeth.”
INUIT (pronounced “i-noo-eet”; spelled ᐃᓄᐃᑦ in syllabics): The singular of this word is Inuk. While it means “Persons,” it more literally means “The Living Ones Who Are Here.” Its root is inua, the abstract essence of humanness. As what archaeologists term the “Thule” culture, Inuit expanded aggressively across the entire North American and Greenlandic Arctic, between 800 and 1200 C.E. Their origins are Siberian; and, while it is debated as to whether or not their expansion represented a search for metals, it is known that they were a brilliantly innovative hunting culture. In their strong oral traditions, Inuit still hold memories of their encounters with the strange “Dorset” culture—or, in the Inuktitut language, Tuniit.
INUKSUIT (pronounced “i-nook-shoo-eet”; spelled ᐃᓄᒃᓱᐃᑦ in syllabics): The singular of this word is inuksuk. This is a pile of rocks, built in the rough form of a human being, positioned on high ground. Inuksuit are thought to have been used by the Tuniit, then by the Inuit, to panic caribou, which made them easier to hunt (i.e., the animals would look up and think that people are surrounding them on the hillsides; in avoiding the “people,” the animals would then run straight into an ambush). They also happen to make excellent place markers in the Arctic, so that one can avoid getting lost. It is hard to tell how old a given inuksuk is, since people build them constantly, even to this very day.
ISUMA (pronounced “i-soo-mu”; spelled ᐃᓱᒪ in syllabics): This term denotes the most private or intimate thoughts and feelings particular to an individual. As such, it represents the personal mind of an individual—sacred insofar as the isuma of a person must be respected. While the darker side of isuma is that it may result in egoism, a well-nourished isuma is thought to result in healthy inua, humanness, which enriches the larger society.
KANNUJAQ (pronounced “kun-noo-yuq”; spelled ᑲᓐᓄᔭᖅ in syllabics): This word means “copper.” The character Kannujaq is named after copper, a very rare substance known to his people, the Inuit.
NUNA (pronounced “noo-nu”; spelled ᓄᓇ in syllabics): This term means “land,” often referred to as “the Land.” While the word can specifically refer to the earth under one’s feet (even to the plants that grow in it), it is most often used to refer to the material “suchness” of the world; the stuff of material existence. The interrelation of Land, Sea, and Sky are absolutely critical to Inuit traditional thought and storytelling.
NUNAUP SANNGININGA (pronounced “noo-nowp sun-ngi-ni-ngu”; spelled ᓄᓇᐅᑉ ᓴᙱᓂᖓ in syllabics): This means “The Strength of the Land.” To the authors’ knowledge, this term was coined by the late Gideon Qitsualik; but it is one of many Inuit ways to express the Inuit tendency to believe that the Nuna, the Land, possesses its own distinct power. The substantial “suchness” of the world can echo the thoughts and feelings of humanity, so that one must take care with idle words and will, lest the Land make them real.
QANUIPPIT (pronounced “qu-nwip-pit”; spelled ᖃᓄᐃᑉᐱᑦ in syllabics): This a traditional question-greeting: “Anything wrong?”
QULLIIT (pronounced “qool-leet”; spelled ᖁᓪᓖᑦ in syllabics): The singular of this word is qulliq. This is a lamp carved from soapstone, which burns seal oil at a steady rate. Among Inuit, it was the very heart of the home, essential for reliable warmth and light. Since every married woman owned one and was trained in its use, it was a powerful symbol of womanhood. As a further symbol of family, it was the place where masculine and feminine energies merged—since the wife’s lamp burned seal oil brought home by the hunting husband.
SIKU (pronounced “si-koo”; spelled ᓯᑯ in syllabics): This word means “ice.” The character Siku is named after ice, because of his unusual blue eyes.
SILA (pronounced “si-lu”; spelled ᓯᓚ in syllabics): This term means “sky,” often referred to as “the Sky.” This is one of the most important terms in the Inuktitut language. Alex Spalding’s Inuktitut: A Multi-Dialectal Outline Dictionary records ninety-six meanings, in senses that are biological, environmental, geographical, locational, psychological, and intellectual. Its most basic meanings include: “air,” “atmosphere,” “sky,” “intellect,” “wisdom,” “spirit,” “earth,” “universe,” and “all.” It has been associated with the pre-colonial concept of a supreme being.
TUNIIT (pronounced “too-neet”; spelled ᑐᓃᑦ in syllabics): The singular of this word is Tuniq. The Tuniit are an especially old and mysterious people of the Arctic, pre-dating Kannujaq’s folk, the Inuit. In the oral traditions of Inuit, the Tuniit are shy, but very strong. They are thought to have taught Inuit how to live in the Eastern Arctic of North America, having used inuksuit to hunt caribou. By contrast, they lacked many of the more sophisticated tools common to Inuit (e.g., soapstone lamps, toggling harpoons, dogsleds, snow houses, float bladders, waterproof stitching), and their craftsmanship was often thought of as inferior by Inuit standards. They are known to archaeologists as the “Dorset” culture. Historically, the last of the Tuniit are thought to have been the Sadlermiut people of Coats Island and Southampton Island, who contracted plague from sailors in the 1800s; they were extinct by the time the Active (a whaling vessel) visited in 1902.
TUURNGAIT (pronounced “too-oor-ngu-it”; spelled ᑑᕐᖓᐃᑦ in syllabics): The singular of this word is tuurngaq. This term really has no decent equivalent in English, though it is often rendered as “spirits.” Tuurngait are magical creatures, often (but not always) ethereal and invisible, that can originate from any source. Most are monsters, though some can be animals, plants, people—even rocks. We might call them “subtle” beings of many different sorts. The angakkuq often made it his or her habit to have these beings as helpers. Alternately, the angakkuq might remove hostile tuurngait from the community. Tuurngait and shamans were said to have spoken the same secret language, sharing a relationship with the Land’s own power.
ULU (pronounced “oo-loo”; spelled ᐅᓗ in syllabics): This is an Inuit woman’s traditional crescent-shaped knife. It is like a small axe blade fixed to a short handle (perpendicular to the blade) around which the user’s fingers can curl. To this day, the ulu is a common symbol of feminine power (the male symbol being either the straight knife or harpoon head). It is associated with food and, by extension, health. There are Inuit stories of female shamans defeating especially difficult monsters with the throw of a song-empowered ulu.
UMIAQ (pronounced “oo-mi-uq”; spelled ᐅᒥᐊᖅ in syllabics): This is a traditional Inuit skin boat, much larger than a qajaq (in English, often spelled “kayak”). The umiaq is able to hold a dozen people on average. The design probably originates in ancient S
iberia. Archaeologists assume that it was use of the umiaq, as much as dogsleds, that allowed Inuit and their close cousins to colonize what is now Alaska, Canada, and Greenland, in a relatively short period of time.
About the Authors
Of Inuit ancestry, Rachel Qitsualik-Tinsley was born into the traditional 1950’s culture of iglu building and dogsledding, later becoming a translator, writer, and activist. She is a scholar of world religions, and considered an authority on Inuit language, mythology, and pre-colonial religion. She has published several hundred articles, as well as many mythic retellings and works of original fiction. Her current projects focus on utilizing fiction to discuss unique Inuit mystical and philosophical concepts stemming from Inuit cosmology of the pre-contact period. Her goal is to reveal, for all readers, the secret thought and sophistication behind Inuit cosmology. She has published for a wide range of ages, her work having been accessed as university course content. In 2012, she received a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Award for her written contributions to Canadian culture.
Of mixed heritage, Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley enjoyed a multicultural background steeped in naturalism, before training as a writer in Toronto. He is a literatist of world religions, comparative esoterism, and mythology, having come to focus on Inuit pre-colonial cosmology. After receiving an international award for a speculative fiction short (“Green Angel”, 2005), he undertook the task of showcasing the unique flavour of pre-colonial Inuit imagery, combining speculative fiction elements with the world-setting of ancient Inuit thought. He is fascinated by the deep structure and “magical histories” borne in mythical allegory. His fiction and non-fiction, some of which has been accessed as university content, addresses a general range of ages.
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