The Dorset was a
Paleo-Eskimo
The Paleo-Eskimo (also pre-Thule or pre-Inuit) were the peoples who inhabited the Arctic region from Chukotka (e.g., Chertov Ovrag) in present-day Russia across North America to Greenland prior to the arrival of the modern Inuit (Eskimo) and rel ...
culture, lasting from to between and , that followed the
Pre-Dorset
The Pre-Dorset is a loosely defined term for a Paleo-Eskimo culture or group of cultures that existed in the Eastern Canadian Arctic from c. 3200 to 850 cal BC, and preceded the Dorset culture.
Due to its vast geographical expanse and to history ...
and preceded the
Thule people
The Thule (, , ) or proto-Inuit were the ancestors of all modern Inuit. They developed in coastal Alaska by the year 1000 and expanded eastward across northern Canada, reaching Greenland by the 13th century. In the process, they replaced people o ...
(proto-Inuit) in the North American
Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...
. The culture and people are named after
Cape Dorset
Kinngait (Inuktitut meaning "high mountain" or "where the hills are"; Syllabics: ᑭᙵᐃᑦ), formerly known as Cape Dorset until 27 February 2020, is an Inuit hamlet located on Dorset Island near Foxe Peninsula at the southern tip of Baffin ...
(now Kinngait) in
Nunavut, Canada, where the first evidence of its existence was found. The culture has been defined as having four phases due to the distinct differences in the technologies relating to hunting and tool making. Artifacts include distinctive triangular end-blades,
oil lamp
An oil lamp is a lamp used to produce light continuously for a period of time using an oil-based fuel source. The use of oil lamps began thousands of years ago and continues to this day, although their use is less common in modern times. Th ...
s () made of
soapstone
Soapstone (also known as steatite or soaprock) is a talc-schist, which is a type of metamorphic rock. It is composed largely of the magnesium rich mineral talc. It is produced by dynamothermal metamorphism and metasomatism, which occur in the ...
, and
burins.
The Dorset were first identified as a separate culture in 1925. The Dorset appear to have been extinct by 1500 at the latest and perhaps as early as 1000. The Thule people, who began migrating east from
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
in the 11th century, ended up spreading through the lands previously inhabited by the Dorset. There is no strong evidence that the
Inuit
Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...
and Dorset ever met. Modern genetic studies show the Dorset population were distinct from later groups and that "
ere was virtually no evidence of genetic or cultural interaction between the Dorset and the Thule peoples."
Inuit legends recount them encountering people they called the (singular ). According to legend, the first inhabitants were giants, taller and stronger than the Inuit but afraid to interact and "easily put to flight."
Discovery
In 1925
anthropologist Diamond Jenness
Diamond Jenness, (February 10, 1886, Wellington, New Zealand – November 29, 1969, Chelsea, Quebec, Canada) was one of Canada's greatest early scientists and a pioneer of Canadian anthropology.
Early life (1886–1910)
Family and childho ...
received
artifacts from
Cape Dorset
Kinngait (Inuktitut meaning "high mountain" or "where the hills are"; Syllabics: ᑭᙵᐃᑦ), formerly known as Cape Dorset until 27 February 2020, is an Inuit hamlet located on Dorset Island near Foxe Peninsula at the southern tip of Baffin ...
. As they were quite different from those of the Inuit, he speculated that they were indicative of an ancient, preceding culture. Jenness named the culture "Dorset" after the location of the find. These artifacts showed a consistent and distinct cultural pattern that included sophisticated art distinct from that of the Inuit. For example, the carvings featured uniquely large hairstyles for women, and figures of both sexes wearing hoodless
parka
A parka or anorak is a type of coat with a hood, often lined with fur or faux fur. This kind of garment is a staple of Inuit clothing, traditionally made from caribou or seal skin, for hunting and kayaking in the frigid Arctic. Some Inuit ...
s with large, tall collars. Much research since then has revealed many details of the Dorset people and their culture.
History
Origins
The origins of the Dorset people are not well understood. They may have developed from the previous cultures of
Pre-Dorset
The Pre-Dorset is a loosely defined term for a Paleo-Eskimo culture or group of cultures that existed in the Eastern Canadian Arctic from c. 3200 to 850 cal BC, and preceded the Dorset culture.
Due to its vast geographical expanse and to history ...
,
Saqqaq
Saqqaq (old spelling: ''Sarqaq'') is a settlement in the Avannaata municipality in western Greenland. Founded in 1755 as Solsiden, Saqqaq had 132 inhabitants in 2020. The village's Kalaallisut name is a translation of the Danish meaning "Sunny Si ...
or (less likely)
Independence I. There are, however, problems with this theory: these earlier cultures had
bow and arrow technology which the Dorsets lacked. Possibly, due to a shift from terrestrial to aquatic hunting, the bow and arrow became lost to the Dorset. Another piece of technology that is missing from the Dorset are
drills
A drill is a tool used for making round holes or driving fasteners. It is fitted with a bit, either a drill or driverchuck. Hand-operated types are dramatically decreasing in popularity and cordless battery-powered ones proliferating due to i ...
: there are no drill holes in Dorset artifacts. Instead, the Dorset gouged
lenticular holes. For example, bone needles have long, narrow holes that were painstakingly carved or gouged. Both the Pre-Dorset and Thule (Inuit) had drills.
Historical and cultural periods
![Dorset,_Norse,_and_Thule_cultures_900-1500](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/Dorset%2C_Norse%2C_and_Thule_cultures_900-1500.svg)
Dorset culture and history is divided into periods: the Early (), Middle (), and Late phases (), as well as perhaps a Terminal phase (from onwards). The Terminal phase, if it existed, would likely be closely related to the onset of the
Medieval Warm Period, which started to warm the Arctic considerably around the mid-10th century. With the warmer climates, the
sea ice became less predictable and was isolated from the High Arctic.
The Dorset were highly adapted to living in a very cold climate, and much of their food is thought to have been from hunting sea mammals that breathe through holes in the ice. The massive decline in sea-ice which the Medieval Warm Period produced would have strongly affected the Dorset. They could have followed the ice north. Most of the evidence suggests that they disappeared some time between 1000 and 1500. Radiocarbon dating has shown the Dorset were living in the Cambridge Bay area as late as 1350 CE, while the Thule Inuit moved into the area around 1200 CE. Scientists have suggested that they disappeared because they were unable to adapt to climate change or that they were vulnerable to newly introduced disease.
Technology
![Dorset_Parallel](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4b/Dorset_Parallel.svg)
The Dorset adaptation was different from that of the
whaling
Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution.
It was practiced as an organized industr ...
-based Thule Inuit. Unlike the Inuit, they rarely hunted land animals, such as
polar bears and
caribou. They did not use bows or arrows. Instead, they seem to have relied on seals and other sea mammals that they apparently hunted from holes in the ice. Their clothing must have been adapted to the extreme conditions.
Triangular end-blades and
burins are diagnostic of the Dorset. The end-blades were hafted onto harpoon heads. They primarily used the harpoons to hunt seal, but also hunted larger sea mammals such as
walrus
The walrus (''Odobenus rosmarus'') is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous distribution about the North Pole in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the fami ...
and
narwhals. They made lamps, called
qulliq
The qulliq (seal-oil, blubber or soapstone lamp, iu, ᖁᓪᓕᖅ, ''kudlik'' ; ik, naniq), is the traditional oil lamp used by Arctic peoples, including the Inuit, the Chukchi and the Yupik peoples.
This characteristic type of oil lam ...
, from
soapstone
Soapstone (also known as steatite or soaprock) is a talc-schist, which is a type of metamorphic rock. It is composed largely of the magnesium rich mineral talc. It is produced by dynamothermal metamorphism and metasomatism, which occur in the ...
and filled them with seal oil. Burins were a type of stone flake with a chisel-like edge. They were probably either used for engraving or for carving wood or bone. Burins were also used by
Pre-Dorset
The Pre-Dorset is a loosely defined term for a Paleo-Eskimo culture or group of cultures that existed in the Eastern Canadian Arctic from c. 3200 to 850 cal BC, and preceded the Dorset culture.
Due to its vast geographical expanse and to history ...
groups and had a distinctive mitten shape.
The Dorset were highly skilled at making refined miniature carvings, and striking masks. Both indicate an active
shamanistic tradition. The Dorset culture was remarkably homogeneous across the
Canadian Arctic, but there were some important variations which have been noted in both
Greenland
Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...
and
Newfoundland /
Labrador
, nickname = "The Big Land"
, etymology =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Canada
, subdivision_type1 = Province
, subdivision_name1 ...
regions.
Interaction with the Inuit
There appears to be no
genetic connection between the Dorset and the
Thule
Thule ( grc-gre, Θούλη, Thoúlē; la, Thūlē) is the most northerly location mentioned in ancient Greek and Roman literature and cartography. Modern interpretations have included Orkney, Shetland, northern Scotland, the island of Saar ...
who replaced them. Archaeological and legendary evidence is often thought to support some cultural contact, but this has been questioned.
[ The Dorset people, for instance, engaged in seal-hole hunting, a method which requires several steps and includes the use of dogs. The Thule apparently did not use this technique in the time they had previously spent in Alaska. Settlement pattern data has been used to claim that the Dorset also extensively used a breathing-hole sealing technique and perhaps they would have taught this to the Inuit. But this has been questioned on the grounds that there is no evidence that the Dorset had dogs.]
Some elders describe peace with an ancient group of people, while others describe conflict.
Sadlermiut
Scholars had thought that the Sadlermiut, a people living in near isolation mainly on and around Coats Island
Coats Island ( Inuktitut: ᐊᑉᐸᑑᕐᔪᐊᖅ, Appatuurjuaq) lies at the northern end of Hudson Bay in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut. At in size, it is the 107th largest island in the world, and Canada's 24th largest island.
The island ...
, Walrus Island, and Southampton Island
Southampton Island (Inuktitut: ''Shugliaq'') is a large island at the entrance to Hudson Bay at Foxe Basin. One of the larger members of the Arctic Archipelago, Southampton Island is part of the Kivalliq Region in Nunavut, Canada. The area of th ...
in Hudson Bay up until 1902–03, might have been the last remnants of the Dorset culture, as they had a culture and dialect distinct from the mainland Inuit
Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...
. Encounters with Europeans and exposure to infectious disease caused the deaths of the last members of the Sadlermiut.
A 2002 paper suggested that the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of Sadlermiut people was related to that of both the Dorset and Thule peoples, perhaps suggesting local admixture. However a subsequent 2012 genetic analysis showed no genetic link between the Sadlermiut and the Dorset.
Genetics
A genetic study published in ''Science
Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe.
Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...
'' in August 2014 examined the remains of nineteen Dorset people buried in Canada and Greenland between ca. and . The sixteen samples of mtDNA extracted were determined to belong to haplogroup D2a1 (twelve samples), D2a (three samples) and D. These haplogroup
A haplotype is a group of alleles in an organism that are inherited together from a single parent, and a haplogroup (haploid from the el, ἁπλοῦς, ''haploûs'', "onefold, simple" and en, group) is a group of similar haplotypes that share ...
s also predominate in the preceding Saqqaq culture, suggesting genetic continuity between the two. The authors of the study suggested that the ancestors of the Saqqaq and Dorset entered North America from Siberia in a single distinct migration about , after which they remained genetically largely isolated for thousands of years. The Dorset were genetically distinct from the Thule people
The Thule (, , ) or proto-Inuit were the ancestors of all modern Inuit. They developed in coastal Alaska by the year 1000 and expanded eastward across northern Canada, reaching Greenland by the 13th century. In the process, they replaced people o ...
who, after expanding out of Siberia, completely replaced the Dorset people around . The study also found no evidence of genetic mixing between Dorset people and the Greenlandic Norse people
* Something of, from, or related to Greenland, a country
* List of people from Greenland
*Greenlandic Inuit are people identified with the country of Greenland, or of Greenlandic descent: see Demographics of Greenland
** List of Greenlandic Inuit
...
.
See also
* Qajartalik
Qajartalik ( Inuktitut for "where there is a kayak") is a petroglyph site located on the Qajartalik peninsula of Qikertaaluk Island, Nunavut, approximately 40 km southeast of Kangirsujuaq, Quebec. The site consists of over 150 carvings of faces ...
References
Bibliography
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External links
{{Commons category
"Dorset Culture in Nunavik"
Avataq
''Nuntsiaq News''
Canada.ca.
Indigenous peoples in Northern Canada
Archaeological cultures of North America
Archaeology of Greenland
Archaeology of Canada
Archaeology of Nunavut
Inuit history
Prehistory of the Arctic
Extinct ethnic groups
Extinct Native American peoples
1st millennium BC in Canada
1st millennium in Canada
de:Inuit-Kultur#Dorset-Kultur (500 v. Chr. bis 1000 n. Chr.)