![PointHopeHousesUSGSric00682](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/PointHopeHousesUSGSric00682.jpg)
Qargi (), Qasgi or Qasgiq (by the
Yup'iks), Qaygiq (by the
Cup'iks), Kashim (by the
Russians
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118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate)
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), Kariyit, a traditional large semi-subterranean men's community house' (or "communal men's house, men's house, ceremonial house, council house, dance house, communal gathering place") of the
Yup'ik
The Yup'ik or Yupiaq (sg & pl) and Yupiit or Yupiat (pl), also Central Alaskan Yup'ik, Central Yup'ik, Alaskan Yup'ik ( own name ''Yup'ik'' sg ''Yupiik'' dual ''Yupiit'' pl; russian: Юпики центральной Аляски), are an I ...
and
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 ...
, also
Deg Hit'an Athabaskans (at
Anvik, Alaska
Anvik ( Deg Xinag: ) is a city, home to the Deg Hit'an people, in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States. The name Anvik, meaning "exit" in the Central Alaskan Yup'ik language, became the common usage despite multiple names at the ...
), was used for public and ceremonial occasions and as a men’s residence. The Qargi was the place where men built their boats, repaired their equipment, took sweat baths, educated young boys, and hosted community dances. Here people learned their oral history, songs and chants. Young boys and men learned to make tools and weapons while they listened to the traditions of their forefathers.
Edna Ahgeak MacLean Edna Ahgeak MacLean or Paniattaaq (born November 5, 1944) is an Iñupiaq academic administrator, linguist, anthropologist and educator from Alaska, who has specialized in the preservation and revitalization of the Iñupiaq language.
Early life a ...
Culture and Change for Iñupiat and Yupiks of Alaska
/ref>
The qargi was almost always a separate building because the dwellings were not large enough to hold very many men. The qargi was a combination courthouse, church, workshop, dance hall, and received center, two or three times the size of a typical house. It was the place where the storytelling, dancing, singing, and games (high-kick games) that so enriched Yupik and Inuit life took place. The qargi was a communal building in which women were usually not permitted.
Prior to the arrival of Christian mission
A Christian mission is an organized effort for the propagation of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries, to carry on evangelism or other activities, such ...
aries in the 1890s, every Inupiaq settlement had one or more of these ceremonial houses.
Naming
School
In many Iñupiat
The Iñupiat (or Inupiat, Iñupiaq or Inupiaq;) are a group of Alaska Natives, whose traditional territory roughly spans northeast from Norton Sound on the Bering Sea to the northernmost part of the Canada–United States border. Their current ...
communities the qargi was the first institution to vanish as churches and schools became the dominant forces of change. At present, Iñupiat elders have no responsibility for the formal education of young Iñupiat. According to MacLean, Western education and Iñupiat qargi need not be competitive institutions but should complement each other.[MacLean, Edna Ahgeak (1986)]
The Revitalization of the Qargi, the Traditional Community House, as an Educational Unit of the Inupiat Community
/ref>
Before 1950, formal education for students in Chevak, Alaska took place in the qaygiq, and in the homes of the people. The information taught to students in the qaygiq included history, values, rules, regulations, and survival methods.Alaskool: Guidebook for Integrating Cup'ik Culture and Curriculum
/ref>
See also
* Bladder Festival The Bladder Festival or Bladder Feast (''Nakaciuq'' "something done with bladders" or ''Nakaciuryaraq'' "the process of doing something with bladders" in Yup'ik), is an important annual seal hunting harvest renewal ceremony and celebration held each ...
References
External links
Alaska Native Heritage Center
*http://vilda.alaska.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/cdmg21/id/844/rec/3
{{Native american styles
Yupik culture
House types
Inuit culture
Buildings and structures in North America
Traditional Native American dwellings
Semi-subterranean structures