kk asked:
I am the yearbook advisor for an elementary school. My principal has chosen the Inukshuk as our theme for next year. I’m going to be taking a trip to Seattle, then a cruise to Alaska. My time is limited in Vancouver and won’t be able to see that one. Does anyone know of another?
on Sep 10th, 2008 at 6:36 am
Inukshuk
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Inuksuit at the Foxe Peninsula (Baffin Island)
Inuksuit at the Foxe Peninsula (Baffin Island)
An inuksuk (plural inuksuit) [1] (from the Inuktitut: ?????, plural ??????; alternatively inukshuk in English[2] or inukhuk in Inuinnaqtun[3]) is a man-made stone landmark or cairn, used by the Inuit, Inupiat, Kalaallit, Yupik, and other peoples of the Arctic region of North America, from Alaska to Greenland. This region, above the Arctic Circle, is dominated by the tundra biome, containing areas with few natural landmarks.
The inuksuk may have been used for navigation, as a point of reference, a marker for hunting grounds, or as a food cache.[4] The Inupiat in northern Alaska used inuksuit to assist in the herding of caribou into contained areas for slaughter.[5] Inuksuit vary in shape and size, with deep roots in the Inuit culture.
Historically the most common type of inuksuit are a single stone positioned in an upright manner.[6] An inuksuk is often confused with an inunnguaq, a cairn representing a human figure. And there is some debate that the appearance of human or cross shaped cairns didn’t develop in the Inuit culture until the arrival of European missionaries and explorers.[6]
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on Sep 11th, 2008 at 3:38 am
They are all over Vancouver right now, the inukshuk is the official symbol for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. There are a couple within walking distance of the Canada Place cruise ship terminal. Careful, though - the Olympic Organizing Committee might take you to court for using “their” symbol, they have already shut down several “Olympic” and “Olympia” businesses, even the ones that existed before the BC Olympics were announced.