Book
The Eyak Indians of the Copper River Delta, Alaska
Levin & Munksgaard, E. Munksgaard • København • Published In 1938 • Pages:
By: Birket-Smith, Kaj, De Laguna, Frederica.
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This book draws on rich archeological data and oral information to reconstruct the history and culture of the Eyak. Topics examined include the territorial scope of their historical homeland, the specific locations of some of the major villages mentioned in the stories of informants, and a comparative analysis of house types, burial sites, hunting tools, and related material culture. Also discussed are the Eyak peoples’ historical relationship to neighboring groups, with particular focus on the regionally-dominant Tlingit and other “Eskimo” communities. The authors analyze features of Eyak mythology and social organization that reflect ethnic and linguistic ties to the Tlingit and other non-Athapaskan groups; for example, how the division of Eyak society into two moieties indicates Tlingit influence. A considerable portion of the text is devoted to a wide-ranging comparison traits, mainly showing ties to Northwest Coast cultures.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Life history materials
- Comparative evidence
- Acculturation and culture contact
- Hunting and trapping
- Paraphernalia
- Dwellings
- Building interiors and arrangement
- Weapons
- Utensils
- Gift giving
- Family relationships
- Inter-ethnic relations
- Shamans and psychotherapists
- Mythology
- Organized ceremonial
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Eyak
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- North America
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Arctic and Subarctic
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- Book
- Evaluation
- Creator TypesThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Historian
- Us Government Official
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- Teferi Abate Adem ; 2017
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- 1930, 1933, 1935
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 1883-1935
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Cordova and Copper River delta area, Valdez-Cordova Census Area, Alaska, United States
- NotesAdditional notes
- by Kaj Birket-Smith and Frederica De Laguna
- At head of title: Det Kgl. danske videnskabernes selskab. "Published with the support of the grants from the Rask-Ørsted Foundation and the Penrose Fund of the American Philosophical Society."
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 573-591)
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- a 40000353
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Eyak Indians
- Indians of North America--Alaska
- Copper River Region (Alaska)