Birket-Smith, Kaj, 1893-1977. The Eyak Indians of the Copper River Delta, Alaska

Publication Information The main body of the Publication Information page contains all the metadata that HRAF holds for that document.

Author: Author's name as listed in Library of Congress records Birket-Smith, Kaj, 1893-1977 De Laguna, Frederica, 1906-2004

Title: The Eyak Indians of the Copper River Delta, Alaska

Published By: Original publisher København: Levin & Munksgaard, E. Munksgaard. 1938. 592 p. ill., maps

By line: Author's name as appearing in the actual publication by Kaj Birket-Smith and Frederica De Laguna

HRAF Publication Information: New Haven, Conn.: Human Relations Area Files, 2020. Computer File

Culture: Culture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC) with the alphanumberic OWC identifier in parenthesis. Eyak (NA07)

Subjects: Document-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF Historical reconstruction (174); Identification (101); Location (131); Community structure (621); Inter-community relations (628); Inter-ethnic relations (629); Linguistic identification (197); Moieties (616); Organized ceremonial (796); Gift giving (431); Comparative evidence (171); Mythology (773); Boats (501); Water transport (505); Hunting and trapping (224); Fishing (226); Topography and geology (133); Dwellings (342); Building interiors and arrangement (353); Acculturation and culture contact (177);

Abstract: Brief 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.

Document Number: HRAF's in-house numbering system derived from the processing order of documents 1

Document ID: HRAF's unique document identifier. The first part is the OWC identifier and the second part is the document number in three digits. na07-001

Document Type: May include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs or chapters/parts of monographs. Monograph

Language: Language that the document is written in English

Note: 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)

Field Date: The date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document 1930, 1933, 1935

Evaluation: In this alphanumeric code, the first part designates the type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigene, and so on. The second part is 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 Anthropologist, Archaeologist/Ethnologist - 4, 5

Analyst: The HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection. Teferi Abate Adem

Coverage Date: The date or dates that the information in the document pertains to (often not the same as the field date). 1883-1935

Coverage Place: Location 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

LCSH: Library of Congress Subject Headings Eyak Indians//Indians of North America--Alaska//Copper River Region (Alaska)