Sadlermiut

Last updated
Sadlermiut
Sadlermiut whaling.jpg
A Sadlermiut man paddling on an inflated walrus skin, 1830 [1]
Regions with significant populations
Canada
Languages
Undetermined
Religion
Possibly shamanism
Related ethnic groups
Dorset culture, other Inuit, Aleuts, Yupiks

The Sadlermiut (also called Sagdlirmiut, [2] [3] or Sallirmiut in modern Inuktitut spelling, from Sadlerk [4] now Salliq, the Inuktitut name for the settlement of Coral Harbour, Nunavut) were an Inuit group living in near isolation mainly on and around Coats Island, Walrus Island, and Southampton Island in Hudson Bay. [5] They survived into the early 20th century and were thought by some to have been the last remnants of the Dorset culture [4] as they had preserved a culture and dialect distinct from the mainland Inuit. Despite their culture and local traditions seeming to show combined elements of both the Dorset and Thule societies, [6] genetic studies show no Dorset admixture and prove a sole Inuit ancestry leading many to conclude the cultural difference may be entirely due to their isolation from the mainland Inuit. [7] Research published in 2015 found that the Sadlermiut were genetically Thule who had somehow acquired Dorset cultural features, such as stone technology. It remains a mystery how they acquired Dorset technology in the absence of obvious genetic admixture such as through intermarrying. [8]

Contents

Map of territory historically inhabited by the Sadlermiut and major archeological sites associated with Sadlermiut habitation Sadlermiut map.svg
Map of territory historically inhabited by the Sadlermiut and major archeological sites associated with Sadlermiut habitation

History

In 1824, HMS Griper, under Captain George Francis Lyon, anchored off Cape Pembroke on Coats Island in Hudson Bay. The whalers then encountered a band of Inuit who were said to have spoken a "strange dialect" and were called Sadlermiut. [9]

The Sadlermiut continued to establish contact with Westerners. However, as with many Indigenous North American groups, the Sadlermiut were often susceptible to Western diseases. By 1896, there were only 70 of them remaining. Then, in the fall of 1902, a British trading/whaling [10] vessel named the Active had made a stop at Cape Low, [11] Southampton Island. It is said that some of the Sadlermiut caught a disease, possibly an influenza, [12] typhoid, or typhus, from a sick sailor aboard the Active, which then spread to the entire community. [6] [9] By the winter 1902–03, the entire Sadlermiut population except for a woman and four children had died. [5] [10]

In 1954 and 1955, Henry B. Collins of the Smithsonian Institution studied Inuit house ruins in the Canadian Arctic. [13] He determined that the ruins found at Native Point were characteristic of Sadlermiut culture which had once been quite extensive. He also found evidence that the Sadlermiut were the last remnants of the Dorset culture. [11]

Origins

The Sadlermiut are most often cited for having maintained a unique culture and dialect apart from other Inuit, similar to the Unangam (Aleut), which is principally the result of an adaptation to environmental and historical constraints, [14] whereas they show a closer genetic profile to paleo-Eskimo groups than neo-Eskimo groups. [15] Because of this, various theories have been established to try to explain the Sadlermiut's cultural differences. One of these has tried to establish a clear link between the Sadlermiut as direct descendants of the Dorset culture. Another theory explains that rather than being related to the Dorset, the Sadlermiut were in fact descendants of the Thule, whose geographically isolated culture would have developed idiosyncratically from the mainland Thule culture. A third theory indicates that the Sadlermiut did not necessarily belong to either group, but because of intermarriage, their roots may have in fact been part of both Dorset and Thule cultures. [5] [14]

In the 21st century, human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) research [16] on skeletal remains has seemed to show a genetic relationship between the Sadlermiut and various other related ethnic groups. An incorrect association led many to conclude the Sadlermiut were of Dorset and Thule ancestry due to apparent haplogroups A (46%) and D (54%) found in skeletal remains, attributed to the Thule (A 100%) and Dorset (D 100%) cultures respectively. [17] This evidence, along with statistical differences, led to the errant belief that the Sadlermiut would have been remnants of the Dorset culture, with more recent gene flow from the Thule, [18] providing further evidence for a cultural displacement between the two groups approximately one thousand years ago. [17] [19] Similarly, the same percentage of the presence of both haplogroup A and D was discovered among paleo-Aleut skeletal remains, while it also discovered A 27% and D 73% among the "Neo-Aleut" population. [17] This inconsistency may be attributed to the fact that a population displacement did not occur within the Aleutian Islands between the Dorset and Thule transition, [19] meaning that the Sadlermiut may have not in fact been the very last remnants of the Dorset culture.

Further studies show there is no genetic evidence to show a direct Dorset ancestry, but there is evidence to show both cultures may have shared an earlier common Siberian ancestry. [20] [21]

Lifestyle

The Sadlermiut were a hunter-gatherer people whose subsistence relied primarily on fishing and caribou hunting, although they also hunted seals, polar bears, and walruses. [22] Unlike the mainland Inuit, the Sadlermiut were reported to show very little interest in hunting whales and trapping and were thus of little use to traders who frequented Coral Harbour. [5] [23] In addition, the Sadlermiut often kept a "vigilant distance" between themselves and the traders, the explorers and the Aivilingmiut. [24] This may be in part due to historical confrontations with the Aivilingmiut who sought Southampton Island for its prosperous whaling potential, and the Dene peoples who moved northwards during the summer in pursuit of caribou. [23]

Language

The Sadlermiut language is unknown, but appears to have been significantly different from that of their mainland neighbours. [25] The neighbouring Inuit reported that they used "baby talk", but it is not clear if this means they spoke a distinct variety of Inuit language, or that they used pidgin Inuktitut as a contact language. [26]

Extinction

By the second half of 19th century, the Sadlermiut population numbered above 200. But then the contact with outsiders increased and various diseases caused a steep decline in population. The ethnic group was wiped out in 1902–03, as a result of a pandemic that spread among the community from the whaling ship Active. Out of the total population of 58, there were only 5 survivors (one adult woman and 4 children). The survivors were then evacuated to Naujaat. Out of this group of survivors, only two children were alive by 1908, and they had no memory of Sadlermiut traditions. [27]

Genetics

A genetic study published in Science in August 2014 examined the remains of 10 Sadlermiut buried between c. 1500 AD and 1900 AD. The 8 samples of mtDNA extracted were determined to belong to haplogroup A2b (7 samples) and D3a2a. [28] The haplogroups are characteristic of the Thule people and Inuit, suggesting that the Sadlermiut were derived from the Thule people. [29] It was found that the Thule people were further derived from the Birnirk culture of Siberia, from where they had migrated into North America and completely replaced the Dorset people around 1300 AD. [30] [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eskimo</span> Exonym used to describe Indigenous people from the circumpolar region

Eskimo is an exonym that refers to two closely related Indigenous peoples: Inuit and the Yupik of eastern Siberia and Alaska. A related third group, the Aleut, who inhabit the Aleutian Islands, are generally excluded from the definition of Eskimo. The three groups share a relatively recent common ancestor, and speak related languages belonging to the family of Eskaleut languages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inuit languages</span> Branch of the Eskaleut language family

The Inuit languages are a closely related group of indigenous American languages traditionally spoken across the North American Arctic and the adjacent subarctic regions as far south as Labrador. The Inuit languages are one of the two branches of the Eskimoan language family, the other being the Yupik languages, which are spoken in Alaska and the Russian Far East. Most Inuit people live in one of three countries: Greenland, a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark; Canada, specifically in Nunavut, the Inuvialuit Settlement Region of the Northwest Territories, the Nunavik region of Quebec, and the Nunatsiavut and NunatuKavut regions of Labrador; and the United States, specifically in northern and western Alaska.

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 of the earlier Dorset culture that had previously inhabited the region. The appellation "Thule" originates from the location of Thule in northwest Greenland, facing Canada, where the archaeological remains of the people were first found at Comer's Midden.

The Paleo-Eskimo were the peoples who inhabited the Arctic region from Chukotka in present-day Russia across North America to Greenland prior to the arrival of the modern Inuit (Eskimo) and related cultures. The first known Paleo-Eskimo cultures developed by 2500 BCE, but were gradually displaced in most of the region, with the last one, the Dorset culture, disappearing around 1500 CE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dorset culture</span> Paleo-Eskimo culture (500 BCE–1500 CE) that preceded the Inuit in the Arctic of North America

The Dorset was a Paleo-Eskimo culture, lasting from 500 BCE to between 1000 CE and 1500 CE, that followed the Pre-Dorset and preceded the Thule people (proto-Inuit) in the North American Arctic. The culture and people are named after Cape Dorset 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 lamps made of soapstone, and burins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southampton Island</span> Island in north Hudson Bay in Nunavut, Canada

Southampton Island 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 the island is stated as 41,214 km2 (15,913 sq mi) by Statistics Canada. It is the 34th largest island in the world and Canada's ninth largest island. The only settlement on Southampton Island is Coral Harbour, called Salliq in Inuktitut.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saqqaq culture</span> Ancient people of Southern Greenland

The Saqqaq culture was a Paleo-Eskimo culture in southern Greenland. Up to this day, no other people seem to have lived in Greenland continually for as long as the Saqqaq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birnirk culture</span>

The Birnirk culture was a prehistoric Inuit culture of the north coast of Alaska, dating from the sixth century A.D. to the twelfth century A.D. The Birnirk culture first appeared on the American side of the Bering Strait, descending from the Old Bering Sea/Okvik culture and preceding the Thule culture; it is distinguished by its advanced harpoon and marine technology. A burial mound of the Birnirk culture was discovered in the town of Wales, Alaska; 16 more have been found in Utqiagvik at the "Birnirk site," which is now a National Historic Landmark. An ancient Birnirk village has been found at present-day Ukpiaġvik.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coats Island</span> Island in Nunavut, Canada

Coats Island lies at the northern end of Hudson Bay in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut. At 5,498 km2 (2,123 sq mi) in size, it is the 107th largest island in the world, and Canada's 24th largest island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coral Harbour</span> Hamlet in Nunavut, Canada

Coral Harbour is a small Inuit community that is located on Southampton Island, Kivalliq Region, in the Canadian territory of Nunavut. Its name is derived from the fossilized coral that can be found around the waters of the community which is situated at the head of South Bay. The name of the settlement in Inuktitut is Salliq, sometimes used to refer to all of Southampton Island. The plural Salliit, means large flat island(s) in front of the mainland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Nunavut</span>

The history of Nunavut covers the period from the arrival of the Paleo-Eskimo thousands of years ago to present day. Prior to the colonization of the continent by Europeans, the lands encompassing present-day Nunavut were inhabited by several historical cultural groups, including the Pre-Dorset, the Dorsets, the Thule and their descendants, the Inuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inughuit</span> Greenlandic Inuit

The Inughuit, or the Smith Sound Inuit, historically Arctic Highlanders or Polar Eskimos, are Greenlandic Inuit. They are the northernmost group of Inuit and the northernmost people in North America, living in Greenland. Inughuit make up about 1% of the population of Greenland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Circumpolar peoples</span> Term for Indigenous peoples of the Arctic

Circumpolar peoples and Arctic peoples are umbrella terms for the various indigenous peoples of the Arctic region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inuit</span> Indigenous peoples of northern North America

Inuit are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of North America, including Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, Yukon (traditionally), Alaska, and Chukotsky District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia. Inuit languages are part of the Eskimo–Aleut languages, also known as Inuit-Yupik-Unangan, and also as Eskaleut. Inuit Sign Language is a critically endangered language isolate used in Nunavut.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inuit culture</span> Culture of the Inuit in the Arctic and Subarctic region

The Inuit are an indigenous people of the Arctic and subarctic regions of North America. The ancestors of the present-day Inuit are culturally related to Iñupiat, and Yupik, and the Aleut who live in the Aleutian Islands of Siberia and Alaska. The term culture of the Inuit, therefore, refers primarily to these areas; however, parallels to other Eskimo groups can also be drawn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dorset Island</span> Island in the Arctic Archipelago

Dorset Island or Cape Dorset Island is one of the Canadian Arctic islands located in Hudson Strait, Nunavut, Canada. It lies off the Foxe Peninsula area of southwestern Baffin Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region. It is serviced by an airport and a harbour.

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.

Native Point is a peninsula in the Kivalliq Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is located on Southampton Island's Bell Peninsula at the mouth of Native Bay. It is notable for being the location of an abandoned Sadlermiut settlement, currently an archaeological site.

The following is an alphabetical list of topics related to Indigenous peoples in Canada, comprising the First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenlandic Inuit</span> Ethnic group indigenous to Greenland

The Greenlandic Inuit are the indigenous and most populous ethnic group in Greenland. Most speak Greenlandic and consider themselves ethnically Greenlandic. People of Greenland are citizens of Denmark.

References

  1. ↑ Bumsted, J.M (2007). A History of the Canadian Peoples (3 ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 6. ISBN   978-0-19-542349-5.
  2. ↑ Aleš Hrdlička (1910). Contribution to the Anthropology of Central and Smith Sound Eskimo. The Trustees. p. 181.
  3. ↑ Dalby, David (1994–2006). "Zone [60] Inuitic" (PDF). The LinguaSphere Online. Retrieved 2008-04-23.[ permanent dead link ]
  4. 1 2 Petrone, Penny (1988). Northern Voices: Inuit Writing in English. University of Toronto Press. pp. 12–14. ISBN   978-0-8020-7717-2.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Briggs, Jean L.; J. Garth Taylor. "The Canadian Encyclopedia: Sadlermiut Inuit". Historica Foundation of Canada. Archived from the original on 2014-02-26. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  6. 1 2 "The People Arrive". The Free Library. 1999-03-01. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  7. ↑ "No Descendants Are Left From the First Eskimos". Live Science. 2014-08-28. Retrieved 2015-09-21.
  8. ↑ Raghavan, Maanasa; DeGiorgio, Michael; Albrechtsen, Anders; et al. (29 August 2014). "The genetic prehistory of the New World Arctic". Science . 345 (6200). doi: 10.1126/science.1255832 . PMID   25170159. S2CID   353853.
  9. 1 2 "In the bones of the world (Part eight)". Nortext Publishing Corporation (Iqaluit). Nunatsiaq News. 2002-07-26. Archived from the original on May 17, 2019.
  10. 1 2 "Aboriginal 7 - Life in Canada". Library and Archives Canada. Archived from the original on 2012-08-04. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  11. 1 2 Collins, Henry B. (1956). Vanished Mystery Men of Hudson Bay. Vol. CX No. 5. National Geographic Magazine. p. 674.
  12. ↑ Renouf, M.A.P. (Fall 1991). "Museum Notes - Palaeoeskimo in Newfoundland & Labrador". The Rooms. Archived from the original on 2008-04-30. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  13. ↑ American Antiquity. Vol. 23. Society for American Archaeology. 1957. p. 97.
  14. 1 2 "Canadian Arctic historical archaeology in review". Revista de Arqueología Americana. 2004-01-01. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  15. ↑ Lynnerup, Niels; Jørgen Meldgaard; Jan Jakobsen; Martin Appelt; Anders Koch; Bruno Frøhlich (2003). "Human Dorset Remains from Igloolik, Canada" (PDF). Arctic Institute of North America. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  16. ↑ Davidson, Floyd L. (2004-04-26). "Re: Barrow Boy gibberish..." Archived from the original on 2016-01-23. Retrieved 2008-10-13.
  17. 1 2 3 Hayes, M.G. (2001). "Ancestor descendant relationships in North American Arctic prehistory: Ancient DNA evidence from the Aleutian Islands and the Eastern Canadian Arctic" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-03-05. Retrieved 2008-10-13.
  18. ↑ Horvat, G. (2004-03-11). "The Aleuts" . Retrieved 2008-10-13.[ permanent dead link ]
  19. 1 2 "Arctic Studies Center Newsletter" (PDF). National Museum of Natural History . Smithsonian Institution. June 2002. Retrieved 2008-10-13.
  20. ↑ "Ancient tooth DNA sheds light on origins of Arctic peoples". Toronto Star . 2014-08-28. Retrieved 2015-09-21.
  21. 1 2 Orlando, Ludovic (2021). L'ADN fossile, une machine à remonter le temps (in French). Odile Jacob. p. 33. ISBN   978-2-7381-5423-1.
  22. ↑ Harris, John N. (1999–2004). "The Way West: The Blocked Passage" . Retrieved 2008-04-23.
  23. 1 2 "5. Inuit Innovation" (PDF). Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
  24. ↑ Mitchell, Marybelle (1996). From Talking Chiefs to a Native Corporate Elite: The Birth of Class and Nationalism Among Canadian Inuit. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. p. 469. ISBN   978-0-7735-1374-7.
  25. ↑ "Canadian Encyclopedia: Sadlermiut Inuit". Archived from the original on 2012-10-20. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
  26. ↑ Peter Dawson, The Possibility of Contact Between Dorset and Thule Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine
  27. ↑ Temple, Daniel Howard; Stojanowski, Christopher M. (6 December 2018). Hunter-Gatherer Adaptation and Resilience: A Bioarchaeological Perspective. Cambridge University Press. ISBN   9781107187351.
  28. ↑ Raghavan, DeGiorgio & Albrechtsen 2014, Supplementary Materials, p. 110, Table S1.
  29. ↑ Raghavan, DeGiorgio & Albrechtsen 2014, pp. 1, 7–8.
  30. ↑ Raghavan, DeGiorgio & Albrechtsen 2014, pp. 1–2.

Works cited

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