Alutiiq Word of the Week

In the Alutiiq world, a common way of naming places is by using terms that describe how they look. Some names refer to geographic features. In Alutiiq, Seven Mile Beach is known as Qut’sinaq, or ‘large beach’. Other names reference a resemblance to something. A small island near Afognak is called Ar'urnaq, meaning 'resembles a whale.’ The Alutiiq word igya’aq is another example. Igya’aq comes from the Alutiiq verb igluni—to swallow and can be used to describe the throat or esophagus. It also means lake outlet—the place where a lake narrows to meet a stream.

The word igya’aq can be applied to any lake outlet, but it is also the name for some specific outlets. The area where Karluk Lake meets Karluk River is known as igya’aq, and Afognak Island’s King Cove is known as Igya’artuliq—or literally “an abundance of lake outlets”. This name refers to the many small lakes and streams found in the woods behind the cove.

Studies of ancestral Alutiiq settlements show that lake outlets were popular places. People built villages at these locations for thousands of years. Outlets were easy to reach, great places to harvest fish, and well situated for interior travel and hunting. About 900 years ago, Alutiiq families began to gather in large numbers in these locales. Houses surrounded by numerous pits suggest that people were harvesting and preserving large quantities of salmon. Some families may have stayed at these inland locations during the early winter, living off late salmon runs and stores of fish.