Angakut The main ritual specialist in Inuit religion is termed the
angakoq (plural
angakut). These terms exist in slightly different forms across the various Inuit dialects, although their
etymology is unclear. Certain regions also had other terms for these specialists, usually those which highlighted the importance of the
angakoq's helping spirit. The Chugach for instance used the term
kalalik, meaning a "possessor of a
kalaq or
kalagaq" helping spirit. Various Bering Sea Inuit referred to the
tunghak,
tunghalik, or
tunralik, meaning "one who is furnished with a helping spirit". Europeans devised their own terms for the
angakoq. In Danish, which became dominant in Greenland, the
angakoq was called an
åndemaner (spirit-invoker). Various English-language sources refer to them as "
shamans"; introduced to English from the
Tungusic languages at the end of the 17th century, the term "shamanism" has never received a commonly agreed definition and has been used in at least four distinct ways. An alternative English-language term is "medicine men", although has attracted criticism. Both men and women have become
angakut, although most have been male. On
Saint Lawrence Island, Inuit communities were recorded as maintaining that "transvestite homosexuals" made the best
angakuq. Transvestite
angakuq have not been historically documented among other Inuit communities, however Merkur noted that legends of both male and female homosexual
angakut across central and eastern Inuit groups suggests that "ritual transvestitism" was once widespread. In recorded history, the
angakut were typically married, and throughout many Inuit societies, male
angakut had the prerogative of demanding sex with other men's wives. The
angakut were historically important for their community's social life, its health, and its prosperity. Accordingly, Jakobsen noted that they could exert "a huge influence on their society". Reflecting an ambiguous relationship, Inuit typically respected
angakut, but also feared them; these specialists were deemed capable of using their spirits to harm as well as to heal, and efforts to help one family might bring misfortune to another. The
angakut were also often attributed with the ability to steal all or part of a person's soul.
Angakut spirits, powers, and tasks Angakut possess helper spirits, entities often residing in dolls or figurines that the
angakut create for that purpose. It was the command of these spirits that distinguished
angakut from other individuals in Inuit society. A trained
angakoq was expected to control their spirits, often using certain words, spells, or songs known only to the
angakut. In Eastern Greenland, these serving spirits were called
tartoks. In this region, various spirit types were recorded. These included the
tarajuatsiaks, shadow forms with pointed bald heads that could make the wind blow or steal and/or retrieve souls; the
timerseks, who live inland and were also useful in stealing souls; and the
inersuaks, spirits of the sea who could assist in attracting marine animals to the shore. Historical records also indicate that many
angakut had an
amortok as a helper spirit; this was a being with black arms that could bring news and answer questions. It was dangerous and those who touched it were reputed to turn black and die. Inuit lore traditionally attributed special powers to the
angakut, including an ability to fly, and to display
silanigtalersarput, an enhanced vision allowing them to see in the darkness and through clothing and flesh. Their ability to withstand physical dangers, such as harmful spirits, was also taken as evidence of their power. The
angakut's central function was healing. At other times, they were tasked with curing female infertility, locating lost objects, or attracting game animals. Elsewhere, they were asked to predict future events like the weather or the outcome of a hunt, or to determine if a traveller faced problems on a road ahead, and if so, to remove those obstacles. In payment for their efforts,
angakut were traditionally given meat or other goods, things which would supplement a primary income from their existing livelihood.
Angakut séances , an Inuit
angakoq from Greenland The particular practices of
angakut could be highly individualised, with Merkur noting that no two seances were "ever quite the same". Patients will often approach the
angakoq, who will then seek to determine the cause of their illness using divination. The most common divinatory method employed is
qilaneq ('head-lifting'). Most illnesses will subsequently be diagnosed as soul-loss caused by spirits, indwellers of nature, or witchcraft. The
angakoq will commonly respond with a séance in which they send their helping spirit out to find the lost soul, or, if the
angakoq is more experienced, to go on their own "spirit journey" to retrieve it. An
angakoq will often verbally ask their helping spirit a question, for instance the cause of a patient's illness, and then receive a visual image in their mind that provides them with an answer. In many cases, an
angakoq will attribute a patient's illness to their breach of a taboo that has offended the spirits; often, given the small, close-knit nature of Inuit communities, the
angakoq will already have been aware of any broken taboos due to community gossip.
Angakut often made, or directed the manufacture, of their ritual paraphernalia. During rituals, they have often been naked or naked above the waist; alternatively they may wear a gutskin raincoat. If undertaking a spirit-journey, a common practice among many
angakut was to cover their face.
Angakut rites typically involved inducing a trance state as part of a séance engaging with the spirits. These have most commonly taken place at night, inside huts with the lights turned out, but sometimes have occurred outdoors during daylight hours. Merkur termed these techniques a "platform séance". In many cases, the
angakoq secreted themselves on a sleeping platform at the back of their hut, behind a curtain of skins, to perform their ceremony. The arrival of spirits at the séance may be signalled by sounds of growling and scraping. Some
angakut produced noises during the séance, which other attendees would then interpret. There are also accounts of
angakut performing the
shaking tent rite found among many North American Native communities. Inuit variants of this ritual often feature the
angakoq being bound hand and foot, or sometimes with their neck to their knees, using cords. Sometimes, at the end of the rite, they are found to still be bound in the same manner, or alternatively to be free of all bondage. In East Greenland, those
angakoq who performed these bound seances were called
qimarraterssortugssat, and among them it was often considered the greatest of the
angakoq feats. Inuit observers often recognised that
angakut employed
ventriloquism and sleights of hand during their séances and other rites, but believe that there remains spiritual importance to this. These sleights of hand were sometimes aided by assistants. To demonstrate that they have been in combat with spirits, the
angakoq sometimes presented their torn clothes, or evidence that their hands or weapons had been reddened with blood, to the audience. They might also present apparent wounds indicating that they have been stabbed, with these wounds evidently healing without trace.
Angakut spirit journeys The ability to journey to other realms in spirit form was deemed an exceptional feat and only
angakut of considerable ability are thought capable of achieving it. When the
angakoq travels to the spirit world, the audience around them may sing to encourage them on their way. In various cases, Inuit belief maintained that there were dangers facing the traveling
angakoq. West Greenlandic legends outlined how these soul-travelers were repeatedly almost captured by the dangerous spirit Amarsiniook. For instance,
angakut may respond to bad weather by spirit-journeying, or sending their helper spirit, to the indweller of the winds, blizzard, or rain; there are accounts of
angakut traveling to Narsuk to stop the storms. Sometimes,
angakut have also pursued spirit-journeys for their own curiosity, for instance to visit the Moon Man or the abode of the dead.
Becoming an angakoq angakoq, dressed in ritual mask, at Nushagak, Alaska, c.1890 Becoming an
angakoq typically required an innate aptitude, one which was deemed to often be reflected in a dream. Inuit rarely hold to the idea of sick people subsequently becoming
angakut – in this they differ from Siberian ethnic groups, who often believed that ill individuals became ritual specialists. There are various accounts of people becoming an
angakoq on their own initiative, for instance as a response to some frustration or humiliation. Although there are no records of ethnographers observing an
angakoq initiation, various accounts of such a process have been provided by
angakoq and other Inuit. Initiation to become an
angakoq is a secretive process, about which comparatively little is known by outsiders. An aspiring
angakoq was usually expected to train with an existing practitioner. Children would typically be taken on as apprentices, although sometimes adults were too. In Northeast Asia and Alaska,
angakut often selected their own child, grandchild, or nephew as an apprentice. More broadly, and especially in Eastern Greenland, it was common for
angakut to choose an orphan. If the apprentice was not a close relation of their teacher, it was common for the former to make a payment of furs or other goods. The new apprentice was often prohibited from telling others about their training, was expected to adopt a specific diet, and was made to follow certain taboos. The length of an apprenticeship varied. In Greenland, it often took around ten years, while among the Caribou this instruction could be accompanied over a single winter. Among various Inuit groups, the apprentice had to acquire a metaphorical "inner light". Unlike other communities, the Iglulik explicitly linked this acquisition of the inner light to the Moon Man. The inner light was obtained before acquiring any helper spirits. During their training, an apprentice was expected to learn special terminologies to communicate with the spirits. To become skilled, a trainee was expected to then gather as many
tartoks as possible. In the early stages of training, an
angakoq exposes themselves to spirit possession with no control over the spirits. A recurring notion in these initiatory experiences was an encounter with a bear spirit, something that challenged the apprentice's strength and their ability to endure hardship. If an
angakoq, having completed their apprenticeship, failed to alert their community of their new status then it was sometimes believed that they would become an
ilisiitsoq. Initiation required going to remote areas to seek out a spirit encounter. In a case from eastern Greenland recorded in the late 19th century, an apprentice traveled to a cleft or cave to rub a stone upon another stone in the direction of the sun for three days, at which point their first spirit was believed to appear. Another account, recorded by Rasmussen, involved an apprentice going to a lonely place and calling out for three days, each time hearing his echo. At the end of that period, another voice was reputed to be heard, which would be that of the apprentice's helping spirit.
Divination A widely used divinatory practice among Inuit is
qilaneq. This involves a sick person lying prone, with their face up; beneath their head will be fastened either the diviner's waistbelt or a line attached to a ceremonial stick. The diviner will then seek to move the patient's head up and down through the affixed fabric, asking questions while doing so. When the head is deemed to become heavy, particularly so heavy that it cannot be moved, then that is interpreted as an affirmative answer to a question. It is believed that the disease-causing spirit is the entity ultimately answering the questions the diviner is putting to it.
Qilaneq may practiced by
angakut but also by other individuals, for unlike the practices of an
angakoq is does not require the involvement of a helping spirit. These sorts of divination using weight oracles is also found among various Siberian societies and the
Sámi people. Inuit society also contains various individuals deemed
clairvoyant, and thus capable of seeing spirits, but these differ from angakut in not engaging in seances. They may nevertheless offer services for diagnosing illnesses, finding lost property, and prophesying. Among the Netsilik Inuit, for example, an individual called an
angarkungaruk does not perform seances but is thought capable of seeing a disease-causing spirit and thus diagnosing a person's illness. The
nerfalassok is a type of clairvoyant responsible for locating missing objects and diagnosing illness among the Inuit of Western Greenland.
Feasts and celebrations , 1900 In Alaska, the influence of neighboring indigenous communities has resulted in the extensive development of Inuit festivals.
Angakut have often been involved in feasts connected with the start and end of the hunting season. The Yupik bladder festival involves a feast to which is brought the bladders of seals, walruses, and caribou killed that year. After the feast, the bladders are placed back into the sea to ensure that these species will offer themselves up as prey for the following year.
Amulets Inuit have historically often employed
amulets, the efficacy of which is attributed to its corresponding spirit. Amulets may be constructed by
angakuq but also by lay Inuit too. Unlike the Iglulik Inuit, the Netsilik used a large number of amulets. Even dogs could have amulets. In one recorded instance, a young boy had 80 amulets, so many that he could hardly play. One particular man had 17 names taken from his ancestors and intended to protect him.
Cursing An
angakoq might create an entity called a
tupilaq that had the function of killing a person. To create this, an
angakoq would craft an object using hair, grass, or moss, before ritually bringing it to life. Merkur described these beings as "witchcraft automatons". In Inuit belief, an
angakoq was often thought capable of determining if a person was a witch. Due to a belief that witches were bloodless, accused witches might be stabbed to see if they bleed from the wound. If executed, the body of the witch would be carried onto a mountain and cut to pieces. ==History==