#aleut

Making Plans

Aleut girl, Qagan Tayagungin, Aleutian Islands, Alaska

I was thinking about this because it seems to be a growing trend among students to just bring blankets to wear to school when it’s cold*. And while there’s some cultural wear that uses skirts, kilts, robes and such as outerwear for cold weather outfits, a lot of it is fitted. Yes, keeping warm via trapped air is helpful but so is movement that doesn’t require you walking in a certain way so you don’t open a hole to the cold air. I’m especially thinking of Inuit peoples, where it seems that pants have always been a thing.

*im not sure if it’s a fashion choice or if it’s like. Their parents can’t/won’t buy them fitted warm articles of clothing and so blankets are one size fits all and can be layered etc. 

Now, I do know that the Yahgan people** historically just wore robes or went nude while covered in fats to stay warm. Going by Ushuaia’s coordinates (port town of the southern tip of South America, aka Tierra del Fuego) they were about as far south as Unalaska of the Aleutian Alaskan Islands is North. So not the coldest place you could go south, but still pretty damn cold and windy. And the Unangax̂ (Aleut) peoples wore fitted clothing.

**The Southernmost Indigenous people in the world. Prior to sub-Antarctic colonization by Europeans, no one had lived any further south. By the way, there’s another group with a similar name so I mean those who live in Argentina and Chile

I imagine access to plant textiles vs. skins affects these things, as well as wind - I think animal materials were historically better at keeping wet and wind out when you don’t have wax or other such treatments ? - but yeah.

TLDR: Generally cold weather cultures seem to have fitted clothes, but is that an accurate assessment of the majority?

Aang, Unangax̂ akuqing! (Yes, I am Unangax̂/Aleut)

Overcoat

Unangax̂ (Aleut) of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska

c.1820

Peabody Essex Museum (Object Number: E3662)

from the deep #24047: raven serigraph by Allie High at Stonington Gallery

Like, I was never told any of these, or any other 1s. It just feels nice, and bittersweet and such.

[Image ID: the cover of a book illustrated in monochrome brown and off white. It shows a raven cawing with its claws holding a small tree branch. Behind the tree there is a totem pole. The book is titled "The Raven and the Totem; Traditional Alaska Native Myths and Tales" the credits read "Collected and edited by John E. Smelcer" and "illustrated by Larry Vienneau and Susie Bevins"/.End ID]