Eskimo Hunters in Alaska - The Traditional Inuit Way of Life 1949 Documentary on Native Americans |
The Eskimo are the indigenous peoples who have traditionally inhabited the northern circumpolar region from eastern Siberia (Russia), across Alaska (United States), Canada, and Greenland.
The two main peoples known as "Eskimo" are: (1) the Alaskan Inupiat peoples, Greenlandic Inuit, and the mass-grouping Inuit peoples of Canada; (2) and the Yupik of eastern Siberia and Alaska. The Yupik comprise speakers of four distinct Yupik languages: one used in the Russian Far East and the others among people of Western Alaska, Southcentral Alaska and along the Gulf of Alaska coast. A third northern group, the Aleut, is closely related to the Eskimo. They share a relatively recent common ancestor, and a language group (Eskimo-Aleut).
Since the late 20th century, numerous Canadian indigenous people have viewed the use of the term "Eskimo" as offensive, because it is extrinsic and has been used by people who discriminated against them or their forebears. In its linguistic origins, the word Eskimo comes from Innu-aimun (Montagnais) 'ayas̆kimew' meaning "a person who laces a snowshoe" and is related to "husky", so does not have a direct pejorative meaning. In Canada and Greenland, the term "Eskimo" is seen as pejorative and has been widely replaced by the term "Inuit" or terms specific to a particular nation or community. This has resulted in a trend whereby some Canadians and Americans believe that they should not use the word "Eskimo" and use the Canadian word "Inuit" instead, even for Yup'ik speakers. The Canadian Constitution Act of 1982, sections 25 and 35 recognized the Inuit as a distinctive group of aboriginal peoples in Canada.