Iñupiat

The Iñupiat (or Inupiat, Iñupiaq or Inupiaq) are a group of indigenous Alaskans whose traditional territory roughly spans northeast from Norton Sound on the Bering Sea to the northernmost part of the Canada–United States border. Their current communities include 34 villages across Iñupiat Nunaat (Iñupiaq lands), including seven Alaskan villages in the North Slope Borough, affiliated with the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation; eleven villages in Northwest Arctic Borough; and sixteen villages affiliated with the Bering Straits Regional Corporation. They often claim to be the first people of the Kauwerak. Iñupiat (iɲupiɐt) is the plural form of the name for the people. The singular form is Iñupiaq (iɲupiɑq), which also sometimes refers to the language. Iñupiak (iɲupiɐk) is the dual form. The roots are iñuk "person" and -piaq "real", i.e., an endonym meaning "real people". The Iñupiat people are made up of the following communities Bering Strait Inupiat (Sivunmiut) South Seward Peninsula Inupiat (Qawiaraq Inupiat) Nunamiut Northwest Arctic Iñupiat (Malimiut) North Alaska Coast Inupiat (Taġiuġmiut, people of the sea, or Siḷaliñiġmiut) In 1971, the Alaskan Native Claims Settlement Act established thirteen Alaskan Native Regional Corporations. The purpose of the regional corporations were to create institutions in which Native Alaskans would generate venues to provide services for its members, who were incorporated as "shareholders". Alaskan Native Regional Corporations pose many challenges as participation in extractive capitalism is often in conflict with Native Alaskans subsistence lifestyles that require the health of the ecosystems. Three regional corporations are located in the lands of the Iñupiat. These are the following. Arctic Slope Regional Corporation Bering Straits Native Corporation NANA Regional Corporation. Prior to colonization, the Iñupiat exercised sovereignty based on complex social structures and order. Despite the transfer of land from Russia to the U.S.