Alaska 101: Alaska’s Native Culture

Arts, Culture and History | Explore Fairbanks, Alaska — Courtesy Fairbanks Alaska

Alaska Native cultures is high on the list of things to learn about for many of Alaska’s visitors. It’s no wonder with more than 10,000 years of human history! Alaska offers options galore for learning about its traditional lands, languages, & ways of life. You can expect to hear stories that were passed down from Elders & experience the feeling of the heartbeat of drums used during traditional dancing. You can also watch a blanket toss at a whaling celebration, learn all about totem, & their carving techniques also passed down from generations before, & even learn about regional as well as local Alaska Native functional & creative arts, from carving to basket weaving to sewing to silversmithing!

Alaskan Native People Groups

Alaskan Native Cultures — Courtesy Alaskan Natives

Generally, there are five groups of Alaska Native people identified by region:

Iñupiat & St. Lawrence Island Yup’ik in the Arctic
Athabascan in Southcentral and Interior Alaska
Yup’ik & Cup’ik, Unangax̂ in Southwest Alaska
Sugpiaq (Alutiiq) also in Southwest Alaska
Eyak, Haida, Tsimshian, and Tlingit in the Inside Passage

These Native cultures strongly influence the Alaskan way of life, even when it comes to the names of rivers, mountains, & communities on traditional lands and also including art, architecture, and culture in their cities. About 15% of Alaska’s 730,000 residents are Alaska Native, and this is broken into 20 distinct cultures PLUS 300 different dialects!

Many of Alaska’s Native people live in small villages all along the coastline or rivers of Alaska, where they still practice a traditional subsistence hunting and fishing life. In all 5 of the regions Alaska and in communities of all sizes, the Alaskan culture and history are shaped by Alaska Native language, artwork, storytelling, ceremonies, and customs.