Alaska Native Language Archive

Resource Details

Identifier:

G975BGL2001

Title

Pre-Contact Salmon Fishing, Kenai River, Alaska

Description:

Pre-Contact Salmon Fishing, Kenai River, Alaska

ABSTRACT:

"Summer, 2000 excavations at the Riverine Kachemak tradition site of KEN-147 indicate the primary method of fishing involved utilizing drift nets in the main body of the Kenai River targeting red (sockeye) salmon. Site locations and river hydrology of other Riverine Kachemak sites on the Kenai and Kasilof Rivers also suggest drift net fishing. Ethnographically, this method of fishing seems closest to that employed by Middle Kuskokwim Yup'iks and analogies are drawn to that area and time period. Drift net fishing contrasts with the subsequent Dena'ina weir style fishing in tributary streams involving an organization of labor and distribution of resources through a corporate kin structure targeting early-run king (chinook) and late-run silver (cohoe) salmon. This shift represents a cultural evolution toward a more energy intensive and culturally complex system coinciding with Medieval Warm Period climatic changes."

Citation

Alan Boraas, Joey Girves, and Rebecca Lambourn

Kenai Peninsula College

Paper presented at the March, 2001

Alaska Anthropology Association Conference,

Fairbanks, Alaska

Contributors

Boraas, Alan (author)
Girves, Joey (author)
Lambourn, Rebecca (author)

Date

2001-03-00

Type

Text

Format

application/pdf

Subject Language(s)

Dena'ina

LingType

ethnohistory
text-traditional

Collection

General

Files:

G975BGL2001.PDF

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