WANGKUTA QANRIARAIT NANVARPARMIUT YUGESTUN

Our final month of school was spent at Neqlercurvik – Goose Camp. The students partook in a Yup’ik review and then scavenger hunt, competing for prizes. Since then, the program has focused on each Apprentice taking turns to host “Master-Apprentice” gatherings, aiming for the goal of meeting at least three times per week. One was held at Neqlercurvik, a session on Maniaq, with language on “light the fire,” “poke the stick through the meat,” and “turn the meat quickly so it doesn’t burn.”

Another session was on plucking ducks “meqtarluku augarluki” and anatomy as it was butchered for cooking. And now that fiddleheads and fireweed have emerged, they were the theme of other sessions. We will focus on hosting as many M-A sessions as possible to gain confidence and fluency in Yup’ik before fall when apprentices will help to teach unglu for 15 hours a week. Following are some graphics illustrating what we’ve learned in some of our M-A sessions. Quyana!