Whaling
Inuit or Eskimo whaling has been going on for
thousands of years and has become an intrical part of their cultural heritage.
They believed that the whale, specifically the Bowhead, was created for them to
hunt for survival, not for sport, and they highly respected them. They used a
number of techniques to capture and kill whales with a limited technology.
Hunting whales has become intertwined with their belief system and is an
important part of their cultural unity.
In the spring in the Arctic, as the ice began to melt and break up, the Inuit hunters would pull their Kayaks (single manned boat) or their Umiaks (large, several manned boat) onto the ice and wait for a whale to surface. This waiting process could take days and sometimes lasted into weeks. When the whale came to the surface the Inuits would quickly launch their boats and begin to pursue the whale. Once they caught up to the whale the lead boat would harpoon it, attached to the harpoon were leather lines hooked onto several seal skin bags inflated with air, to allow the whale to be seen and also to wear it down. Eventually once the whale became exhausted, the other boats would move in and the whale was killed by being repeatedly stabbed with long-handled stone tipped lances. After it had been killed it was towed onto some thick ice and out of the water with seal skin ropes. The whale was then butchered and the meat was taken home as well as the skin, which was considered a delicacy.
Another technique that was used primarily in the capture of smaller Beluga whales was to string nets made out of bearded seal skins to catch whales swimming close to shore. After the whale had been snagged the hunters would move out in their boats and spear it.
These traditional hunting practices still persist in Inuit/Eskimo culture today in some regions. They continue to fight for their right to continue to hunt whales at least once a year, as a ceremonial hunt. However, these whales are considered endangered and therefore, they meet a lot of resistance from environmental and conservation groups. The conservationists were also concerned that many of the whales may be harpooned, but get away and end up dying at sea. The Inuits continue to fight for their cultural tradition and feel it is their right to hunt the whale.
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