The Alaskan Athabascans, Alaskan Athapascans or Dena (Russian: атабаски Аляски, атапаски Аляски) are Alaska Native peoples of the Athabaskan-speaking ethnolinguistic group.
They are the original inhabitants of the interior of Alaska.[citation needed]
Total population | |
---|---|
6,400 | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Alaska | |
Languages | |
Northern Athabaskan languages, American English (Alaskan variant), Russian (historically) | |
Religion | |
Shamanism (largely ex), Christianity |
Formerly they identified as a people by the word Tinneh (nowadays Dena; cf. Dene for Canadian Athabaskans). Taken from their own language, it means simply "men" or "people".
In Alaska, where they are the oldest, there are eleven groups identified by the languages they speak. These are:
The Alaskan Athabascan culture is an inland creek and river fishing (also coastal fishing by only Dena'ina of Cook Inlet) and hunter-gatherer culture. The Alaskan Athabascans have a matrilineal system in which children belong to the mother's clan, with the exception of the Yupikized Athabaskans (Holikachuk and Deg Hit'an).
The Athabascan people hold potlatches which have religious, social and economic significance.
Dogs were their only domesticated animal, but were and are an integral element in their culture for the Athabascan population in North America.
Athabascans are descended from Asian hunter-gatherers, likely originally native to Mongolia, who crossed the Bering Strait and settled in North America.
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