Scholars have defined the Subarctic Culture Area as territory stretching across northern latitudes from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. It covers a vast region, including most of present-day Alaska’s and Canada’s interior.
What is termed the Northern Forest, or taiga, filled mostly with evergreen trees—pine, spruce, and fir, with
Subarctic Indian snowshoe
Some birch, aspen, and willow as well—grows in the subarctic. Since there is relatively little topsoil for deep root systems, the trees of the taiga are generally scraggy and short. The northern edge of the taiga borders the treeless tundra of the Arctic (see ARCTIC PEOPLES).
The Northern Forest is broken up by a network of inland waterways. Some of the largest lakes are the Great Bear Lake, Great Slave Lake, and Lake Winnipeg. Some of the largest rivers are the Yukon, Mackenzie, Peace, Saskatchewan, Red River of the North, and La Grande. There are thousands of smaller lakes and rivers, plus many ponds, streams, and swamps. In the western part of the subarctic, the rolling taiga and swamplands give way to highlands—the northern part of the Rocky Mountain chain, the Yukon Plateau, and the British Columbia Plateau.
The climate of the subarctic is fierce. Winters are long and severe. During the seemingly endless stretch of cold weather, deep snow covers the woodlands, and thick ice covers the lakes. The summers are short. During warm weather, mosquitoes and black flies breed in the swamplands.
The subarctic is home to abundant wildlife. Large mammals include caribou, moose, musk oxen, bear, and deer. Small mammals include beaver, mink, otter, porcupine, rabbits, and squirrels. Moreover, there are many species of birds, especially waterfowl, and fish.
Subarctic Indians were nomadic hunter-gatherers who traveled in small bands. The most common type of house was a small cone-shaped tent covered with animal hides. Lean-tos of brush and leaves were also fairly common, especially in the western part. Subarctic Indians did not farm.
Two main groups of native peoples made up the Subarctic Culture Area: the ATHAPASCANS to the west and the ALGONQUIANS to the east (see those entries for complete tribal listings). The Churchill River, flowing northeastward into Hudson Bay, divided the peoples of these two different language families. The particular subarctic tribes of each language family discussed in detail in this book are the following: Among the Athapascans are the (AHTENA, BEAVER (TSATTINE), CARRIER (DAKELH), CHIPEWYAN, DOGRIB (THLINGCHADINNE), HARE (KAWCHOTTINE), KUTCHIN, slavey (ETCHAREOTTINE), and YELLOWKNIFE (tatSANOTTINE). Among the Algonquians are the CREE, MONTAGNAIS, and NASKAPI. Some of the Algonquian-speaking CHIPPEWA (ojibway) bands are considered as part of the Subarctic Culture Area; most are classified within the
The Subarctic Culture Area, showing the approximate locations of Indian tribes on Northeast map circa 1500, before displacement by non-Indians (with modern boundaries)
Northeast Culture Area. The only people of the Subarctic Culture Area who did not speak either Athapascan or Algo-nquian dialects were the BEOTHUK of Newfoundland. They spoke a unique language called Beothukan.
World History
