This dissertation project proposal is to study three Native, Alutiiq, villages on the Alaska Peninsula. This poorly documented cultural group has been able to maintain its ethnic identity in spite of continuous contacts with Russian, American, and other indigenous groups. The question of how Alutiiq identity has persisted through two centuries of contact is of fundamental interest to all Arctic indigenous groups being impacted by contemporary culture change. The proposed project can make an important contribution to basic research on Native culture in Alaska, and will also contribute to the theoretical and methodological development of cultural anthropology in the Arctic.
