Culture is a created way of knowing, understanding, and believing about the social world(s) we live in. There are (very conservatively) thousands of cultures around the world, and while there are definitely several similarities among cultural groups there are aspects that can and do make cultures unique. One aspect that comes to mind is throat singing, which is a type of musical performance often a single pitch with various harmonics. Throat singing is found in various cultures, but today’s blog post will focus on one specific culture and its throat singing practices: the Inuit’s Katajjaq tradition.
The Inuit are cultural group that exists throughout the Artic, including in modern day Canada, Alaska, and Greenland. They have existed in this region for thousands of years, adapting their cultural ways to thriving in this year round cold climate. Their means of subsistence is foraging (also known as hunting and gathering), which is largely the pursuit of Inuit men. Women, however, do contribute to the hunting parties, though. They do this through the practice of the Katajjaq tradition.
Katajjaq is considered a vocal game among the Inuit, and it is an important oral tradition. It is unclear how long the Inuit have practiced Katajjaq, in part because the Inuit do not have a written record and much of their cultural knowledge was lost and destroyed due to colonization. Despite these interruptions the Inuit continue to practice Katajjaq today.
Katajjaq is traditionally sung by women (Figure 1), but due to changing cultural values men are practicing it, as well. Katajjaq entails two women (although sometimes up to four or five) who sing together. The women face each other, gasping each other by the elbows or shoulders, and they make and lock eye contact. One woman will lead by beginning to sing, and the other woman/women will imitate the tone, melodies, and rhythms sung by the lead. The purpose of this game is believed to bring luck to the men hunting, ensuring they have a successful hunt. This conclusion was reached because of the sounds the women make during the Katajjaq. Their sounds are meant to mimic the sounds of nature, be it the howls of dogs, the breaking of ice, the soaring birds, etc. This oral tradition, however, holds an additional purpose in that it is a type of storytelling wherein the singers pass on cultural knowledge and stories to the listeners.
The Katajjaq is a carefree competitive but cooperative game wherein there is a winner and a loser, although there are very few consequences for the loser. The game is lost when one of the women can no longer continue singing. This may be because she ran out of breath or could not think of more sounds to make. The loser indicates their loss by breaking into laughter, demonstrating the light hearted nature of the game.
Despite the Katajjaq being prohibited when Christian missionaries began interacting with the Inuit this is a cultural tradition that continues on to this day. Various Inuit musicians have been important in reviving and carrying on this tradition, as well as bringing it to the attention of outsiders. As noted previously, traditionally the Katajjaq was a woman’s oral tradition, but Inuit men have adopted the practice, as well, as a means of cultural preservation and of sharing their cultural traditions with others. As these musicians continue their work hopefully the tradition will not only continue but be a means of preserving and enriching Inuit culture.
Works Cited
D'Souza, Fred. "From Vocal Game to Protest Song: The Complexities of Katajjaq." SOAS Undergraduate Research Journal (2021): 53-61. Print.
Singh, Raj. HE PRACTICE AND PERFORMANCE OF KATAJJAQ: CULTURE, IDENTITY AND RESISTANCE. Dissertation. Toronto: York University, 2022. Print.
Stévance, Sophie. "Analysis of the Inuit Katajjaq in Popular Culture: The Canadian Throat-Singer Superstar Tanya Tagaq." ITAMAR. REVISTA DE INVESTIGACIÓN MUSICAL: TERRITORIOS PARA EL ARTE (2010): 82-90. Print.
7 comments:
See I grew up in church and we had a singing battle all the time who can sing the song all the way so when they played the game it reminded me of home
My name is Khalil Jackson
I love that while it is said to bring good luck to the men hunting, it is also a game. A game that they take light and laugh about. It's not often that I ever see where a woman started a traditional thing, that men are not involved in. I know that they are slowly being brought into it but the history behind it amazes me. This is also not anything you would ever see here in the states.
-Alyssa Rehagen
I found this post to be very informative. What stood out most to me in this blog post was, Katajjaq is traditionally sung by women but because of changing cultural values men started to practice it as well. Similarly, it used to be that women's place was in the home taking care of children and other family members, but as times and things have changed, more and more women are entering the workforce.
I find this tradition very interesting. I have never heard of throat singing, so not only learning about that but also the reason for why they do it is very intriguing. I love that this group of people not only made sure that this piece of their culture did not disappear, but it is also a lighthearted and fun thing for them to do while being a part of the hunting.
The fact that women frequently perform katajjaq brings an intriguing element to the conversation. It clarifies myths that throat singing is only done by men and provides insight into the gender dynamics inside Inuit society. This feature deepens the representation of Inuit culture. We get to comprehend the cultural background of Katajjaq performance better by learning about its correlation with hunting success and its function in mimicking natural noises.
The fact that katajjaq is considered a game rather than a formal performance suggests a cultural emphasis on participation, enjoyment, and communal spirit over individual prowess or competition, Also the practice of Katajjaq also highlights the resilience of Inuit culture in the face of colonization and cultural disruption.
-Ahmesha Johnson
I found the lighthearted and collaborative nature of Katajjaq to be well conveyed in this article. Despite the competitive element of the game, the attitude of maintaining and passing on the culture while having fun is impressive, such as when the losing woman admits defeat by bursting out laughing. I also found it interesting that even though Inuit culture was once banned by Christian missionaries, this tradition has been revived and maintained in modern times.
I hope that as Inuit culture continues to be introduced to the outside world through Katajjaq, this tradition will be preserved and further enriched in the future.
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