Aleut

Aleut, native of the Aleutian Islands, belonging to the Eskimo-Aleut language family (also known as Inuit-Aleut), and usually classified as Native American. The Aleuts refer to themselves as Unangan (or Unangas in the Atka region). Their indigenous language is called Aleut (or Unangan), although English is now dominant.

The Aleuts originally moved to the Aleutian Islands from Alaska. They were dependent on the sea for food, clothing, fuel, and materials for shelter such as driftwood and whalebone. When the islands came under Russian domination in the 1740s, the native population numbered about 25,000. Fur traders exploited the Aleuts, who were skilful hunters of sea mammals. Harsh treatment by the Russians, and smallpox and influenza epidemics, took their toll on the indigenous population, which today numbers only about 2,000. Since about 1830 Aleutian traditional culture has become fragmented, and only vestiges of the old values and technology endure. Most Aleuts today are members of the Russian Orthodox Church, which was taken to the Aleutian Islands in the early 19th century. They live in wood framed houses called barabaras or ulax and engage in fishing, hunting, and raising sheep.