Avvajja (Abverdjar) Revisited: Reconstructing Tuniit (Dorset Paleo-Inuit) and Recent-Historic Inuit Life at an Iconic Site in Northern Foxe Basin, Nunavut, Canada

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Arctic Pasts: Dimensions of Change" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Excavations in the early to mid-twentieth century at the multicomponent site Avvajja (Abverdjar) (NiHg-1), northern Foxe Basin, Nunavut, produced arguably some of the most iconic Tuniit (Late Dorset Paleo-Inuit) artifacts yet found in Inuit Nunangat (the traditional Inuit territories of Arctic Canada). Avvajja is also notable for being the site of the region’s first Christian mission (est. 1931), as well as for being one of the last major seasonal camps abandoned by Inuit for the nearby permanent settlement of Iglulik (Igloolik). Despite its archaeological renown and historical significance, little information has been made widely available about the site’s occupations or the contexts of its remarkable Tuniit finds. In this paper, we provide an overview of previous archaeological work at the site, and present the results of ethnoarchaeological research carried out in 2018, consisting of intensive drone and DGPS survey, limited excavation (resulting in new radiocarbon dates), and close consultation with former residents of the site and their family members.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 86th Annual Meeting, Online (2021)   •
• Arctic Pasts: Dimensions of Change

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 30917