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Birnirk

Seal- and walrus-hunting villagers of the Alaska North Slope around Point Barrow, the immediate ancestors of the Thule Inuit.

Birnirk whaling and house-building skills matured into full Thule culture around AD 1000, the people who would spread across the whole Arctic.

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Borders over time

The atlas holds 2 border frames for Birnirk — the shape you scrub through changes in 500 · 801.

Moments from the Chronicle

• 500 Birnirk villages at Point Barrow Birnirk people settle the Alaska North Slope, perfecting toggling harpoons and skin boats — the direct ancestors of the Thule whalers.

Further reading

• Ancient Men of the Arctic J. Louis Giddings · 1967

  Discusses the North Slope sea-mammal hunters ancestral to the Thule, including Birnirk.

• Ancient People of the Arctic Robert McGhee · 1996

  Traces the Birnirk-to-Thule transition in the western Arctic (broad context).

Sources

• Birnirk culture — Wikipedia