A LAND OF MANY FISH

The lakes, rivers and oceans of the central Arctic teem with fish. The best of these to eat is the iqaluk (Arctic char), ihuuqiq (lake trout) and uugaq (tomcod).  In the past, Inuinnait built stone weirs across rivers to catch fish in rock pools where they could be easily clubbed or grabbed by hand. A three-pronged spear called a kakivak was also used to harvest the congregated fish.

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Fishing continues to be a common practice during the autumn spawning runs and helps us make sure that enough food is available for our families during the long, cold winter.

 

Fish are prepared in many different ways for eating. Often, they are filleted and laid out to dry. We call this type of fish pifi. Fish are also eaten raw and frozen, a delicacy that we call quaq.