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Shamanism among Eskimo peoples refers to those aspects of the Eskimo cultures that are related to the shamans’ role as a mediator between people and spirits, souls, and mythological beings. Such beliefs and practices were once widespread among Eskimo groups, but today are rarely practiced.〔 They were already in decline among many groups when the first major ethnological research was done.〔Merkur 1985:132〕 For example, at the end of the 19th century, Sagdloq died, the last shaman among Polar Eskimos who was believed to be able to travel to the sky and under the sea, and many other shamanic capabilities such as ventriloquism and sleight-of-hand were lost then, too.〔Merkur 1985:134〕 The term "Eskimo" has fallen out of favour in Canada and Greenland, where it is considered pejorative and "Inuit" is used instead. However, "Eskimo" is still considered acceptable among Alaska Natives of Yupik and Inupiaq (Inuit) heritage and is preferred over "Inuit" as a collective reference. To date, no replacement term for "Eskimo" inclusive of all Inuit and Yupik people has achieved acceptance across the geographical area inhabited by the Inuit and Yupik peoples. The Inuit and Yupik languages constitute one branch within the Eskimo–Aleut language family and the Aleut language is another. (The Sirenik Eskimo language is sometimes seen as a third branch〔Linguist List's description about (Nikolai Vakhtin )'s book: (''The Old Sirinek Language: Texts, Lexicon, Grammatical Notes'' ). The author's untransliterated (original) name is (Н.Б. Вахтин ).〕〔Representing genealogical relations of (among others) Eskimo–Aleut languages by tree: (Alaska Native Languages ) (found on the site of (Alaska Native Language Center ))〕〔(Lawrence Kaplan: Comparative Yupik and Inuit ) (found on the site of (Alaska Native Language Center ))〕〔(Endangered Languages in Northeast Siberia: Siberian Yupik and other Languages of Chukotka ) by Nikolai Vakhtin〕 but sometimes as one of the Yupik languages.〔(Ethnologue Report for Eskimo–Aleut )〕) == Connection to shamanism == The term "shamanism" has been used for many distinct cultures. Classically, some indigenous cultures of Siberia were described as having shamans, but the term is now commonly used for other cultures as well. In general, the shamanistic belief systems accept that certain people (shamans) can act as mediators with the spirit world,〔Hoppál 2005:45–50〕 contacting the entities (spirits, souls, and mythological beings) that populate the universe in those systems. The word "shaman" comes from a Tungusic language and its etymology is debated,〔 It describes the life of Chuonnasuan, the last shaman of the Oroqen of Northeast China.〕〔Voigt 2000:41–45〕 one explanation analyzes it meaning "he/she who knows".〔Hoppál 2005:15〕 Shamans use music, recitation of epic, dance, ritual objects〔Hoppál 2005:14〕 and other means to interact with the spirit world — for the benefit of the community or for doing harm. They may have spirits that assist them and may travel to other worlds (or other aspects of this world). Most Eskimo groups had such a mediator function,〔 and the person fulfilling the role was believed to be able to command helping spirits, ask mythological beings (e.g., Nuliayuk among the Netsilik Inuit and Takanaluk-arnaluk in Aua's narration) to "release" the souls of animals, enable the success of the hunt, or heal sick people by bringing back their "stolen" souls. Shaman is used in an Eskimo context in a number of English-language publications, academic〔Kleivan & Sonne 1985〕〔Merkur 1985〕〔Freuchen 1961: 32〕 and popular,〔Vitebsky 2001〕 generally in reference to the angakkuq among the Inuit. The ''alignalghi'' () of the Siberian Yupiks is translated as "shaman" in Russian and English literature.〔Menovščikov 1968:442〕〔Рубцова 1954:203–19〕 Shamanism among the Eskimo peoples exhibits some characteristic features not universal in shamanism, such as soul dualism (a dualistic or pluralistic concept of the soul) in certain groups, and specific links between the living, the souls of hunted animals and dead people.〔Oosten 1997: 86〕〔Vitebsky 1996:14〕 The death of either a person or a game animal requires that certain activities, such as cutting and sewing, be avoided to prevent harming their souls. In Greenland, the transgression of this "death taboo" could turn the soul of the dead into a ''tupilaq'', a restless ghost who scared game away. Animals were thought to flee hunters who violated taboos.〔Kleivan & Sonne 1985:12–13, 18–21, 23〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Shamanism among Eskimo peoples」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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