Igloo

The igloo is one of the house types of the Eskimo people. Eskimo culture developed along the shores of the Baffin Land and the northern parts of Hudson Bay in latitudes 65 to 70 and has been there for more than 2,000 years. The climate is arctic, with extremely cold winters and short, cool summers. During the winter, daylight hours are short and winds severe, making it difficult to leave shelter for days. The Eskimo have adapted to these harsh conditions by developing ingenious technology and tools. They have also evolved cognitive capabilities that allow them to draw maps of large territories with accuracy and social behaviors that ensure survival through cooperation and demographic checks and balances.

Eskimo social structure consists of bands of families, typical among hunters and gatherers who live in marginal environments. Technology evolved in response to limitations in locally available materials: snow-ice, skin, bone, and stone. The igloo is the special response of the Eskimo who congregate early in winter in settlements along the shore on the floe ice. Here, seals keep several breathing holes open and visit them during the day. Hunters wait by all of the holes to guarantee a successful hunt. Hence, the rationale for igloo communities consisting of several distantly related extended families.

Winter is the season for social life and ceremonial activities. Several extended families occupy a single camp and hunt over an established territory. They form a cohesive social unit, with several camps strung out along the shores 10 to 30 miles apart. Visits among these villages are frequent. Beyond it, traditional social organization does not function as a political unit. In the spring, when the seals come out, the winter camp breaks up into smaller units and extended families set up tents at the shore. As the ice melts, the kayak takes the place of the dogsled. The families move inland into the tundra, where they hunt caribou and musk ox and fish for salmon in the summer and fall. Summer camps comprise small seal or caribou tents with a ridgepole and a semiconical rear. Some groups occupy permanent stone and earth houses. These are oval or rectangular, three or four yards across with a long, narrow entrance passage. These houses are excavated into the ground. However, the floor of the main chamber is a foot higher than the passage to prevent draft. The bedding is laid out at the back, and the sides are for cooking and storage for two families who occupy the house. The rafters of whalebone or driftwood are covered with a double layer of sealskins with moss in between.

The igloo follows the plan of the stone house. Large blocks of snow are cut from compacted snow, using an ivory knife, and laid in a spiral, sloping inward to build a dome. The final block is lowered into position from the outside. The cracks are tightly packed with snow. During the winter, the structure becomes more solid as the inner walls melt and freeze. Side ledges and a rear platform are built of snow and covered with moss and skins to prevent excessive melting. Ice or gut skin windows are set above the exit tunnel, which is subdivided into domed or vaulted sections for storage. The exit [Page 382]has a sharp bend to help reduce the inflow of cold air. The main chamber is lined with skins held in position by sinew cords passing through the walls of the dome and held by toggles. A considerable air space is left between the snow roof and the skin ceiling for insulation. Therefore, a temperature of 10°F to 20°F above freezing can be maintained without melting the igloo. Where several families are camping together, a large chamber is often built as a meeting place for singing, dancing, and sorcerers’ shows. Dwellings are connected to it by galleries. During journeys, the Eskimo also build temporary igloos about 2 yards in diameter in an hour or so for camping through the night.

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