Unangax (Aleut) and Sugpiaq (Alutiiq)
The Aleut traditionally inhabited southern portions of the Alaska Peninsula and the Aleutian Islands. Constructing dwellings that could provide adequate shelter in this cold, harsh environment required great ingenuity. Settlements on the Aleutian Islands tended to be on the north side to avoid prevailing southwest winds. Also, while communities usually had a population of about 200 villagers, they would have only five to ten dwellings.
Aleut houses were semi-subterranean dwellings with wooden or whalebone frames covered with grass and sod. The floor was usually four to six feet below ground level, and dwellings were usually 30 – 45 feet long by 20 – 30 feet wide. The floor plan was open with trenches for sleeping dug into the walls. A small entrance was located on the ceiling with a pole ladder providing access. Grass mats and hides from sea lions and seals were hung on walls for insulation. Oil lamps or small hearths were used to heat the houses.
Yupiaq
The Yupiaq are speakers of the Yup’ik languages, and are the most diverse group of Alaska Natives. They traditionally inhabit portions of Western Alaska from St. Lawrence Island to Prince William Sound including the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Bristol Bay and areas east.
Yupiaq women and men lived in separate houses. Typical women’s houses were rectangular structures about 12 feet wide and 15 feet long. Like the houses built in the Aleutians, the structures were semi-subterranean, with wooden plank walls where trees were available, overlain with grass and bark. If wood was not available, sod was used. The women and children who occupied these dirt-floor houses entered through underground tunnels. Men and older boys lived in larger houses called qasgiq, which could be 30 feet wide and 30 feet long. Qasgiq had plank floors and large, open living areas. Men slept on platforms along the walls, and a central hearth heated the house.
Iñupiat
The Iñupiat people inhabit the northern regions of the state. Traditional houses were semi-subterranean with sod blocks laid over frames of driftwood or whale bone creating a dome shape. A subterranean tunnel dug below the depth of the main living area acted as a cold trap to help keep the house warm, and kept large predators from entering the dwelling. A small opening in the roof was covered with gut to let in light, or it could be uncovered to let out smoke if necessary. Houses were rectangular and usually 12 – 15 feet long and about 8 feet wide. People slept on raised platforms covered with caribou or polar bear hides. Seal oil lamps with moss wicks provided light and heat.
Athabascan
The Athabascan people used many different types of traditional houses. Some were semi-subterranean log houses with above-ground entrances. Others had subterranean entries, walls made of logs, and were banked with earth. Still others were large plank houses with compartments for different families sectioned off with bark or bear skin. Some groups used moose or caribou skin tents. These dome-shaped tents were made with curved poles lashed together and were insulated with evergreen boughs and snow in the winter.
Lingit and Haida
In Southeast Alaska, the Tlingit and Haida lived in cedar plank houses that contained multiple related families in the same clan under one roof. The houses were built in rows facing the ocean in sheltered bays. Inside the house, walls were made out of cedar bark woven into mats. These long buildings had just one door, no windows and a hole to the roof to exhaust smoke from the fire. The main communal fire burned in the middle of the house to provide heat, light, and a place to cook. Families also maintained smaller fires in their own section of the house.