Kinaunira Qulliq Isumagillugu: Identifying through the Qulliq
Date
2026
Authors
Coley-Sudlovenick, Miali-Elise
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Abstract
Over the years, I have felt connected to who I am through my first language, Inuktitut. I am proud to speak, read, write, understand and express myself wholeheartedly in the language I knew before any other. I was exposed to some English, but mainly once I was in elementary school that I started to understand it better. When I consider the connection to who I am through Inuktitut, I feel connected to a lineage of people who survived and continue to thrive, even in the harshest obstacles. When I consider the connection to who I am, I am also forced to consider the disconnection to who I could have been. I consider the disconnection my mom lived through during, removed from a time that a qulliq kept her family warm, while reflecting on what was lost to be where we are today. The focus of my project is on the qulliq, a traditional oil lamp. I attempt to highlight how the qulliq is an important source and tool to connect me to the land, to Inuktitut and to our Inuit culture and identity. When I think of the qulliq, I consider the elements that are required to come together to light it and keep it going. I think about my own life and what has had to be, in nature and in survival, to get me to this point. I reflect on the times that I get to walk on the nuna (tundra) and collect for the qulliq. I think about the hunters who face the elements to hunt and harvest the animals that have uqsuq (fat/oil), all to keep the qulliq going. I share about the bond to people in relation to tending and learning about the qulliq and my experiences in through this paper and a video story including photos and a voice-over.
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Keywords
Inuktitut language, qulliq (traditional oil lamp), tool, connection, survival