In the

Inuit religion Inuit religion is the shared spiritual beliefs and practices of the Inuit, an indigenous people from Alaska, northern Canada, Greenland, and parts of Siberia. Their religion shares many similarities with some Alaska Native religions. Traditional ...

, an ijiraq ( or ) is a

shapeshifting In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shapeshifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through unnatural means. The idea of shapeshifting is found in the oldest forms of totemism and shamanism, as well as the oldest existen ...

creature said to kidnap children, hide them away and abandon them. The

inuksuk An inuksuk (plural inuksuit) or inukshuk is a type of stone landmark or cairn built by, and for the use of, Inuit, Iñupiat, Kalaallit, Yupik, and other peoples of the Arctic region of North America. These structures are found in northern Canad ...

(or inukshuk) of stone allow these children to find their way back if they can convince the ijiraq to let them go.

Description

North Baffin dialect The North Baffin dialect (''Qikiqtaaluk uannangani'' or ''Iglulingmiut'') of Inuktitut is spoken on the northern part of Baffin Island, at Igloolik and the adjacent part of the Melville Peninsula, and in other Inuit communities in the far north ...

s ''ijiraq'' means Shape Shifter. While '' Tariaksuq'' appear like a half-man-half-

caribou The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only represe ...

monster, an ijiraq can appear in any form it chooses, making it particularly deceptive. Their eyes will always stay red, no matter what they shapeshift into. Their real form is just like a human, but their eyes and mouth are sideways. ''(The book of Dutch writer Floortje Zwigtman says only the shaman knows the real form of the Ijiraq).'' When you are hunting somewhere that Ijirait (plural) inhabit, you will see them in the corner of your eye for a fleeting moment (like tariaksuq, shadow people) ''(following another reference, you see a strange caribou in the corner of your eye instead of a normal shadow''). If you try to observe them directly however, they are completely elusive. They are sometimes helpful, sometimes fatally deceptive.

Freeman's Cove

One of the most noted places in the

Arctic The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...

for sightings of these shape shifters (and tariaksuq) is the Freeman's Cove area of Tuktusirvik (place to hunt caribou), Bathurst Island. This rich oasis is surrounded in a horseshoe pattern by dormant volcanic mountains. Historically, Freeman's Cove is most notable as a stopover for the ship the ''Intrepid'' on an Arctic expedition with Edward Belcher.

Story

The Ijirait are said to inhabit a place between two worlds; not quite inside this one, nor quite out of it.

Inuit Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwe ...

further south than the North Baffin group used to hold to a belief that some Inuit went too far north in the chase for game, and became trapped between the world of the dead and the world of the living, and thus became the Ijirait. According to the small handful of surviving elders in the South Baffin Region that knew these beliefs, the Inuit that are settled in Resolute and Grise Fiord are these shape shifters or shadow people, because they went too far north. Some elders will avoid being in presence of extreme-northern Inuit, fearing they are evil Ijirait or Tariaksuq. The home of the Ijirait is said to be cursed, and one will lose their way, no matter how skilled or familiar with the land.

Scientific understanding

One plausible explanation for this unusual phenomenon is likely related to large deposits of sour gas, of which can be disturbed by simply walking over top of the pockets, causing them to expel the toxic gas

hydrogen sulphide Hydrogen sulfide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless chalcogen-hydride gas, and is toxic, corrosive, and flammable. Trace amounts in ambient atmosphere have a characteristic foul odor of rotten eggs. Swedish chemist Ca ...

. Exposure to hydrogen sulphide is known to cause hallucinations and memory loss. Gas and sulphur smoke have been reported in the area as well as hot water springs discovered by the Amarualik (meaning wolf-like) family; all of which could cause a "mirage" causing the traveller to see things such as Ijirait and Tariaksuq. The gas vapour or pockets low in oxygen could also account for hallucinations/sensations of being watched.

References

Footnotes

Sources

* Cory K. Buott, Air Radio Operator, Resolute Bay, NU * Simon Idlout, Elder, Qausuittuq Hunter/Trapper Organization Representative, Resolute Bay, NU * Lallie Idlout, Nunavut Justice of the Peace, Board Member Nunavut Arctic College, Resolute Bay Nunavut * Qammajuq (Johnny),

Elder, Well known survivor of the Quganajuq (Creswell Bay,

Somerset Island (Nunavut) Somerset Island (Inuktitut ''Kuuganajuk'') is a large, uninhabited island of the Arctic Archipelago, that is part of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. The island is separated from Cornwallis Island and Devon Island to the north by the Parry C ...

) Tragedy, Cambridge Bay, NU * Kenn Borek Air/Unaalik Aviation, Resolute Bay, NU * Ministry of Natural Resources Intercontinental Polar Shelf Project, Resolute Bay, NU * Hamlet Office, The Hamlet of Resolute Bay, Resolute Bay NU X0A 0V0 Canada (Tel. 876.252.3616)

External links

inuitmyths.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ijiraq (Mythology) Inuit legendary creatures Therianthropy