The Arctic, from A to Z

IQALUIT — A British publishing house, Fitzroy Dearborn, plans to bring out a two-volume encyclopedia on the Arctic in the spring of 2003.

This encyclopedia will have over 1,200 entries, including a who’s-who of Arctic figures ranging from Sami leader Pekka Aikio to ICC vice-president Sheila Watt-Cloutier. There will be entries on places from Alaska to the Yukon, political issues from the Alta controversy to the Thule Air base, towns from Aasiat to Yellowknife, and birds from auks to terns — just to mention a few.

There will also be broader articles, photographs, maps and graphs in the encyclopedia, which is being edited by Mark Nuttall.

A sample essay on “Animals in the world — views of indigenous peoples” includes this gem: “Traditionally, rites practiced before a hunt were intended to ensure a hunter’s success. In Greenland, for example, a successful whale hunt depended in part on men abstaining from sexual intercourse for prescribed periods, and on women remaining indoors in darkness until the men returned with the whale. After the killing of animals, propitiatory rituals took the form of elaborate ceremonies…”

Nuttall is still seeking contributors to the encyclopedia. Each will receive a free copy of the $295 encyclopedia, as well as payment. For more information, contact the project’s Web site at http://www.fitzroydearborn.com/london/arctic.htm.