Note: This article focuses on Inuits who lived according to the traditional way of life, in general, before the first part of the 20th century.
“Respect yourself and those around you. It’s important to have high self-esteem and encourage yourself and others to be positive” (Elder Inuit)
The Inuit are Indigenous peoples with a shared ethnic background and many cultural traits in common. They inhabit the Arctic regions of North America and are traditionally classified into five main groups: the Greenland Inuit; the communities of Smith Sound, Baffin Island, the western coast of Hudson Bay, and the Back River–Boothia area; the Labrador Inuit; the Mackenzie groups along the central northern coast of the continent; and the Inuit of Alaska.
In Inuit culture, love, happiness, and well-being are deeply interconnected.
Inuit people feel joy when their bravery and resilience are acknowledged, and when they are seen as triumphant in their ongoing battle for survival. It is through these challenges that the most genuine emotions emerge in the Inuit worldview: emotions free from selfishness, individualism, self-interest or personal gain.
Unlike the romantic notion of happiness as we often imagine it, for the Inuit every breath is a moment of deep joy, an eternity grounded in the present.
Inuit romantic love remains discreet and most often emerges from the close bond that develops between spouses after marriage. Romantic feelings are usually expressed indirectly and modestly, through poetic codes and traditional songs (ayaya, pisiit). Subtle allusions to love, nostalgic evocations of a loved one, or the celebration of a desired partner’s beauty and qualities appear through metaphor.
Affection is expressed primarily through concrete actions: sewing a garment, preparing food, conserving game, repairing a harpoon, as well as through small gestures of tenderness, everyday closeness, and mutual support.
Among the Inuit, emotions help structure the social order and guide behaviors: someone who is happy is necessarily seen as a good person, while someone who is angry or agitated is viewed as childish, dangerous, and potentially a threat to the community’s balance.
The meaning of words is rooted in experience and lived situations. For example, in Inuktitut, the word “love” in the sense of reciprocal emotional attachment does not exist.
“Naklik” or “nallik” refers to a protective attachment toward a person in difficulty. Only virtuous individuals can feel such a mature emotion.
“Unga” denotes a dependent attachment (such as a mother’s toward her child). This type of emotion is considered immature.
“Pitsau” or “piugi” express appreciating someone, being involved with someone, or considering the other person as good.
Despite the challenges of their environment, the Inuit manage to live in a state of mind guided by harmony, balance, and well-being.
Their presence in such a hostile environment is, in itself, a form of victory. Constantly threatened by certain death, they continually savor the simple and wholesome joy of existence.
The key to this performance lies in simple rules, passed down from generation to generation:
– Strong, deep, and sincere relationships between group members. Family and community ties must remain unbreakable to guarantee survival in a hostile environment. These bonds are further strengthened during daily activities, such as hunting or managing food supplies.
– Friendship and social harmony: people appreciate each other and express this clearly. Their interactions are based on trust, sharing, and mutual support. Thus, friends are seen as a form of extended family, to whom one has a duty to provide material and emotional support when needed.
– Respect and consideration are given to elders, who are associated with wisdom, moral authority, and social and cultural continuity. As keepers of knowledge and experts in survival skills, they guide community decisions, especially during hunting or travel. The family ensures they have everything they need.
– Avoidance of conflict and extreme behavior. When conflicts occur, they favor indirect, non-confrontational management: using humor, silence, non-verbal communication, or pretending not to be offended.
– Control of negative emotions that could endanger the group’s safety. Isolation and solitude are strictly avoided, as they are seen as sources of unhappiness.
– Respect for nature and animals, recognized as living beings forming an interconnected whole. Animals are essential to survival and therefore deserve respect and gratitude. Guided by profound affection, they honor the spirit of the animal, forging a deep bond meant to last a lifetime.
– Resilience in the face of adversity
The Inuit strive to remain happy and to live fully in the present moment.
Their moments of joy are closely tied to family, community, and respect for traditional values: caring for elders, sharing resources, maintaining strong interpersonal bonds, respecting individual and collective well-being, and protecting the land, animals, and nature.
Happiness, understood as physical and emotional well-being, is a holistic concept that encompasses health, relationships with others, connection to nature and animals, and the spiritual dimension.
Inuit happiness is not expressed through gestures or romantic attitudes, but rather through concrete actions, mutual support, and deep and eternal interpersonal bonds.
Bibliography
1) Lessons on happiness from the Inuit’s ancient way of life” Vincent Kavanagh
URL: https://medium.com/the-trip/
2) Emotions Have Many Faces: Inuit Lessons, Jean L. Briggs, Reflections on Anthropology in Canada Anthropologica, 2000, Vol. 42, No. 2,
3) Eskimo Folk-Tales, Knud Rasmussen, The Project Gutenberg eBook of Eskimo Folk-Tales #28932
URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/
4) Dr. Rink in his Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo, Fridtjof Nansen, The Project Gutenberg eBook of Eskimo Folk-Tales #46972
URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/
5) Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo, Dr Henry Rink, Edited by Dr Robert Brown, Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2017
URL: https://archive.org/details/
6) Never in Anger: Portrait of an Eskimo Family, Jean L. Briggs, Harvard University Press, 1970
7) Eskimo Life, Fridtjof Nansen, The Project Gutenberg eBook of Eskimo Folk-Tales eBook #46972
URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/
8) Inuit family understandings of sexual health and relationships in Nunavut”, Gwen K. Healey (2014)
9) The Central Eskimo”, Franz Boas, The Project Gutenberg eBook, eBook #42084