Inuit mythology

religion among Inuit populations

thumb|A carved representation of a tupilak, Greenland A ' ( or in Inuktitut syllabics, plural ') is a monster or carving of a monster.

2001 film by Zacharias Kunuk

In Inuit religion, Adlivun (those who live beneath us, from at ~ al below, -lirn in a certain direction, -vun possessive first person plural; also known as Idliragijenget) are the spirits of the departed who reside in the underworld, and by extension the underworld itself, located beneath the land and the sea. The souls are purified there, in preparation for the travel to the Land of the Moon (Quidlivun or Qudlivun, the uppermost ones), where they find eternal rest and peace. Sedna, Torngarsuk and the tornat (spirits of animals and natural formations) and tupilaq (souls of dead people) live in

In Inuit religion, '''A'akuluujjusi''' is considered the great creator mother, a primordial goddess.

thumb|Torngarsuk as depicted in the Dictionnaire Infernal, 1863 edition.

The Adlet (or Erqigdlet) are a race of creatures in the Inuit mythology of Greenland, as well as the Labrador and Hudson Bay coasts. While the word refers to inland native American tribes, it also denotes a humanoid dog-legged tribe. The lower part of the body of the canine Adlet is like that of a dog and their upper part is like a man's. All Adlet run quickly, and their encounters with men usually end with man as the victor.

In Inuit mythology, Arnakuagsak ("old woman from the sea". Alternative: Arnarquagsag, Arnakua'gsak) was an Inuit goddess, one of the primary deities of the religion, who was responsible for ensuring the hunters were able to catch enough food and that the people remained healthy and strong. She was worshipped primarily in Greenland, but was essentially equivalent to the Canadian Sedna or Arnapkapfaaluk and the Alaskan Nerrivik.

Inuit deity

Arnapkapfaaluk 'big bad woman' was the sea goddess of the Inuit of Canada's Coronation Gulf area. Although occupying the equivalent position to Sedna within Inuit religion, in that she had control of the animals of the seas, she was noticeably different as can be seen by the English translation of her name.

In Inuit mythology, Apanuugak is a culture hero who was sometimes depicted as an error-prone warrior who lives to old age and sometimes as a dastardly villain.

In Inuit religion, Nerrivik or Nerivik was the sea-mother and provider of food for Inuit. She was the patron of fisherman and hunters. In Canada, she was known as either Sedna or Arnapkapfaaluk and in Greenland, she was Arnakuagsak.

The Ahkiyyini is a skeleton spirit in Inuit folklore. He is the ghost of Alaska, and causes tidal waves and earthquakes by moving his arms. Other articles state that when alive Ahkiyyini was always dancing and playing music. In death he would use his arm bone as a drum stick and his scapula as a drum. He created music and danced a jig where it would make the ground shake to where boats would overturn.thumb|Ahkiyyini