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Iglulik celebrates the return of the sun
Community and Greenlandic guests engage in three days of festivitiesJeanne Gagnon Northern News Services Published Monday, January 23, 2012
Students at Ataguttaaluk High School celebrated around the school's iglu, with a ceremony that included a traditional Inuit prayer by school elder Thomas Kublu, followed by Lucie Tapardjuk performing an Ajaaja song, stated vice-principal Sean Broderick in an e-mail. During the song, the students circled around the iglu and sang, he added. Broderick also stated two elders explained the traditional significance of return of the sun from male and female perspectives. Students were treated to a hot chocolate, frozen Arctic char and seal. Principal Vince Pickett said students loved the activities. "We want to provide the students with an awareness of the importance of the return of the sun festival," he said. "And what it meant to the community and how important this festival was, particularly in the culture when they lived on the land." The community also had events organized, including opening ceremonies featuring the lighting of the qulliq, Ajaaja song, drum dancing, said Mary Kunuk Iyyiraq, one of the organizers. She added the second day featured throat singers, and on Jan. 15 there was a fashion show featuring fur and cloth clothing. Kunuk Iyyiraq said on the last day the community hosted a square dancing event. "It went very well. A lot of people came. It was really great," she said. "We had so much fun and elders had traditional clothing on all the time. It was very successful." The elementary school marked the occasion with a return-of-the-sun concert on Jan. 17, featuring many traditional performances. The 90-minute show started with throat singing and drum dancing, said Ellen Faubert, a curriculum support teacher at Ataguttaaluk Elementary School. Visitors from Greenland performed traditional songs and danced, she added. Artcirq, Iqlulik's community-based circus and multimedia company, delighted the crowd with help from students and the Greenlanders. For the finale, the school teachers gave a surprise performance of the Ajaaja song, said Faubert. "It was definitely a success," she said. "It was very fun and it brought our school and our community a little bit closer together. It was just a really great time, having the Greenlanders in our school. We just thought it would be special to do something for our students and we decided on a concert." Some 400 to 450 people attended the school concert, she added.
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