KASKA LEGAL UNDERSTANDINGS OF LAND

This research explores Kaska understandings of land and law, for it is these understandings that inform the Kaska communities’ approach to settler governments and their decisions. Respect for animate and inanimate beings is by far the most important principle for the Kaska people. Ā́’ī, a Kaska term, is commonly translated into English as ‘taboo’ or ‘respect’ but it means much more than that. Complex moral narratives involving ā́’ī are told to reiterate responsibility, respect, humility, kinship, and consequences of inappropriate behavior – it is a way of life. This reveals that there are multiple frameworks for understanding the world and western systems are not universal. Kaska reality is most commonly expressed through Kaska oral history, stories, and traditions. This reality represents how Kaska people interpret the world around them and how they employ different strategies for living. Despite the ongoing prevalence of this concept among the Kaska people’s everyday lives, governmental officials have not seriously taken it into account. These worldviews are key to understanding the endurance and strength of Indigenous peoples, cultures, and languages. Based on the research, the only way to understand the Kaska society is to take concepts such as ā́’ī, ā́’nenzén, and dene k’éh gū́s’ān into account. This research is significant because it centers an Indigenous perspective that has otherwise been oppressed by settler law and policies. Indigenous life in the Yukon has only been seriously researched by a handful of people, many of whom are not from the north. Further, there is limited contemporary research on Yukon First Nations, especially in the social sciences. While the Kaska ā́’ī concept and equivalent ontological practices have been researched by others, its present application to Kaska life are limited. While settler laws have impacted Kaska laws, it is clear from this research that the land has remained a source of law. I contend that the land and its teachings are central to being a good Kaska person. My research will produce new knowledge on how these practices inform our approach to land claims and to the government. Kaska people are living ā́’ī and dene k’éh gū́s’ān, it is their reality. This research will provide a thesis, a report, and community presentations to Kaska communities and will empower our communities to be better able to argue for our rights.

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