Call Down the Stars

by Sue Harrison

  GHADEN (Ahtna Athabascan) Another person. (The Ahtna gh has no English equivalent. It closely resembles the French r. The a sounds like the English vowel u in the word but. The Ahtna d is pronounced with the tongue tip touching the backs of the top front teeth. It carries almost a t sound. The e carries a short sound like the e in the English word set. The Ahtna n sounds like the English n.)

  GHELI (Ahtna Athabascan) True, good. (The Ahtna gh has no English equivalent. It closely resembles the French r. The e carries a short sound like the e in the English word set. The Ahtna l sounds like the l’s in the English word call. The i is like the i in the English word sit.)

  HAYH (Ahtna Athabascan) Expression of disgust. (The Ahtna h is a voiceless glottal fricative and rarely used before a vowel. In hayh the first h takes on a more voiced sound like the h in the English word house, while the second h combines with y to give a rare sound in the Athabascan languages. It is pronounced as a voiceless front velar fricative. The a is pronounced like the u in the English word mutt.)

  IITIKAALUX (Atkan Aleut) Cow parsnip, wild celery, Heracleum lanatum. (See Pharmacognosia.) The ii is pronounced like a long e. The t and l are much like their English equivalents. The single i and u are short, and the aa carries a long a sound. The k is a guttural English k. The x should be properly written as a careted x, and is a voiceless uvular fricative. The accent is on the penultimate syllable.)

  IORI (Japanese) Hut.

  IQYAX, pl. IQYAN (Aleut) A skin-covered, wooden-framed boat, a kayak. (The two vowels are short. The q is like a harsh English k, the y much like an English y, and the final x is a voiceless velar fricative. The Aleut n is quite nasal. Accent the first syllable.)

  KIIN (Aleut) Who. (The k is a guttural English k. The ii carries a long e sound. The Aleut n is quite nasal.)

  K’OS (Ahtna Athabascan) Cloud. (The Ahtna k has no English equivalent. It is similar to the Aleut x and is pronounced in the back of the throat with a very harsh, guttural sound. The apostrophe denotes a glottal stop. The o carries a short sound similar to the o in the English word for. The Ahtna s is pronounced like an English sh.)

  KUY’AA (Ahtna Athabascan) A highly respected woman, female chief. (The Ahtna k has no English equivalent. It is similar to the Aleut x and is pronounced in the back of the throat with a very harsh, guttural sound. The u sounds similar to the oo in the English word book. The y is a voiced frontal velar fricative similar to the y in the English word yes. The apostrophe denotes a glottal stop. The aa sounds like the aw in the English word paw. Accent the last syllable.)

  LIGIGE’ (Ahtna Athabascan) The soapberry or dogberry, Shepherdia canadensis. (See Pharmacognosia.) (The l is voiceless and has no corresponding sound in English. The tip of the tongue is held on the palate just behind the front teeth and breath released so as to push air off both sides of the tongue. The i has a short i sound like in the English word sit. The single g corresponds most closely to the English k and is pronounced in the back of the throat. The final e is pronounced like the e in set. The apostrophe denotes a glottal stop. Accent the final syllable.)

  NAE’ (Ahtna Athabascan) Yes. (The Ahtna n sounds like an English n. The ae acts like a diphthong and takes on the a sound in the English word fad. The apostrophe represents a glottal stop.)

  NUHU’AHN (Koyukon Athabascan) The word refers to a creature of legend somewhat like the Windigo of the Cree people, but less violent. The Aleut refer to this creature—generally considered to be a man—as an “outside man,” someone who no longer lives within a village, but for some reason has been forcibly exiled. Literally, nuhu’ahn means “It sneaks around.” (The n’s sound like the English n. The u’s carry the sound of the oo in the English word cook. The h’s are similar to the h in the English word help. The apostrophe denotes a glottal stop. The a sounds like the English vowel u in the word but.)

  QUMALIX (Aleut) To be light, bright, shiny. (The initial q is like a harsh English k. The vowels are short. The Aleut m is pronounced like an English m; the Aleut l is a voiced dental lateral. The x is a voiceless velar fricative.)

  QUNG (Aleut) Hump, humpback. (The initial q is like a harsh English k. The u is short, and the digraph ng is a nasal, pronounced much like the ng in the English word gong.)

  SAMIQ (Ancient Aleut) Stone dagger or knife. (The Aleut s is like the English sh, the vowels are short, and the Aleut m is pronounced like the English m. The final q takes on a harsh English k sound.)

  SAX (Aleut) A long, hoodless parka made of feathered birdskins. (The s is pronounced like the English sh; the a is short. The x is a voiceless velar fricative.)

  SHUGANAN (Ancient word of uncertain origin) Exact meaning unsure, refers to an ancient people. (Pronounced shoe-ga-nen, accent on the second syllable.)

  SOK (Ahtna Athabascan) Raven call. (The Ahtna s is almost like the English sh. The Ahtna o is like the o in the English word for. The k is a guttural English k.)

  TAADZI (Ahtna Athabascan) Large deadfall trap. (The initial t is much like an English t. The aa sounds like the aw in the English word paw. The z is pronounced like zh or the s in the English word treasure. The i sounds like the i in the English word sit. Accent the first syllable.)

  TIGANGIYAANEN (Ahtna Athabascan) Warrior, great warrior. (The initial t is much like an English t. The i’s sound like the i in the English word sit. The single g’s correspond most closely to the English k and are pronounced in the back of the throat. The Ahtna a is like the u in the English word mutt. The n’s sound like English n’s. The y is a voiced frontal velar fricative similar to the y in the English word yes. The aa sounds like the aw in the English word paw. The Ahtna e is pronounced like the e in the English word set. Accent the penultimate syllable.)

  TSAANI (Ahtna Athabascan) Grizzly bear, Ursus arctos. (The ts takes a sound similar to the ts in sets. The aa carries an aw sound. The n is pronounced like the English n, and the i has a short sound like the i in the English word sit. The first syllable is accented.)

  ULAX, pl. ULAS or ULAM (Aleut) A semi-subterranean dwelling raftered with driftwood and covered with thatching and sod. (Pronounced oo-lax, with the accent on the first syllable. The a carries a short vowel sound, and the final x is a voiceless velar fricative.)

  UUTUK (Aleut) Sea urchin. (The uu takes on a long u sound. The Aleut t is much like a blunted English t—almost a d sound. The k is a voiced fricative.)

  UYGIIX (Aleut) Old woman. (The single u takes a short vowel sound. The y sounds much like an English y. The g is a voiced velar fricative, more guttural than the English g. The ii carries a long i sound. The x is properly written as a careted x, and is a voiceless uvular fricative.)

  YAA (Ahtna Athabascan) Sky. (The y is a voiced frontal velar fricative similar to the y in the English word yes. The aa sounds like the aw in the English word paw.)

  YEHL (Tlingit) Raven. (A similar pronunciation to the English word yell.)

  YIKAAS (Ahtna Athabascan) Light. (The i is pronounced like the i in the English word sit. The Ahtna k has no English equivalent. It is similar to the Aleut x and is pronounced in the back of the throat with a very harsh, guttural sound. The aa sounds like the aw in the English word paw. The Ahtna s is pronounced like an English sh.)

  The words in the glossary are defined and listed according to their use in Call Down the Stars. Most spellings, pronunciations, and words in the Aleut language are used as per their standardization in the Aleut Dictionary, Unangam Tunudgusii, compiled by Knut Bergsland. Spellings, pronunciations, and words in the Ahtna Athabascan language are used as per their standardization in the Ahtna Athabascan Dictionary, compiled and edited by James Kari. Both dictionaries are published by the Alaska Native Language Center, University of Alaska, Fairbanks.

  PHARMACOGNOSIA

  PLANTS LISTED IN THIS Pharmacognosia are not cited in recommendation for use, but only as a supplement to the novel. Many poisonous plants resemble helpful plants, and even some of the most benign can be harmful if used in excess. The wisest way to harvest and prepare wild vegetation for
medicine, food, or dye is in the company of an expert. Plants are listed in alphabetical order according to the names used in Call Down the Stars.

  ACONITE (Monkshood), Aconitum delphinifolium: Growing up to three feet in height, this purple-blossomed plant has deeply serrated, elongated palmate leaves. The flowers grow at the end of the stem and are purple (occasionally white). The top petal has a hoodlike shape. Caution: All parts of this plant are extremely poisonous and kill by paralyzing the central nervous system. The Aleut people used to dip the tips of their whale harpoons in a decoction of aconite.

  ALDER Alnus crispa: A small tree with grayish bark. Medium green leaves have toothed edges, rounded bases, and pointed tips. Flower clusters resemble miniature pinecones. The cambium or inner layer of bark is dried (fresh bark will irritate the stomach) and used to make tea said to reduce high fever. It is also used as an astringent and a gargle for sore throats. The bark renders a brown dye. Caution: Leaves are said to be very poisonous.

  BANEBERRY Actaea rubra: The baneberry is a vigorous plant that grows in southeastern and coastal Alaska north to the Yukon River area. It attains heights of up to four feet, though two to three feet is normal. Leaves are elongate, dentate, and compound; delicate white flowers grow in balllike clusters at the tips of the stems. Berries are red or white with a characteristic black dot. Caution: All portions of the baneberry are poisonous and ingestion will cause pain and bloody diarrhea. Death may result due to paralysis of the respiratory system and/or cardiac arrest. Do not even touch these plants with bare hands!

  BITTER ROOT (chocolate lily, Kamchatka lily or Kamchatka fritillary, wild rice, rice root), Fritillaria camschatcensis: An erect stem bears a dark brown flower with six lanceolate petals. Leaves grow in whorls of six on the upper part of the stem. The flower’s odor is quite unpleasant. The bulbs form edible ricelike corms and should be harvested in late summer. Eaten raw, they are quite bitter, but when boiled and mixed with oil they are very palatable.

  BLUEBELLS (chiming bells, lungwort), Mertensia paniculata: Two to three-foot plants sport hairy, elongated ovate leaves that grow opposite one another on the stem. Small groups of delicate, purplish, belllike flowers cluster at the ends of short, drooping stems. Flowers and leaves are said to be good added to teas. Leaves are better picked before the plants flower. The plant has been said to relieve asthma and other types of lung congestion.

  BONESET (purple boneset), Eupatorium purpureum: A tall (five to six feet) perennial, its clustered purple flower heads appear in September. Coarse leaves grow in groups of three or five. The root, crushed in a water solution, is said to be a diuretic and tonic as well as a relaxant.

  CARIBOU LEAVES (wormwood, silverleaf), Artemisia tilessii: This perennial plant attains a height of two to three feet on a single stem. The hairy, lobed leaves are silver underneath and a darker green on top. A spike of small clustered flowers grows at the top of the stem in late summer. Fresh leaves are used to make a tea that is said to purify the blood and stop internal bleeding, and to wash cuts and sore eyes. The leaves are heated and layered over arthritic joints to ease pain. Caution: Caribou leaves may be toxic in large doses.

  CIXUDANGIX (seagull flower, narcissus-flowered anemone), Anemone narcissiflora: A hairy-stemmed plant that grows up to two feet in height. The flower clusters have five rounded white petals. The hairy, palmate leaves are deeply serrated and grow just below the flower clusters and also at the base of the stem. The Aleut people boiled the roots to extract the juices and used the resulting serum to stop hemorrhage. Caution: Anemone are considered poisonous.

  CLOUDBERRY (salmonberry), Rubus chamaemorus: Not to be confused with the larger shrub-like salmonberry, Rubus spectabilis, this small plants grows to about six inches in height and bears a single white flower. The salmon-colored berry looks like a raspberry and is edible, but not as flavorful as a raspberry. Berries are high in vitamin C. The green leaves are serrated and have five main lobes. The juice from the berries is said to be a remedy for hives.

  DULCE (water leaf), Palmaria mollis: A rubbery, reddish-brown algae with “leaf” blades up to a foot in length. It can be harvested on the beach and eaten raw (with a rinsing to get rid of stray seashells). High in calcium and vitamins A and B, dulce is said to be healthful for menstruating women. May be dried and used as a seasoning.

  FIREWEED (wild asparagus), Epilobium angustifolium: Fireweed grows throughout Alaska and northern North America. Plants grow upright to a height of three to five feet and end in a spikelike flower cluster. Each flower has four petals which bloom from the bottom of the stalk up during mid to late summer. Colors vary from a deep and brilliant red-pink to nearly white. Leaves are willowlike: long and narrow, and medium green in color. Early spring shoots (high in vitamins A and C) may be harvested prior to development of the leaves without harm to the plant. (Harvesting the white stem below the soil level actually promotes plant growth.) The tip of the stem should be discarded due to the disagreeable taste; the remainder can be steamed and eaten like asparagus. Leaves should be harvested before flowers bloom to add to soups as seasoning. Flowers are often used in salads and also make good jelly. Fireweed leaves steeped for tea are said to settle stomachaches. Salves made from roots are said to draw out infection.

  HIGHBUSH CRANBERRY (crampbark, mooseberry), Viburnum edule: This erect but scraggly bush grows throughout Alaska from the Alaska Peninsula to the Brooks Range. Its lobed leaves are shaped somewhat like maple leaves, grow opposite one another on the branches and are coarsely toothed. The average height of the highbush cranberry is four to six feet, though they sometimes reach ten feet. Five-petaled white flowers grow in flat clusters and mature into flavorful but bitter red berries in August and September. (A frost sweetens the berries considerably.) Berries are high in Vitamin C and make tasty jelly. The inner bark, boiled into tea, is used as a gargle for sore throats and colds. Highbush cranberry bark contains glucoside viburnine, a muscle relaxant. Bark made into tea decoctions is used to relieve menstrual and stomach cramps, and is said to be effective on infected skin abrasions.

  IITIKAALUX (cow parsnip, wild celery), Hercleum lanatum: A thick-stemmed hearty plant that grows to nine feet in height. The coarse, dark leaves have three main lobes with serrated edges. It is also known by the Russian name poochki or putchki. Stems and leaf stalks taste like a spicy celery but must be peeled before eating because the outer layer is a skin irritant. White flowers grow in inverted bowl-shaped clusters at the tops of the plants. Roots are also edible, and leaves are dried to flavor soups and stews. The root was chewed raw to ease sore throats and was heated and a section pushed into a painful tooth to deaden root pain. Caution: Gloves should be worn when harvesting. Iitikaalux is similar in appearance to poisonous water hemlock.

  KELP (bull kelp), Nereocystis luetkeana: These long brown algae can grow to a length of 200 feet. Blades can be dried and used as seasoning. Stipes should be peeled as soon as harvested and can be eaten raw or pickled. The air bladders or floats that lie at the top of the water and keep the plant extended from sea bottom to surface can be stuffed with meat and vegetables and baked. Kelp is said to help heal bone fractures.

  LIGIGE’ (soapberry or dog berry), Shepherdia canadensis: A shrub that grows to six feet in height with smooth, round-tipped, dark green leaves. The orange-colored berries ripen in July and are edible but bitter. They foam like soap when beaten.

  LOVAGE (beach lovage, petrushki), Ligusticum scoticum: The stems of this plant separate into three branches, each of which bears a lobed, serrated leaf. Though its growth is ground-hugging, stems may attain a length of two feet. Tiny coral-colored flowers grow in umbels. The leaves, dried or fresh, make good flavoring for stews and are best harvested prior to the plant’s flowering. Lovage relieves stomach upset and is high in vitamins C and A. Caution: Use care in identification. Lovage is related to poison hemlock.

  LUPINE (Nootka lupine), Lupinus nootkatensis: Tall, spikelike plants bear flowers in a spear-shaped cluster at the tip of the stem. E
ach flower has up to seven petals. Colors vary from white to pink or blue. The leaves grow in an alternate pattern up the stalk, each borne on a short stem and dividing into a whorl of blunted, fingerlike leaflets. Caution: Although the Aleut people used a concoction made from the taproot for drying scabs or cuts and as a gargle, lupine is considered poisonous and should be appreciated for its beauty rather than medicinal qualities.

  MOUSE EARS (chickweed, winter weed), Stellaria: This widespread, brittle-stemmed plant grows low along the ground. The leaves are ovate and small, growing opposite each other in pairs on the stem. The five white petals of each flower are split giving a delicate appearance to the blossoms. It is said to be useful as an eyewash, expectorant, and a poultice for inflammations.

  NORI (laver), Porphyra rhodophyta: This sea plant attaches itself to rocks with a very small holdfast. It has a reddish cast, and when floating in water looks like transparent pliable plastic. At low tide, it appears dark and may resemble an oily slick on the rocks. Gather during low tide, but leave the holdfast. Nori is high in iron and protein and a good source of vitamins A, B, and C. It may be eaten raw. Users claim that it helps heal goiters. It is also valuable for treating scurvy. Caution: Ingesting large amounts of nori may cause bloating and stomach distress.

  PURPLE-FLOWERED POISON See Aconite.

  RIBBON KELP (wing kelp), Alaria marginata: The main blades of this sea plant grow up to nine feet in length and are brownish green in color. The wavy outer edge of the main blade gives a ribbonlike appearance. The blade’s midrib is flat. Between the main blade and the holdfast, small winglike sporophylls grow in an alternate pattern along the midrib. Ribbon kelp is high in mineral content. It is good eaten raw, but the blades may be dried and stored for use throughout the year.

  RYE GRASS (basket grass, beach grass), Elymus arenarius mollis: The inner blades of this tall, coarse grass are dried and split, then used by Aleut weavers to fashion exquisite baskets and mats.