Oscar Kawagley
Encyclopedia
Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley (born November 8, 1934, Bethel, Alaska
; died April 27, 2011 in Fairbanks, Alaska
), best known as Oscar Kawagley, was a Yupik Native American
anthropologist, teacher
and actor
from Alaska
, United States of America. He was an associate professor of education at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks until his 2011 death at the age of 76. The Anchorage Daily News
described him as "one of (Alaska's) most influential teachers and thinkers."
He was born in Bethel, Alaska
. He was raised by his grandmother in traditional tribal ways, and as a child he spoke only Yupik. He was reportedly the first Yupik native to graduate from high school in Bethel. He received a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, in 1958. He received a PhD in social and educational studies from at the University of British Columbia
. "Over the course of a prolific career, he explored how the Yup'ik concepts he learned as a boy on the tundra could work in concert with western education and he became a pioneer in the field of indigenous knowledge, not just in Alaska but in the academic world at large.""
His 1995 book, A Yupiaq Worldview: a Pathway to Ecology and Spirit, was an attempt to reconcile indigenous and Western worldviews from an indigenous perspective and was an important contribution to the field of ethnoecology. In the book he developed the concept of "indigenous methodology", explaining how western science can benefit from native ways of understanding and vice versa.
Kawagley also did some acting. He had a major role in the independent 1991 film Salmonberries
, starring k.d. lang
. He also appeared in the television show Northern Exposure
and contributed his voice to the 2003 Disney film Brother Bear
.
Bethel, Alaska
Bethel is a city located near the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, west of Anchorage. Accessible only by air and river, Bethel is the main port on the Kuskokwim River and is an administrative and transportation hub for the 56 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.Bethel is the largest...
; died April 27, 2011 in Fairbanks, Alaska
Fairbanks, Alaska
Fairbanks is a home rule city in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage...
), best known as Oscar Kawagley, was a Yupik Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
anthropologist, teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
from Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, United States of America. He was an associate professor of education at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks until his 2011 death at the age of 76. The Anchorage Daily News
Anchorage Daily News
The Anchorage Daily News is a daily newspaper based in Anchorage, Alaska, in the United States. It is often referred to colloquially as either "the Daily News" or "the ADN"...
described him as "one of (Alaska's) most influential teachers and thinkers."
He was born in Bethel, Alaska
Bethel, Alaska
Bethel is a city located near the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, west of Anchorage. Accessible only by air and river, Bethel is the main port on the Kuskokwim River and is an administrative and transportation hub for the 56 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.Bethel is the largest...
. He was raised by his grandmother in traditional tribal ways, and as a child he spoke only Yupik. He was reportedly the first Yupik native to graduate from high school in Bethel. He received a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, in 1958. He received a PhD in social and educational studies from at the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
. "Over the course of a prolific career, he explored how the Yup'ik concepts he learned as a boy on the tundra could work in concert with western education and he became a pioneer in the field of indigenous knowledge, not just in Alaska but in the academic world at large.""
His 1995 book, A Yupiaq Worldview: a Pathway to Ecology and Spirit, was an attempt to reconcile indigenous and Western worldviews from an indigenous perspective and was an important contribution to the field of ethnoecology. In the book he developed the concept of "indigenous methodology", explaining how western science can benefit from native ways of understanding and vice versa.
Kawagley also did some acting. He had a major role in the independent 1991 film Salmonberries
Salmonberries
Salmonberries is a 1991 drama film directed by Percy Adlon and written by Adlon and his son Felix. It stars k.d. lang as Kotzebue, a young woman of androgynous appearance who works as a miner in Alaska, and Rosel Zech as Roswitha, an East German immigrant and librarian...
, starring k.d. lang
K.D. Lang
Kathryn Dawn Lang, OC , known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress...
. He also appeared in the television show Northern Exposure
Northern Exposure
Northern Exposure is an American television series that ran on CBS from 1990 to 1995, with a total of 110 episodes.-Overview:The series was given a pair of consecutive Peabody Awards: in 1991–92 for the show's "depict[ion] in a comedic and often poetic way, [of] the cultural clash between a...
and contributed his voice to the 2003 Disney film Brother Bear
Brother Bear
Brother Bear is a 2003 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures, the forty-fourth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics. In the film, an Inuit boy pursues a bear in revenge for a battle that he provoked in which...
.