Hupiik

Hupiik was a village in the Angalpuk region within the Great Glacier.

Geography
Hupiik was located west of the Angsaas Chain. To the north of the settlement, it was surrounded by a thick forest of birch and willow and to the south, a stream of clear, fresh water.

Inhabitants
The residents of Hupiik secretive, serious and a little arrogant. While Hupiik had nominal relations with other Angulutiun villages, they rarely associated with the residents of other villages outside of sukkiruchit.

They were considered the best caribou herdsman on the Great Glacier, and hosted the largest caribou herd in Angalpuk. During an ikili, the three thousand large heard was driven between the settlement and Isenghak.

The animal-handling techniques developed by the herdsmen were so effective they have been copied by other villages in Angalpuk. The herdsman divided the main herd into jiji, each containing between 100-200 animals and was led by a ujiji. The ujiji rode behind their jiji upon a uhkerek and had six kaujiji to assist them, who rode upon jakerek on each side of the jiji. The whole herd was led by a pimataung.

The herdsmen used lassos to prevent a caribou from wandering off. Trained okteff assisted in keeping the herd together and chased down any caribou who wandered off, herding the animal back to the herd. The herdsman tie feed bags around the caribous' neck to provide supplemental nutrition. Each caribou of the herd was branded with the Hupiik wakiak in the inside of the ear, a symbol of three parallel notches.