Anchorage Daily News

SHUNGNAK

POPULATION: 260 (2006)

LOCATION: On the west bank of the Kobuk River about 150 miles east of Kotzebue.

DESCRIPTION: A traditional Inupiat Eskimo village with a subsistence lifestyle. Nearly 95 percent of the population is wholly or partly Alaska Native, subsisting mainly on fishing, hunting and trapping for sheefish, whitefish, caribou, moose, ducks and berries. Most full-time employment is with the school district (about 75 students, including some from Kobuk), the city, Maniilaq Association, two stores and a lodge. BLM provides seasonal employment in fire fighting, hiring over 30 residents each year. Shungnak also has a strong arts and crafts industry; residents make and sell finely crafted baskets, masks, mukluks, parkas, hats and mittens.

HISTORY: Founded in 1899 as a supply point for mining activities in the Cosmos Hills, this village was forced to move in the 1920s because of river erosion and flooding. The old site, 10 miles upstream, was renamed Kobuk by those who remained there. The new village was named "Kochuk" but later reverted to Shungnak, derived from the Eskimo word "Issingnak," which means jade, a stone found extensively throughout the surrounding hills. The city government was incorporated in 1967.

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