Family

Families dominated society. They worked together for food, clothing, and shelter. Male and female roles were strictly divided. Men hunted and made boats, homes, and hunting tools. Women's roles included child rearing, food preparation, and sewing. Women were restricted by a large number of taboos, such as not sitting with men when menstruating. It was believed that if a woman broke taboos, it would bring bad luck to her husband's hunting. Marriages were arranged by family elders.

For most groups, the family was the basis of the household. The one exception was the Yupik. In their permanent winter villages, husbands and wives lived in separate places. The men collectively lived and taught the boys in the community house, and the women lived and taught their daughters at the family home.