Читать книгу Primitive Time-reckoning. A study in the origins and first development of the art of counting time among the primitive and early culture peoples онлайн

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How upon such a foundation a number of seasons may be built up is shewn by a comparison with an instructive account referring to the Eskimos of the Ungava district of Labrador. The seasons have distinctive names and are again sub-divided into a great number of shorter seasons. There are more of these during the warmer weather than in winter. The reason is obviously that the summer offers so many changes, and the winter so few. The chief events are the return of the sun, always a sign of joy to the people, the lengthening of the day, the warm weather in March when the sun has attained sufficient height, the melting of the snow, the breaking up of the ice, the open water, the time of birth of various seals, the advent of exotic birds, the nesting of gulls, eider, and other native birds, the arrival of white whales and the whaling season, salmon fishing, the ripening of salmon-berries and other species of edibles, the time of reindeer crossing the river, the trapping of fur-bearing animals, and hunting on land and water for food. Each of these periods has its special name applied to it, although several may overlap each other. The appearance of mosquitoes, sandflies, and horseflies is marked by dates anticipated with considerable apprehension of annoyance[225]. The Eskimos of Greenland reckon from the winter solstice five moons until the time when the nights become so bright that it is impossible to reckon any longer from the moon. Then they reckon by the increasing size of the young of the eider-duck and by the ripening of berries, or along the sea-coast by the departure of the tern and the fatness of the seals; when the reindeer shed the velvet from their horns they know that it is time to move into the winter houses[226].