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Quebec Government recognizes throat singing

Eilís Quinn, Eye on the Arctic @arctic_eq
Posted: Wednesday, February 5, 2014 at 08:44 — Last Updated: Monday, August 25, 2014 at 18:41
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Inuit cultural performers Sylvia Ipirautaq Cloutier (left) and and Eva Sowdluapik practice their throat singing performance in the Senate chamber on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada. (Tom Hanson / The Canadian Press)

Just last week, the government in the French speaking province of Quebec recognized Inuit throat singing as an official part of Quebec’s heritage.

The press conference took place with Maka Kotto, Quebec’s minister of culture and communications, along with representatives of the Avataq Cultural Institute, a Quebec Inuit cultural organization.

There’s a story up on Avataq’s website about the event. It also covers some of the history around Inuit throat singing in Nunavik, the Inuit self-governing region of northern Quebec.

In the mean time, I’ll leave you with a YouTube video from the event:

Write to Eilís Quinn at eilis.quinn(at)cbc.ca

Avataq, Katajjaniq, Nunavik

Eilís Quinn, Eye on the Arctic

Eilís Quinn is an award-winning journalist and manages Radio Canada International’s Eye on the Arctic news cooperation project. Eilís has reported from the Arctic regions of all eight circumpolar countries and has produced numerous documentary and multimedia series about climate change and the issues facing Indigenous peoples in the North.

Her investigative report "Death in the Arctic: A community grieves, a father fights for change," about the murder of Robert Adams, a 19-year-old Inuk man from Arctic Quebec, received the silver medal for “Best Investigative Article or Series” at the 2019 Canadian Online Publishing Awards. The project also received an honourable mention for excellence in reporting on trauma at the 2019 Dart Awards in New York City.

Her report “The Arctic Railway: Building a future or destroying a culture?” on the impact a multi-billion euro infrastructure project would have on Indigenous communities in Arctic Europe was a finalist at the 2019 Canadian Association of Journalists award in the online investigative category.

Her multimedia project on the health challenges in the Canadian Arctic, "Bridging the Divide," was a finalist at the 2012 Webby Awards.

Her work on climate change in the Arctic has also been featured on the TV science program Découverte, as well as Le Téléjournal, the French-Language CBC’s flagship news cast.

Eilís has worked for media organizations in Canada and the United States and as a TV host for the Discovery/BBC Worldwide series "Best in China."

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