{"id":6446,"date":"2026-05-13T20:32:24","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T20:32:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/tupilak-artificial-revenge-spirit-of-the-greenlandic-inuit\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T09:30:06","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T09:30:06","slug":"tupilak-artificial-revenge-spirit-of-the-greenlandic-inuit","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/tupilak-artificial-revenge-spirit-of-the-greenlandic-inuit\/","title":{"rendered":"Tupilak: Artificial Revenge Spirit of the Greenlandic Inuit"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"6446\" class=\"elementor elementor-6446 elementor-2657 elementor-bc-flex-widget\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-hero e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-hero\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-hl e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-hl\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-htxt e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-htxt\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-h1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-h1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tupilak: Artificially Made Revenge Spirit of the Greenlandic Tradition<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-lead elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-lead\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In the Greenlandic Inuit <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>, the Tupilak is an artificially made being, deliberately deployed, assembled from animal and human remains, with which a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A religious specialist credited with mediating between humans and the spirit world.\" tabindex=\"0\">shaman<\/span> sought to harm or kill an enemy.<\/p><p>Today the term is known internationally above all as a carved figure made of bone or stone. In <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religious studies<\/span> it belongs to the rare class of manufactured aggression <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A bodiless being to which agency in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirits<\/span>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-pillc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-pillc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-pills elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-pills\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"iwg-pill-row\"><span class=\"iwg-klasse-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Spirit of the Inuit tradition.\">Spirit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/inuit-and-the-arctic-sedna-tornit-and-protective-practice\/\" class=\"iwg-kultur-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Mythology of the Inuit tradition.\">Inuit<\/a><span class=\"iwg-tradition-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Artificial spirit of harm.\">Artificial spirit of harm<\/span><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-tocc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-tocc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-toc elementor-toc--minimized-on-tablet elementor-widget elementor-widget-table-of-contents\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-toc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;headings_by_tags&quot;:[&quot;h2&quot;,&quot;h3&quot;],&quot;minimize_box&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;marker_view&quot;:&quot;bullets&quot;,&quot;no_headings_message&quot;:&quot;Es wurden keine \\u00dcberschriften auf dieser Seite gefunden.&quot;,&quot;exclude_headings_by_selector&quot;:[],&quot;icon&quot;:{&quot;value&quot;:&quot;fas fa-circle&quot;,&quot;library&quot;:&quot;fa-solid&quot;,&quot;rendered_tag&quot;:&quot;&lt;svg class=\\&quot;e-font-icon-svg e-fas-circle\\&quot; viewBox=\\&quot;0 0 512 512\\&quot; xmlns=\\&quot;http:\\\/\\\/www.w3.org\\\/2000\\\/svg\\&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=\\&quot;M256 8C119 8 8 119 8 256s111 248 248 248 248-111 248-248S393 8 256 8z\\&quot;&gt;&lt;\\\/path&gt;&lt;\\\/svg&gt;&quot;},&quot;minimized_on&quot;:&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;hierarchical_view&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;min_height&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_tablet&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_mobile&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]}}\" data-widget_type=\"table-of-contents.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-toc__header-title\">\n\t\t\t\tTable of Contents\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--expand\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__iwgw-tupilak-toc\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Open table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-down\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M207.029 381.476L12.686 187.132c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941l22.667-22.667c9.357-9.357 24.522-9.375 33.901-.04L224 284.505l154.745-154.021c9.379-9.335 24.544-9.317 33.901.04l22.667 22.667c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941L240.971 381.476c-9.373 9.372-24.569 9.372-33.942 0z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--collapse\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__iwgw-tupilak-toc\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Close table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-up\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M240.971 130.524l194.343 194.343c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941l-22.667 22.667c-9.357 9.357-24.522 9.375-33.901.04L224 227.495 69.255 381.516c-9.379 9.335-24.544 9.317-33.901-.04l-22.667-22.667c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941L207.03 130.525c9.372-9.373 24.568-9.373 33.941-.001z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"elementor-toc__iwgw-tupilak-toc\" class=\"elementor-toc__body\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__spinner-container\">\n\t\t\t\t<svg class=\"elementor-toc__spinner eicon-animation-spin e-font-icon-svg e-eicon-loading\" aria-hidden=\"true\" viewBox=\"0 0 1000 1000\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M500 975V858C696 858 858 696 858 500S696 142 500 142 142 304 142 500H25C25 237 238 25 500 25S975 237 975 500 763 975 500 975Z\"><\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-hr e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-hr\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-heroimg iwg-hero-image elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-heroimg\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/geister_inuit_tupilak-683x1024.webp\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-6447\" alt=\"Tupilak: spirits from the Inuit tradition, historical-illustrative\" srcset=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/geister_inuit_tupilak-683x1024.webp 683w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/geister_inuit_tupilak-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/geister_inuit_tupilak-768x1152.webp 768w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/geister_inuit_tupilak.webp 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s0 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s0h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s0h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Classification and Brief Profile<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s0c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s0c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s0t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s0t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In religious-studies classification, the Tupilak belongs to the rare group of manufactured <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An incorporeal being to which effects in the world are attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirit<\/span> beings.<\/p><p>Unlike <a href=\"\/en\/sedna-inuit-mistress-of-the-sea\/\">Sedna<\/a>, <a href=\"\/en\/sila-world-breath-and-weather-lord-of-the-inuit\/\">Sila<\/a> or <a href=\"\/en\/tornarssuk-great-protective-spirit-of-the-inuit-shamans\/\">Tornarssuk<\/a>, which are regarded as given cosmic or helping powers, the Tupilak is a deliberately produced construct that serves a concrete purpose: harming an enemy. This constructive dimension fundamentally distinguishes it from all other entries of the Inuit <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the gods of a religion or culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">pantheon<\/span>.<\/p><p>The sources for the Tupilak concentrate on Greenland, in particular the east coast and the Disko Bay, and range from the 18th century with Hans Egede through Henrik Rink in the 19th to William Thalbitzer and Robert Petersen in the 20th century.<\/p><p>Related terms such as <em>tupilaq<\/em> or <em>tuurngaq qungasiq<\/em> are also attested in the central Canadian Arctic, though there with a partly divergent meaning. This regional specificity is instructive from a religious-studies perspective.<\/p><p>Today the Tupilak exists in two layers in parallel: as the historical concept of a being of harm actually manufactured and magically animated, and as the term for the carved figures made of whale tooth, reindeer antler and bone that have been developed as a Greenlandic craft form since the 1880s. This dual layering makes any discussion of the Tupilak methodologically demanding and requires careful differentiation.<\/p><p>With the Tupilak, more recent research has expanded its methodological tools and combines ethnographic precision, linguistic source criticism and a comparative perspective.<\/p><p>This refinement is especially necessary here, because older Western accounts often sensationalized the artificially produced being of harm; the Inuit community of knowledge, which today is itself involved in the research, corrects such partly colonially shaped attributions.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s1 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s1\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s1h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s1h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Etymology and Word History<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s1c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s1c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s1t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s1t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Etymologically, <em>tupilak<\/em> or <em>tupilaq<\/em> derives from the stem <em>tupi-<\/em>, which in several Inuit languages means ancestor or soul of a dead person. Tupilak would thus literally mean something like <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An ancestor venerated in many cultures as a protective power.\" tabindex=\"0\">ancestral<\/span> form or spirit creature.<\/p><p>In his studies of linguistic history, Robert Petersen worked out the kinship with terms for the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An incorporeal being to which an effect in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirit<\/span> of a deceased person, thereby establishing a linguistic bridge to the world of the dead among the Inuit.<\/p><p>In the Greenlandic language the plural <em>tupilait<\/em> also exists, denoting the collective of these beings. In modern usage the meaning has broadened and is often translated as bogey figure or evil <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An incorporeal being to which an effect in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirit<\/span>, which shortens the original meaning and loses the specific dimension of construction. In religious studies this reduction must be treated critically.<\/p><p>It is notable that the Tupilak is not negatively connoted in its etymology. The negative valuation arises from its function, not from the word itself. A Tupilak is not evil by nature but is deployed for aggression.<\/p><p>This ethical neutrality of the word itself is of interest in religious studies because it shows that the moral assessment arises only through the intentional use.<\/p><p>In addition, the religious-sociological view of the role that the Tupilak played in the social order of the traditional Inuit community is worthwhile.<\/p><p>Since such a being was directed deliberately against an enemy, it shows particularly clearly that the religious structure was not separated from social practice but closely interwoven with it. This entanglement forms its own field of religious anthropology, which Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Laugrand and Jarich Oosten in particular have studied systematically.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s2 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s2\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s2h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s2h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Manufacture in Traditional Practice<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s2c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s2c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s2t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s2t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The ethnographic sources, especially in Henrik Rink and William Thalbitzer, describe the manufacture of a Tupilak in detail.<\/p><p>A <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A religious specialist credited with mediating between humans and the spirit world.\" tabindex=\"0\">shaman<\/span> who wished to harm an enemy secretly gathered components: bones of various animals, hair, sinews, sometimes pieces of corpses or of the enemy&#8217;s own clothing. These components were assembled into a figure at a secluded place, often at a rock cleft or cave.<\/p><p>Over this figure, chants and incantations were performed. The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A religious specialist credited with mediating between humans and the spirit world.\" tabindex=\"0\">shaman<\/span> suckled the being from his armpit or his lap and transferred vital force to it. The figure was then released into the water or the snow to seek out and kill the enemy.<\/p><p>If the enemy was himself a powerful <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A religious specialist credited with mediating between humans and the spirit world.\" tabindex=\"0\">shaman<\/span>, he could ward off the Tupilak or even turn it back against its creator, which lent the practice a considerable risk.<\/p><p>In religious studies this practice is interesting because it rests on a theory of the animation of inorganic and organic remains that is interlocked with the shamanic doctrine of helping spirits.<\/p><p>The Tupilak is a form of constructive <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of things through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magic<\/span> that in the Inuit cosmos is at once permitted and ethically burdened. In terms of the phenomenology of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religion<\/span>, it is a hybrid form combining construction magic and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An incorporeal being to which an effect in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirit<\/span> animation.<\/p><p>The manufacture itself was a dangerous act. Whoever was discovered risked social ostracism, retaliation by the enemy&#8217;s family or death by his own Tupilak.<\/p><p>This structure of risk stabilized the social order and made the use of Tupilaks the exception rather than the rule, even though the narratives give the impression of a more frequent practice.<\/p><p>Compared with other shamanic practices of the Inuit, the manufacture of a Tupilak is described in exceptional detail, because it was regarded as a dangerous anomaly and thereby aroused particular interest among the ethnographers&#8217; informants.<\/p><p>This distortion of the source situation must be reflected upon in religious studies, because it may make the Tupilak practice appear larger in perception than it actually was.<\/p><p>In comparative <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religious studies<\/span>, the Tupilak is read as a component of that circumpolar religious topography that recurs across thousands of kilometers in a remarkably consistent structure. This structural stability is regarded, in the phenomenology of religion, as one of the most remarkable findings of the field and is still discussed controversially today.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s3 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s3\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s3h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s3h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Apotropaic Counter-Practices<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s3c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s3c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s3t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s3t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Against the Tupilak there was an established repertoire of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Warding off evil: of signs and objects intended to keep harmful influences away.\" tabindex=\"0\">apotropaic<\/span> practices. Anyone who suspected that a Tupilak was on its way against him sought out a shaman who, with the help of his Tornait, that is, his helping spirits, could intercept, identify and send the Tupilak back.<\/p><p>If the Tupilak had returned against its creator, it brought him the intended death. This reciprocity is, in the phenomenology of religion, a pattern of its own.<\/p><p>Other protective practices consisted in wearing apotropaic <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A worn object to which a protective, misfortune-averting effect is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">amulets<\/span>, sealing the igloo entrances with certain rites and observing the general taboo rules, whose observance was meant to weaken the Tupilak.<\/p><p>The effectiveness of these means was a central theme of belief and experience that is treated extensively in Greenlandic narrative literature and makes up a considerable share of the oral corpus.<\/p><p>In religious studies it is notable that the Tupilak practice generated both discourses of threat and of protection.<\/p><p>The possibility of an aggressive use heightened the social significance of the shamans as an instance of protection and at the same time stabilized the social order, because overt conflicts tended to be avoided. This socio-political function of the Tupilak threat is, in the sociology of religion, an independent object of research.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s4 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s4\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s4h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s4h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Mythological and Legendary Tupilak Narratives<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s4c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s4c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s4t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s4t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The East Greenlandic narrative literature knows numerous Tupilak stories in which a Tupilak returns against its creator because the chosen enemy was too strong.<\/p><p>A well-known narrative reports of a shaman who directed a Tupilak against a rival who, however, recognized its power, warded it off and sent it back to the sender. The creator thereupon died in his own igloo.<\/p><p>Other narratives concern Tupilaks that strike the innocent by mistake, or Tupilaks that no longer come under the control of their creator and roam through the tundra as wandering spirits of harm.<\/p><p>These narratives are not merely entertaining but function as ethical warnings: whoever makes Tupilaks risks his own life. The didactic dimension of the narratives is, in religious pedagogy, a topos of its own.<\/p><p>The Tupilak narratives are attested many times over in the major Greenlandic collections, for instance in Henrik Rink and Mathias Storch. They form an independent genre within Inuit <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The handed-down popular culture with customs, narratives and songs.\" tabindex=\"0\">folklore<\/span> and are an important source corpus for the religious-studies reconstruction of traditional shamanic practice and its ethical discourse.<\/p><p>A specific subgroup of the narratives deals with Tupilaks described as animal hybrids that act at the boundary between animal and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An incorporeal being to which an effect in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirit<\/span>.<\/p><p>This hybrid character of the Tupilaks is, in the phenomenology of religion, a phenomenon of its own and connects the Tupilak conception with the general transformation <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The scholarly doctrine of God and of the faith of a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span> of the Inuit, in which the boundaries between human, animal and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An incorporeal being to which an effect in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirit<\/span> are permeable. Here lies a research question of its own concerning the construction of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being that unites the features of various living creatures in itself.\" tabindex=\"0\">hybrid beings<\/span>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s5 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s5h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s5h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">From Spirit of Harm to Carved Figure<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s5c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s5c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s5t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s5t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A significant transformation of the Tupilak concept began in the 1880s in East Greenland. European visitors asked shamans about the appearance of the Tupilaks.<\/p><p>Since the real Tupilaks were invisible or amorphous and disintegrated immediately after their task, the shamans carved models from whale tooth, reindeer horn and later stone. These models were objects of demonstration, not magically effective Tupilaks.<\/p><p>From these models an independent craft tradition arose. Today&#8217;s Greenlandic Tupilak carvings show distorted, hybrid beings with human, animal and fantastic features. They are a significant economic factor for Greenland and are present in every tourist trade. The aesthetic variety is great and reflects the individual creativity of the respective carvers.<\/p><p>In religious studies this transformation is a textbook example of the secularization of a religious category. The Tupilak as a spirit being has largely vanished from the imagination, while the Tupilak as a carved figure is world-famous.<\/p><p>Both layers must be kept cleanly apart if one wishes to understand the religion of the Inuit. This distinction is also explicitly conveyed in today&#8217;s Greenlandic schools and museums.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s6 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s6\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s6h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s6h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Tupilak in Comparison with Other Beings of Harm<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s6c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s6c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s6t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s6t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In religious-studies comparison, the Tupilak belongs to the category of constructed aggression spirits attested in many cultures. Structurally related are the Hebrew golem, the Javanese <em>tuju<\/em>, the Haitian <em>zonbi<\/em> complex and, in a certain sense, the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Epoch of Greek and Roman culture, roughly 800 BCE to 600 CE.\" tabindex=\"0\">ancient<\/span> <em>katadesmos<\/em> <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A verbal formula intended to inflict misfortune on a person or thing.\" tabindex=\"0\">curse<\/span> tablet. Common to all is the deliberate material construction of an effective being.<\/p><p>Within the circumpolar region there are parallels in the Chukchi and Yupik traditions, which know manufactured aggression spirits, though with other material and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An ordered sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritual<\/span> specifics. Among the <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/sami-and-finno-ugric-tradition-noaidi-and-drum\/\">Sami<\/a>, the Tupilak corresponds structurally to the carved spirit beings that played a role in Sami <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A religious system in which specialists interact with the spirit world.\" tabindex=\"0\">shamanism<\/span>, without a direct historical kinship being assumable.<\/p><p>The Tupilak practice stands out from Western notions of black <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of things through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magic<\/span> in that it is not primarily ethically condemned. It is risky, but within the Inuit framework of values it is a legitimate, if dangerous, option in the event of conflict.<\/p><p>This ethical position makes the Tupilak practice interesting from the philosophy of religion and clearly distinguishes it from Christian, morally shaped notions of harmful <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of things through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magic<\/span>.<\/p><p>In addition, the parallel to the Mesopotamian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Mesopotamian demoness regarded as a threat to pregnant women and newborns.\" tabindex=\"0\">Lamashtu<\/span> incantations should be noted, in which a combination of construction of harm and apotropaic practice likewise becomes tangible, without a historical connection having to be assumed.<\/p><p>These structural analogies are, in the religious-studies discussion of the universal patterns of harmful magic, a field of research of their own and evidence of the structural constancy of such practices across cultures.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s7 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s7\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s7h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s7h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Mission, Prohibition and Memory<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s7c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s7c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s7t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s7t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>With the mission that Hans Egede began in 1721 in West Greenland and that the Moravian and Danish-Lutheran churches continued, the Tupilak practice came under strong pressure.<\/p><p>It was regarded as devilish, was forbidden by the church and was socially ostracized. In East Greenland, which was intensively missionized only at the end of the 19th century, the practice persisted longest.<\/p><p>In religious studies it is difficult to date the precise extinction of the genuine manufacture of Tupilaks.<\/p><p>As late as 1923, William Thalbitzer reports of persons who had made Tupilaks in their youth or at least claimed to have done so. In the second half of the 20th century the Tupilak survives only in the carving art and in the narrative literature.<\/p><p>In Greenland&#8217;s schoolbooks and museums the Tupilak tradition is conveyed today with didactic care. The difference between historical <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of things through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magic<\/span> and contemporary art is expressly marked in order to forestall misunderstandings.<\/p><p>This pedagogical practice is, in the didactics of religion, a field of research of its own and an example of conveying a colonially transformed history of religion.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s8 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s8\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s8h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s8h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Present-Day Research and Reception<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s8c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s8c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s8t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s8t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Current research on the Tupilak takes place above all in Greenland itself, for instance at the Greenland National Museum and Archives in Nuuk and in the ethnological institutes of the Danish universities.<\/p><p>Robert Petersen, Birgitte Sonne and Jens Rosing have presented fundamental studies on the Tupilak practice and its pictorial history, which are recognized in the international research discourse.<\/p><p>The international reception is divided. While the religious-studies literature treats the Tupilak as a historical-ritual category, in popular culture the use as an <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Collective term for teachings that claim a hidden knowledge accessible only to initiates.\" tabindex=\"0\">esoteric<\/span> or decorative <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A recurring thematic element in art or narrative.\" tabindex=\"0\">motif<\/span> dominates. This discrepancy is the subject of its own scholarly reflection on the colonial appropriation of indigenous religions and the ethical problems of such appropriations.<\/p><p>Within the Inuit diaspora, the Tupilak has remained a symbol of identity, without being revitalized as a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of events through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magical<\/span> practice. This dual stance, preserving the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands in place of a conception or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbol<\/span> while deliberately leaving the practice behind, is instructive in religious studies and shows the selective appropriation of traditional concepts in modern indigenous identity formation.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s9 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s9\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s9h elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s9h\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Lexicon Cross-References<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s9c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s9c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-s9t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-s9t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Related are the entries <a href=\"\/en\/tornarssuk-great-protective-spirit-of-the-inuit-shamans\/\">Tornarssuk<\/a>, <a href=\"\/en\/sedna-inuit-mistress-of-the-sea\/\">Sedna<\/a>, <a href=\"\/en\/sila-world-breath-and-weather-lord-of-the-inuit\/\">Sila<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/anguta-father-of-sedna-and-keeper-of-the-underworld\/\">Anguta<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/nanook-polar-bear-lord-of-the-inuit-tradition\/\">Nanook<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/pinga-mistress-of-land-animals-and-of-women-in-childbirth\/\">Pinga<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/igaluk-moon-god-of-the-inuit-tradition\/\">Igaluk<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/malina-sun-goddess-of-the-inuit\/\">Malina<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/qailertetang-weather-companion-and-guardian-of-animals\/\">Qailertetang<\/a>. The cultural hub <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/inuit-and-the-arctic-sedna-tornit-and-protective-practice\/\">Inuit tradition<\/a> frames the history of religion. Structurally similar construction spirits are found in the <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/sami-and-finno-ugric-tradition-noaidi-and-drum\/\">Sami<\/a> series of entries and in numerous other traditions worldwide.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp214d8673 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp214d8673\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp27e4a4b9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp27e4a4b9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Manufacture of the Tupilak in the Tradition<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp24166b60 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cp24166b60\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp2b59f5ae elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp2b59f5ae\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In the Greenlandic Inuit <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The transmission of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>, the Tupilak is not a born being but a manufactured one. According to the descriptions that derive, among others, from the records of the Fifth Thule Expedition under Knud Rasmussen and from older travel reports, a person who wished to harm another secretly fashioned the creature from various materials.<\/p><p>Bones, animal parts, pieces of pelts, sinews and occasionally also something from the body of a child or of the deceased were used.<\/p><p>These components were assembled into a small, often formless figure. Through songs, invocations and, according to some reports, through contact with the maker&#8217;s own body, life was breathed into the figure. The Tupilak was thereby a tool of harmful sorcery: it was sent into the sea to seek out and kill a particular <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An offering to a deity to express thanks, request or veneration.\" tabindex=\"0\">victim<\/span>.<\/p><p>The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The transmission of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span> emphasizes, however, that the Tupilak was dangerous to its own creator. If the targeted <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An offering to a deity to express thanks, request or veneration.\" tabindex=\"0\">victim<\/span> commanded stronger supernatural powers or was himself a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A religious specialist credited with mediating between humans and the spirit world.\" tabindex=\"0\">shaman<\/span>, he could ward off the Tupilak and send it back.<\/p><p>The returning Tupilak then killed the one who had fashioned it. The manufacture was therefore regarded as a highly risky and socially condemned act.<\/p><p>The sources for these conceptions are throughout records from outside, gathered by expedition members, pastors and travelers, and they relate above all to East and West Greenland. A uniform practice for the entire Inuit world cannot be derived from them.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp209c5ae5 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp209c5ae5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp2a926e7c elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp2a926e7c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Carved Tupilak Figures and the Colonial Art Market<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp2e82f2d5 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cp2e82f2d5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp29b0254c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp29b0254c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The best-known Tupilak objects today are small carved figures of tooth, bone, antler or wood that depict grotesque mixed and grimacing forms.<\/p><p>These figures are, however, not identical with the creatures of harmful sorcery described in the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The transmission of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>. The original Tupilaks were concealed, secretly fashioned objects that no one was to see and that were not kept after use.<\/p><p>The carved figures arose only in contact with Europeans. Travelers, missionaries and later tourists wanted to know what a Tupilak looked like, and Greenlanders thereupon created visible images of what had until then existed only as a conception.<\/p><p>Out of this encounter, an independent carving art developed from the late 19th and above all in the 20th century, especially in East Greenland around Ammassalik. The Tupilak figures became a fixed component of Greenlandic craft and are still made today.<\/p><p>For research, this development is an instructive case of colonially shaped object history. What lies in museums and collections as a Tupilak is usually a product of the contact period, not a testimony of pre-colonial ritual practice.<\/p><p>Ethnologists such as William Thalbitzer, who studied East Greenland in the early 20th century, early identified the difference between the handed-down concept and the visible figure.<\/p><p>The carved Tupilaks are nevertheless not mere forgeries but an independent artistic tradition that has transferred the old concept into a new, material form. With every statement about Tupilak objects it must therefore be distinguished whether the handed-down conception or the carving art is being referred to.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-lit e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-lit\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-lith elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-lith\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Literature (Selection)<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-litc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-litc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-litt elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-litt\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul><li>Henrik Rink: <em>Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo<\/em> (Edinburgh 1875)<\/li><li>William Thalbitzer: <em>The Ammassalik Eskimo<\/em> (Copenhagen 1914-1923)<\/li><li>Robert Petersen: <em>Carved Greenlandic Figures<\/em> (Nuuk 1991)<\/li><li>Birgitte Sonne: <em>Heaven Negotiated. Hell Imagined<\/em> (Copenhagen 2017)<\/li><li>Jens Rosing: <em>Sagn og <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A transmitted narrative often with a historical core and miraculous features.\" tabindex=\"0\">saga<\/span> fra Angmagssalik<\/em> (Copenhagen 1963)<\/li><li>Hans Egede: <em>Det gamle Gr\u00f8nlands nye Perlustration<\/em> (Copenhagen 1741)<\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgkw-add-tupilak e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgkw-add-tupilak\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgkw-add-tupilak-t elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgkw-add-tupilak-t\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In the Greenlandic <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The transmission of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>, the Tupilak is regarded as an artificially made <strong>revenge spirit<\/strong> that a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A religious specialist credited with mediating between humans and the spirit world.\" tabindex=\"0\">shaman<\/span> or angakkoq formed from bones, animal remains and skin in order to strike a particular opponent.<\/p><p>As a deliberately produced revenge spirit, the Tupilak differs from the freely roaming spirit beings of the Inuit tradition, because it is directed at a concrete person and can, according to the sources, turn against its own originator as soon as the attacked target is more strongly protected than expected.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-kwd e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-kwd\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-kwdc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-kwdc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-kwdt elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-kwdt\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><em>Related key terms: Tupilak Tupilaq Tupilait spirit of harm carved figure East Greenland whale tooth Thalbitzer.<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-cc e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-cc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" id=\"iwg-cc-tupilak\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-ccinner e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-ccinner\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-cch elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-cch\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">iWell Guard and Traditions of Protection<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-cct elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-cct\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div data-nosnippet=\"true\"><p>iWell Guard ties in with the cultural-historical tradition of portable protective objects, in the tradition of the <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/inuit-and-the-arctic-sedna-tornit-and-protective-practice\/\">Inuit<\/a> and many other cultures worldwide. 41 layers, solid gold, platinum, silver, made in Germany. 30-day right of return.<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-ccb iwg-cc-button iwg-cc-cta-2026-05-13 elementor-widget elementor-widget-jet-button\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-ccb\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"jet-button.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-jet-button jet-elements\"><div class=\"jet-button__container\"><a class=\"jet-button__instance jet-button__instance--icon-left hover-effect-1\" href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/about-iwell-guard-the-protective-pendant-in-detail\/?utm_source=iwell-guard.com&amp;utm_medium=info-box&amp;utm_campaign=wesen-tradition\"><div class=\"jet-button__plane jet-button__plane-normal\"><\/div><div class=\"jet-button__plane jet-button__plane-hover\"><\/div><div class=\"jet-button__state jet-button__state-normal\"><span class=\"jet-button__label\">More about the iWell Guard<\/span><\/div><div class=\"jet-button__state jet-button__state-hover\"><span class=\"jet-button__label\">More about the iWell Guard<\/span><\/div><\/a><\/div><\/div><style>.elementor-element.elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-ccb .jet-button__instance{width:320px;height:56px;}.elementor-element.elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-ccb .jet-button__state-normal .jet-button__label{text-align:center;margin:0px 0px 0px 0px;color:#1a1b20;font-family:Montserrat,sans-serif;font-size:13px;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:4px;line-height:1.714em;text-transform:uppercase;}.elementor-element.elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-ccb .jet-button__state-hover .jet-button__label{text-align:center;margin:0px 0px 0px 0px;color:#FECC76;font-family:Montserrat,sans-serif;font-size:13px;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:4px;line-height:1.714em;text-transform:uppercase;}.elementor-element.elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-ccb .jet-button__plane-normal{background-color:#FECC76;border-style:solid;border-color:#C99540;border-width:2px 2px 2px 2px;}.elementor-element.elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-ccb .jet-button__plane-hover{background-color:rgba(0,0,0,0.55);border-style:solid;border-color:#FECC76;border-width:2px 2px 2px 2px;}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-ccd elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-ccd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div data-nosnippet=\"true\"><p style=\"text-align:center;font-size:13px;opacity:0.7;margin-top:14px\" data-nosnippet=\"true\">Personal experiences may vary. Not a medical device. No promise of healing.<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-disc e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-disc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgw-tupilak-discw elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"iwgw-tupilak-discw\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<footer data-nosnippet=\"true\" class=\"iwg-disclaimer-block\"><p data-nosnippet=\"true\">iWell Guard is <strong>not a medical device<\/strong> and does not replace medical or psychotherapeutic treatment. The religious-studies content is cultural-historical classification, not a recommendation for spiritual practice.<\/p><\/footer>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tupilak: Artificially Made Revenge Spirit of the Greenlandic Tradition In the Greenlandic Inuit tradition, the Tupilak is an artificially made being, deliberately deployed, assembled from animal and human remains, with which a shaman sought to harm or kill an enemy. Today the term is known internationally above all as a carved figure made of bone [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6447,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"elementor_header_footer","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"Tupilak Inuit revenge spirit","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Tupilak: Inuit Revenge Spirit and Carved Figure","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Tupilak is the artificially made revenge spirit of the Greenlandic Inuit, later a carved figure. Religious-studies classification and sources.","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_angie_page":false,"gefaehrdungsstufe":"","wesen_kultur":"","wesen_klasse":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[93],"class_list":["post-6446","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-spirits"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v27.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Tupilak: Inuit Revenge Spirit and Carved Figure<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Tupilak is the artificially made revenge spirit of the Greenlandic Inuit, later a carved figure. 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