# 45 More Facts About Eskimos

Eskimos probably came to North America from Siberia. This does not mean they are Russian. There was once a land bridge there. The bridge connected Siberia and Alaska. The Eskimos simply crossed it. This was more than 10,000 years ago. Then the oceans rose. The Ice Age was over, and mountains of ice melted. The area is covered by water now, the Bering Strait.

The Eskimos settled near the sea. That was where the food was. They hunted seals. They even hauled in whales with harpoons. They also caught lots of fish. At times, hunting parties would go inland. One thing they hunted was caribou. The skins were prized for clothing. Why not use seal skins instead? Seal skins were very warm. But they were very heavy. Seal skins were best used for covering cold floors. Caribou skins were warm and much lighter. They were good to wear when traveling and hunting.

Caribou skins also made fine tents. These were used in the summer. In the winter, Eskimos lived in igloos. Igloos were made from blocks of hard-packed snow. The blocks were three feet long. They were one-and-a-half feet wide. They were about five inches thick. The blocks were fitted together. But they were not piled up straight. They were set in spiral form. The spiral became smaller toward the top. In this way, a dome was formed. You may wonder about light. How did it enter an igloo? The Eskimos used ice. They set a thin slab of it into a wall. This was the window. There was no danger of melting. The winter temperature is very low. It is about 20 to 30 degrees below zero. Eskimos live in one of the coldest and harshest regions in the world.

# 45 關於愛斯基摩人的更多事實

愛斯基摩人可能來自西伯利亞，遷徙到北美洲。這並不意味著他們是俄羅斯人。那裡曾經有一座陸橋。這座橋連接了西伯利亞和阿拉斯加。愛斯基摩人只是穿越了它。這發生在一萬多年前。然後海洋水位上升。冰河時代結束了，山一樣的冰融化了。該地區現在被水覆蓋，就是白令海峽。

愛斯基摩人在海邊定居。那裡是食物所在的地方。他們獵捕海豹。他們甚至用魚叉捕鯨。他們還捕獲很多魚。有時，狩獵隊會進入內陸。他們獵捕的一種動物是馴鹿。馴鹿皮因適合製衣而備受珍視。為什麼不用海豹皮代替呢？海豹皮非常保暖。但它們非常重。海豹皮最適合用來覆蓋寒冷的地面。馴鹿皮既保暖又輕得多。它們適合在旅行和狩獵時穿著。

馴鹿皮也能做成好帳篷。這些在夏天使用。冬天，愛斯基摩人住在冰屋裡。冰屋是用硬實的雪塊建造的。雪塊長三英尺。寬一英尺半。厚約五英寸。雪塊被拼接在一起。但它們不是直直地堆疊起來。它們被擺成螺旋形。螺旋向頂部逐漸變小。通過這種方式，形成了一個圓頂。你可能會想知道光線。光線如何進入冰屋？愛斯基摩人使用冰。他們將一塊薄冰板嵌入牆中。這就是窗戶。沒有融化的危險。冬季氣溫非常低。大約在零下20到30度。愛斯基摩人生活在世界上最寒冷、最嚴酷的地區之一。