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Marie Napoka

Marie Napoka is Yup'ik from Tuluksak, Alaska. She was born in 1941 to Martha and Harry Jackson at Kwethluk, Alaska. She left home in 1958 to attend Mount Edgecumbe High School in Sitka, Alaska. After she graduated in 1962, she went to cosmetology school in Anchorage for a year. In 1965, Marie moved to Tuluksak and married John Napoka. She taught adult education in Kwethluk, studied orthography of the Yup’ik language in Fairbanks, and then taught first grade Yup’ik language immersion classes in Tuluksak. Marie worked in the school for many years and also worked with the Early Childhood Program in Tuluksak.

Biographical information provided by Freda Alexie of the Yupiit School District.

Date of Birth:

Mar 24, 1941

Marie Napoka appears in the following new Jukebox projects:

Tuluksak

Interview Title	Abstract	Archive #: Oral History	Project	Date of Interview
Marie Napoka	Marie Napoka was interviewed on September 25, 2004 by Bill Schneider, Louann Rank, Marla Statscewich and Freda Alexie in Tuluksak, Alaska. There were complications with the tape recorder during this interview so this has been edited. In this interview, Marie talks about the meaning of and stories behind place names in the area, including Uuravik and Kuigurluq, and the origins of the village at Tuluksak. She also tries to find on the map the location of her mother's village on the Macivik River. While talking about place names, Marie relates them to traditional stories, including about the warrior, Apanuugpak; warring times and fending off enemies; and starvation times.	2004-07-16	Tuluksak	Sep 25, 2004