Subarctic regions host two major linguistic families, the North Athapaskan and the Algonquian, each of which is subdivided into numerous tribal entities speaking mutually unintelligible languages and identified by distinctive cultural traits. Although there is a remarkable diversity of ecocultural classifications possible, the musical traditions discussed here will relate solely to these two large linguistic families.
The Subarctic Athapaskan population is historically linked with Athapaskans...