Kiana ( or ) is a city in Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska, United States. As of the 2020 census, Kiana had a population of 447.
History
Before contact
Kiana, meaning where three rivers meet, was founded several centuries ago. Before Kiana became a village, the Inupiat tended to travel with certain animal herds; constantly hunting for meat and furs.
In the 1800s, the Inupiaqs of Kiana used to live along the Kobuk River. Throughout the year the villagers hunted and fished near their houses. They moved to an area where there was an abundance of animals and fish. The Inupiaqs lived in sod houses as they followed game.
When someone died inside the house they abandoned it, believing they would catch a contagious disease. Instead of building coffins or digging graves, the villagers wrapped the bodies of the deceased in cloths; they put poles in the cloths making the shape of a teepee.
Archaeological studies have been done on the local site 'Igliqtiqsiugvigruaq' (Swift Water Place) which was inhabited by the ancestors of the present day residents of Kiana from 1790 to 1810. The town consisted of burrowed homes connected by tunnels.
Early 20th century
The first white people arrived from the south with boats in 1898 and changed the way of life. They settled in what is now Kiana. More white people came in 1901 and 1902 and started building houses. Inupiaq women moved to them and married the men.
Archaeologists have discovered a pre-contact Inupiaq village near Kiana. From carbon dating, the archaeologists discovered the village was from the late 1700s to the early 1800s. After more digging was done, they found that some of the houses they excavated were connected with tunnels and passageways. The average house size in the village was about the size of typical one-roomed cabins. Some of the artifacts that were found include metal fragments and shards, as well as glass beads.
Kiana is the central village of the Kobuk river, for Kowagmiut Inupaiq Eskimos. Kiana became known to the Federal Government after a population increase, eventually making the town in to a city, in the year 1915. A United States Post Office was founded in the year 1964.
Before the post office was built, mail came only once a month. The mail transportation method was mainly by dogsled or by walking from one village to another. During that time, Kiana became a key supply city for coal and gold miners who were posted along the Squirrel River. The Blankenship Trading Post was managed by Walter Blankenship, and later by Robinson Blankenship and Ruth Blankenship Sandvik. The trading post was the only store with goods such as flour, salt, carbonated beverages, coffee, tea, sugar, and fruit, both dried and canned.
Language
The first villages in the region to start teaching the Inupiaq language in public school were Ambler, Shungnak, and Kobuk. Noorvik and the other villages around the region began teaching it as well. Viola Barr and Rosaline Jackson were the first people in Kiana to teach Inupiaq language in a classroom in 1971.
Before white people came to the region, the children of Kiana grew up speaking the Inupiaq language. Most Kiana students and adults do not know how to read, write, or speak the language. The region is trying to get more people to speak the language so many more townspeople will be able to speak Inupiaq. Rosetta Stone and the Inupiaq Language Commission help with the effort.
Geography
Kiana is located at (66.971720, -160.430168). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land.
The village of Kiana is located where rivers meet: the Squirrel River, Kobuk River as well as big/small channel rivers. Kiana is in the Northwestern Alaska, 30 miles north of the Arctic Circle, and 57 air miles east of Kotzebue.
The snowfall is significant with about 60 inches per year and the rainfall is 16 inches on average. The Kobuk River is navigable by boat from May to October; it is frozen for the remainder of the year.
Demographics
Kiana first appeared on the 1920 U.S. Census as an unincorporated native village. It formally incorporated in 1964.
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Kiana had a population of 447. The median age was 24.9 years. 35.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 7.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 112.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 128.6 males age 18 and over.
There were 108 households in Kiana, of which 58.3% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 26.9% were married-couple households, 21.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 29.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 16.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| White || 21 || 4.7%
|-
| Black or African American || 1 || 0.2%
|-
| American Indian and Alaska Native || 399 || 89.3%
|-
| Asian || 2 || 0.4%
|-
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 0 || 0.0%
|-
| Some other race || 0 || 0.0%
|-
| Two or more races || 24 || 5.4%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 1 || 0.2%
|}
2013 estimates
As of 2013, there were 77 families in the city, and households averaged 3 people.
2011 income
The median income for a household in 2011, was $39,688, and the median income for a family was $41,667. Males had a median income of $31,250 versus $35,938 for females. The per capita income for the city was $11,534. About 5.6% of families and 11.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.1% of those under age 18 and 12.5% of those age 65 or over.
Education
The Kiana School, operated by the Northwest Arctic Borough School District, serves the community. it has 123 students, with Alaska natives making up 97% of the student body.
Transportation
There are several types and uses of transportation in and around Kiana which include travel over land and water. Types of land transportation used by the people in Kiana are all terrain vehicles, cars, trucks, and snow machines.
Some vehicles are used to travel between villages.