The first people to live in Alaska were the Inupiat, who are believed to have migrated from Siberia to North America up to 12,000 years ago. The Inupiat lived in small villages along the Arctic coast, subsisting on hunting, fishing, and gathering. Around 1,000 years ago, the Inupiat were joined by the Athabascans, who migrated down from Canada and settled in the interior of Alaska. The Athabascans were expert hunters and fishermen, and they also began to trade with the Inupiat for furs and other resources.