Ulu
An ulu (Inuktitut syllabics: ᐅᓗ, plural: uluit, English: "woman's knife") is an all-purpose knife traditionally used by Inuit, Yup'ik and Aleut women. It is utilized in applications as diverse as skinning and cleaning animals, cutting a child's hair, cutting food and, if necessary, trimming blocks of snow and ice used to build an igloo.
Name
In the Nunatsiavummiutut dialect, spoken in Nunatsiavut, the word is spelled uluk, and in East Greenlandic it is sakiaq or saakiq and in syllabics is ᓴᒃᑭᖅ.
Materials
Traditionally the ulu was made with a caribou antler, muskox horn or walrus ivory handle and slate cutting surface, due to the lack of metal smelting technology in the Arctic. The handle could also be carved from bone, and wood was sometimes used when it was available. In certain areas, such as Ulukhaktok Northwest Territories, copper was used for the cutting surface.
Today the ulu is still often made with a caribou antler handle but the blade is usually made of steel. The steel is quite often obtained by purchasing a hand saw or wood saw and cutting the blade to the correct shape. A hardwood called sisattaq is also used for handles. These uluit are both kept for home use and sold to others. It is also possible to purchase commercially produced uluit, sometimes made with a plastic handle and complete with a cutting board.
Āulu
Āulu is a Hawaiian name for several species of tree found in mesic forests:
Ulu (disambiguation)
An ulu is an Inuit cutting knife.
Ulu may also refer to:
People
Places
See also
Māʻuluʻulu
The māʻuluʻulu is a traditional Tongan dance, performed by a group of seated men and women; stylistically, the dance form is a direct successor of the ancient Tongan ʻotuhaka having been synthesized with the Samoan Māuluulu which was imported during the 19th century.
The performers sit down in a row on the ground, crosslegged, usually the right leg over the left. If possible men and women alternate. To the left and/or right is/are the nafa (see below), behind them stand the langituʻa, the singers. On informal occasions the dancemaster may walk around, clapping his hands to keep up the rhythm and to encourage the performers. On formal occasions, like a presentation to the king, the dancemaster also stands in the back. Only when the dancemaster is the chief Malukava, he is allowed per tradition to be in front.
If there are many dancers, often the case when a school performs, up to 500 at a really huge occasion, they sit in staggered rows. The dancers of front row (which gets the most attention and therefore sits the best dancers or the ones with the highest social status) sit on the ground. The second row on a low bench, the next row on a higher bench, and so forth. The last row usually stands, or if that is still not enough, they may stand on benches and tables. If the dance is an effort of a local community, young and old perform. The youngest children then cutely sit at the ends of the rows.
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