DCHP-2

igloo iglu, igloe, iglou, iggilo, igluit [< Inuktitut iglu 'dwelling, house'] DCHP-2 (November 2016)

• 1a n. & adj. — originally Aboriginal (Inuit)

  a domed structure built of blocks of hard snow (see Images 1 & 2).

  Type: 1. Origin — The term refers to one form of original housing of the Inuit peoples that has come to be stereotypically associated with them by Qalunaat people, i.e. non-Inuits. Note how the the 1771 quotation specifies the kind of house that is mentioned. In the crest of the Territory of Nunavut, the igloo symbolizes the gathered legislative assembly (see the 1999 quotation, see Image 3).
  The spelling iglu is still used today in Nunavut newspapers, but is second to igloo (in case of Nunatsiaq Online, the ratio is 476:71 for igloo vs. iglu, 18 Nov. 2016).
  See also Gage-5, which marks the term "Cdn" and ITP Nelson and COD-2, whose etymological notes identify Inuktitut as the source.

  See also: ice-house (def. 2)  kudlik  snowhouse (def. 1)  snow hut  snow igloo  panak  Qalunaat  

  • 1771  (1935)  [Yes, veritably made of snow, without either stone or wood -- this house the indians call aneo-iggilo, which litterally is snow house.]
  • 1832  (1963)  Average thermometer, --35°. Very sharp; were obliged to get iglou porches (made of hardened snow) to the dwelling houses. which made them much warmer.
  • 1864  During the last few years Esquimaux live almost entirely in igloos--"snow­-houses"--through the winter season.
  • 1958  The domed igloo of the Eskimo is a familiar picture to most Canadians -- yet only about one-third of Canada's Eskimos live in igloos.
  • 1974  But the jobs often turned out to be temporary as projects were completed. Many Eskimos began living on welfare payments rather than give up the newly acquired tastes that made them reluctant to return to the igloo village on the frozen tundra, the fishing hole cut through the ice, the trap line and caribou trails in the snow.
  • 1988  Past the tepee, the log cabin, and the large snow house (no-one seems to say igloo anymore)[...]
  • 1997  They heated in the traditional way, burning seal fat in a lamp or kudlik. Even in -41 C temperatures, these heated the igloos comfortably above freezing, just warm enough to glaze the interior with an ice film, sealing out the wind. 
  • 1999  (2016)  THE COAT OF ARMS OF NUNAVUT
    In the crest, the igluit (igloo) represents the traditional life of the people and the means of survival. It also symbolizes the assembled members of the Legislature meeting together for the good of Nunavut; with the Royal Crown symbolizing public government for all the people of Nunavut and the equivalent status of Nunavut with other territories and provinces in Canadian Confederation. 
  • 2008  Snowmobiling across the open tundra, we meet a hunter who is preparing fresh ptarmigans to "pluck and fry up." "We call this a pana -- a snow knife," explains Inuk guide, Joseph Kidlapik, later as we bundle up to learn all about igloo building. "Panas used to be made from whale bone or caribou antler, but I bought this metal knife at the co-op," he says with a shy smile. Joseph, a soapstone artist and handyman, along with his wife Mary, who teaches traditional sewing at the local school, have joined us to share some of their Inuit traditions and customs. 
  • 2016  A Baffin Island hunter and community leader who was bitten by the photography bug about 14 years ago—taking a picture of a wasp—will soon have a photograph on the tail of a First Air plane. Niore Iqalukjuak made it official Sept. 9 when he announced to his many Facebook friends and fans that a photo he took of an iglu lit from the inside, and haloed above with northern lights, will be featured on a First Air ATR 42-500 series aircraft. “To have that kind of a canvas for your pictures that travels here and there, and for people to see, it’s something I’ve wanted for years,” said Iqalukjuak, a native of Arctic Bay who is currently living in Clyde River. 

• 1b n. — Aboriginal (Inuit), rare

  any other Inuit house, except the tent, or tupek.

  Type: 1. Origin — This meaning of the term is virtually unknown south of 60 and has thus become rare in comparison to meaning 1a. As the 1938 and 1958 quotations show, for instance, the specialization to the snow house is a non-Inuit semantic narrowing.

  See also: tupek  

  • 1776-1779  (1821)  [glossary]
    [English ---- Greenland from Crantz
    A house ----- Iglo] 
  • 1824  The natives term them, as well as the whole island, Igloolik; and Igloo being a house, the huts may have been the means of naming the country.
  • 1885  In summer the Eskimos live in conical skin tents, and in winter in half underground huts (igloos) built of stone, turf, earth, etc., entered by a long tunnel-like passage which can only be traversed on all fours.
  • 1902  And an Epicurus, in the dirt-igloo of the Eskimos, will wax eloquent over the whale oil and walrus blubber, or die.
  • 1916  There still remain at Hebron, Okkek, and Killinek old stone iglus roofed with turf, some of which are inhabited.
  • 1938  The igloos are made of rough wooden poles, and covered with reindeer skins.
  • 1958  Many people are still under the impression that Eskimos live in "igloos." Actually, the word igloos to an Eskimo means any type of home which cannot be moved -- a snow house or a wooden one.
  • 2000-2003  We see lots of inuit artifacts as we travel through the colony -- tent rings, meat caches, inukhuks (stone cairns), stone igloos (which may have been used as caches), kayak racks, blinds, and a stone corral.