IGLOO, IGLU,IGLUIT,THE MEANING OF THE WORDS-DO NOT HAVE TO BE A SNOW CONSTRUCTION

"The igloo was a very good shelter in the winter, but would melt off in the summer; so they had summer homes, they were called the tupiq and the Alaskan sod house."

The above statement would seem to be a very reasonable statement; at first quick glance, or to the unknowing.

WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, DO YOU REALLY HAVE THE FIRST CLUE?

To those that actually KNOW; or give it any real THOUGHT; it is very unreasonable.

The reasons: first of all-the reader is given absolutely no idea of to whom or what the author is referring.

Secondly, even the United States of The Americas (while, admittedly, it is unusual for the people of that region to agree with anybody else) the word igloo does not necessarily indicate a building constructed of snow.

Merriam Webster's Dictionary definition of igloo: "an Eskimo house usually made of sod, wood, or stone when permanent or of blocks of snow or ice in the shape of a dome when built for temporary purposes."

Thirdly, the Inuit were a very nomadic people; very few of them inhabited the area that is now known as Alaska; those that did, on occasion,  would not have recognized that it is now so known. The Inuit peoples did not even speak the English language; so buildings would not be called "Alaskan" anything.

Fourthly, IN CANADA, WHERE THE WORD PROBABLY ORIGINATED BE IT CONSTRUCTED  OF CONCRETE, METAL, WOOD, SNOW, SOD, STONE;THE WORD CAN BE USED; CORRECTLY,  IN REFERENCE TO ANY BUILDING. 

Possible Word Origin and History for the Word:

1. 1824, Canadian English, Greenlandic igdlo "house".
2. From Inuktitut igdlu "house"- first Known Use: 1856.

The actual Inuit word ( close as we can come, using our alphabet) iglu (plural igluit) can be used for a house or home built of any material and is not restricted exclusively to snow-houses; but includes traditional tents, sod houses, homes constructed out of whale bone, caribou antlers or drift wood and all modern buildings. 

Several dialects throughout the Canadian Arctic use iglu for all buildings, including; but not exclusive to snow- houses, and it is the term used by the Government of Nunavut. Oft times, snow is piled against the sides of an existing building and used only as insulation against the cold. Perhaps, it is because the word has no clear cut definition that there is so much confusion and misinformation out there about igloos

.©Al-Alex-Alexander D. Girvan. All rights reserved