Oosik in the news

Fri Nov 16 05:48:19 UTC 2012

Thank you for that kind follow-up.

All of those languages can be found on the tree at http://www.ethnologue.com/show_family.asp?subid=713-16 (Inuinnaqtun is said at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inuinnaqtun to be a dialect of Inuvialuktun, which leads back to Inuit).

From these definitions, there is probably no true source for this word in English; probably all of those languages can be collectively cited, though perhaps the Inuinnaqtun "uhuk" can be excluded.

The word is obviously also a semantic narrowing to baculum (though note the citation I gave at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1663660/ shows that it may be used in some English communities to just mean "penis").

At http://blog.sfgate.com/white/2010/02/16/no-you-really-dont-need-that-walrus-penis-bone-letter-opener/, Ken White discusses the oosik trade, giving the pronunciation "ju sik," which seems dubious. 

Based on White's article, I went to Ebay, and sure enough, there are a number of oosiks (White's plural) for sale: walrus, raccoon, badger, coyote, wolf, river otter, fisher (Martes pennanti), alligator and Romanian cave bear (I didn't verify each animal).

One of the alligator ads says, "Gators do not have a bone within the penis, as some animals do. Our gator guy, however, has literally tanned some of the alligator penises, though they are cartilage, they are perfectly preserved, and made into key chains."

One (http://www.ebay.com/itm/OOSIK-PENIS-BONE-BACULUM-INUIT-ESKIMO-ALASKA-TAXIDERMY-HUNTING-TRAPPING-/160921511754?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2577ab674a) ad says "oosik" even though the carving in the photo says "OOSUK MAXIMUS."

Synonyms given at http://www.ebay.com/itm/Real-Fisher-Penis-Bone-baculum-bacula-museum-os-oosik-weasel-cat-/221092409573?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item337a2270e5 are: bacula, baccula, oosik, oosiks, os penis and mountain man toothpick. Wikipedia adds "penis bone."

FWIW, Googling on "polar bear penis" "carving" yields nothing relevant.

Benjamin Barrett
Seattle, WA

On Nov 15, 2012, at 5:08 PM, Sissy SoFunk <sissy.sofunk at GMAIL.COM> wrote:

> Here's the latest:
> 
> 
> Hi Sissy,
> Here's what I've found - the word (or variants of it) is found in Inuktitut
> and Yupik dialects -  I've included the dictionary sources as well:
> 
> Inuktitut (Inuit)
> From *Ulirnaisigntiit: An Inuktitut-English Dictionary of Northern Quebec,
> Labrador and Eastern Arctic Dialects*, by Lucien Schneider
> *usuk* (plural -*it*)
> 1) male genital organ and most particularly the penis
> 2) said likewise of things in one way or another that remind one of it,
> whether vaguely or more exactly (tongue of a trap, spout of a teapot, etc.)
> 
> From *Inuktitut: a Multi-Dialectal Outline Dictionary (with an
> Aivilingmiutaq Base) - *by Alex Spalding and Thomas Kusugaq
> *usuk* (plural -*it*) - penis
> *usuaq* - penis of a caribou or walrus or horse; also a large male caribou.
> 
> From *Inuinnaqtun-English Dictionary *- by Gwen Angulalik
> *uhuk* *- *penis
> My note: this dictionary is representative of Inuit in western Nunavut
> 
> Inuktitut (Inuvialuit)
> From *Siglit Inuvialuit Uqausiita Kipuktirutait: Basic Siglit Inuvialuit
> Eskimo Dictionary - *by Ronald Lowe and the Committee for Orignal Peoples
> Entitlement
> *usuk *- penis
> 
> Inuktitut (Uummarmiut)
> From *Uummarmiut Uqalungiha Mumikhitchirutingit: Basic Uummarmiut Eskimo
> Dictionary* *- *by Ronald Lowe and the Committee for Orignal Peoples
> Entitlement
> *uhuk* - penis
> 
> Yupik (Inupiat)
> From *Inupiat Eskimo Dictionary* - by Donald H. Webster and Wilfred Zibell
> *Usuk, usruk* - penis
> 
> My note: I'm uncertain as to whether Inupiat dialects belong to the Yupik
> or Inuktitut language groups, I`ve placed it with Yupik more based on my
> understanding of its prevalence of being spoken in Alaska (sorry,
> linguistics isn't my strong set).
> 
> As for the carvings themselves - we have no polar bear penis bone carvings
> in our collection, I haven`t been able to find evidence of them in others.
> Walrus penis bone carvings exist aplenty, either carved or scrimshawed.
> Aiviq usuk would be a transliteration of walrus penis in Inuktitut.  Hope
> this is helpful.
> 
> 
> 
> On Thu, Nov 15, 2012 at 7:50 AM, Garth Hardy <garthhardy at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> That's fine - can you be clear though that what's below is just guess wor=
> k
>> at this point?  I'll see what I can find this morning and get back to you
>> at noon.
>> 
>> 
>> On Wed, Nov 14, 2012 at 10:59 PM, Sissy SoFunk <sissy.sofunk at gmail.com>wr=
> ote:
>> 
>>> Do you mind if I'm quoting you wholesale back to the list?
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> On Wed, Nov 14, 2012 at 10:50 PM, Garth Hardy <garthhardy at gmail.com>wrot=
> e:
>>> 
>>>> hey sissy,
>>>> i'll have a look tomorrow at a couple of dictionaries at work.  The
>>>> walrus cock bone carvings are seen more in Alaska and the Chuckchi than=
> the
>>>> Canadian Arctic, so my first guess is that oosik is a yupik term as opp=
> osed
>>>> to an inuktitut one - but i'll double check.  That spelling looks to be
>>>> pretty anglicized and if you have an Inuktitut or Yupik or esqu-aleut
>>>> dictionary handy you'll probably have more luck looking for a spelling =
> like
>>>> usiq or uusiq.  I've only encountered walrus penis bone carvings at mus=
> eum,
>>>> never polar bear ones, and am currently doing some research on traditio=
> nal
>>>> uses of the polar bear by Inuit and I don't recall seeing anything abou=
> t
>>>> carving or scrimshaw done any of the polar bear bones - bear bone is
>>>> especially hard, it was mostly prized by Inuit for its use in knife edg=
> ing
>>>> and arrow and harpoon head pointing, as well as for tipping the points =
> of
>>>> the kakivak - not so much in art, fetish or amulet making.
>>>> 
>>>> Anyway I'll have a look tomorrow and see what I can find for you.
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> On Wed, Nov 14, 2012 at 9:42 PM, Sissy SoFunk <sissy.sofunk at gmail.com>w=
> rote:
>>>> 
>>>>> Hey garth, this just came up on the american dialect society listserve=
> .
>>>>> Any ideas?  If you're bored tomorrow at the museum, maybe you have so=
> me
>>>>> research tools at your disposal?
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> In the Seattle Times today by Erika Bolstad, (
>>>>> http://seattletimes.com/html/nationworld/2019676814_polarbears14.html)=
> :
>>>>> 
>>>>> -----
>>>>> Since polar bears were listed in 2008 as threatened, Americans haven't
>>>>> been able to import polar bear trophies =97 generally a tanned skin an=
> d claws
>>>>> along with the skull and the penis bone, known scientifically as a
>>>>> "baculum" and in the indigenous languages of the Arctic as an "oosik."
>>>>> -----
>>>>> 
>>>>> The earliest citation I find on Google Books is 1966 (
>>>>> http://ow.ly/fiGTc). I haven't been thorough, but the citations I saw
>>>>> indicated that "oosik" is a walrus penis bone. Also, I don't see which
>>>>> languages that "languages of the Arctic" refer to.
>>>>> 
>>>>> Benjamin Barrett
>>>>> Seattle, WA
>>>>> 
>>>>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>>>>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> --
>>>> Labour is entitled to all that it creates.
>>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>> 
>> 
>> --
>> Labour is entitled to all that it creates.
>> 
> 
> 
> 
> --=20
> Labour is entitled to all that it creates.
> 
> 
> 
> On Thu, Nov 15, 2012 at 10:38 AM, Garth Hardy <garthhardy at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> Hi Sissy,
>> Here's what I've found - the word (or variants of it) is found in
>> Inuktitut and Yupik dialects -  I've included the dictionary sources as
>> well:
>> 
>> Inuktitut (Inuit)
>> From *Ulirnaisigntiit: An Inuktitut-English Dictionary of Northern
>> Quebec, Labrador and Eastern Arctic Dialects*, by Lucien Schneider
>> *usuk* (plural -*it*)
>> 1) male genital organ and most particularly the penis
>> 2) said likewise of things in one way or another that remind one of it,
>> whether vaguely or more exactly (tongue of a trap, spout of a teapot, etc=
> .)
>> 
>> From *Inuktitut: a Multi-Dialectal Outline Dictionary (with an
>> Aivilingmiutaq Base) - *by Alex Spalding and Thomas Kusugaq
>> *usuk* (plural -*it*) - penis
>> *usuaq* - penis of a caribou or walrus or horse; also a large male
>> caribou.
>> 
>> From *Inuinnaqtun-English Dictionary *- by Gwen Angulalik
>> *uhuk* *- *penis
>> My note: this dictionary is representative of Inuit in western Nunavut
>> 
>> Inuktitut (Inuvialuit)
>> From *Siglit Inuvialuit Uqausiita Kipuktirutait: Basic Siglit Inuvialuit
>> Eskimo Dictionary - *by Ronald Lowe and the Committee for Orignal Peoples
>> Entitlement
>> *usuk *- penis
>> 
>> Inuktitut (Uummarmiut)
>> From *Uummarmiut Uqalungiha Mumikhitchirutingit: Basic Uummarmiut Eskimo
>> Dictionary* *- *by Ronald Lowe and the Committee for Orignal Peoples
>> Entitlement
>> *uhuk* - penis
>> 
>> Yupik (Inupiat)
>> From *Inupiat Eskimo Dictionary* - by Donald H. Webster and Wilfred Zibel=
> l
>> *Usuk, usruk* - penis
>> My note: I'm uncertain as to whether Inupiat dialects belong to the Yupik
>> or Inuktitut language groups, I`ve placed it with Yupik more based on my
>> understanding of its prevalence of being spoken in Alaska (sorry,
>> linguistics isn't my strong set).
>> 
>> As for the carvings themselves - we have no polar bear penis bone carving=
> s
>> in our collection, I haven`t been able to find evidence of them in others=
> .
>> Walrus penis bone carvings exist aplenty, either carved or scrimshawed.
>> Aiviq usuk would be a transliteration of walrus penis in Inuktitut.  Hope
>> this is helpful.
>> 
>> for the works,
>> garth
>> 
>> On Thu, Nov 15, 2012 at 7:50 AM, Garth Hardy <garthhardy at gmail.com> wrote=
> :
>> 
>>> That's fine - can you be clear though that what's below is just guess
>>> work at this point?  I'll see what I can find this morning and get back =
> to
>>> you at noon.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> On Wed, Nov 14, 2012 at 10:59 PM, Sissy SoFunk <sissy.sofunk at gmail.com>w=
> rote:
>>> 
>>>> Do you mind if I'm quoting you wholesale back to the list?
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> On Wed, Nov 14, 2012 at 10:50 PM, Garth Hardy <garthhardy at gmail.com>wro=
> te:
>>>> 
>>>>> hey sissy,
>>>>> i'll have a look tomorrow at a couple of dictionaries at work.  The
>>>>> walrus cock bone carvings are seen more in Alaska and the Chuckchi tha=
> n the
>>>>> Canadian Arctic, so my first guess is that oosik is a yupik term as op=
> posed
>>>>> to an inuktitut one - but i'll double check.  That spelling looks to b=
> e
>>>>> pretty anglicized and if you have an Inuktitut or Yupik or esqu-aleut
>>>>> dictionary handy you'll probably have more luck looking for a spelling=
> like
>>>>> usiq or uusiq.  I've only encountered walrus penis bone carvings at mu=
> seum,
>>>>> never polar bear ones, and am currently doing some research on traditi=
> onal
>>>>> uses of the polar bear by Inuit and I don't recall seeing anything abo=
> ut
>>>>> carving or scrimshaw done any of the polar bear bones - bear bone is
>>>>> especially hard, it was mostly prized by Inuit for its use in knife ed=
> ging
>>>>> and arrow and harpoon head pointing, as well as for tipping the points=
> of
>>>>> the kakivak - not so much in art, fetish or amulet making.
>>>>> 
>>>>> Anyway I'll have a look tomorrow and see what I can find for you.
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> On Wed, Nov 14, 2012 at 9:42 PM, Sissy SoFunk <sissy.sofunk at gmail.com>=
> wrote:
>>>>> 
>>>>>> Hey garth, this just came up on the american dialect society
>>>>>> listserve.  Any ideas?  If you're bored tomorrow at the museum, maybe=
> you
>>>>>> have some research tools at your disposal?
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> In the Seattle Times today by Erika Bolstad, (
>>>>>> http://seattletimes.com/html/nationworld/2019676814_polarbears14.html
>>>>>> ):
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> -----
>>>>>> Since polar bears were listed in 2008 as threatened, Americans haven'=
> t
>>>>>> been able to import polar bear trophies =97 generally a tanned skin a=
> nd claws
>>>>>> along with the skull and the penis bone, known scientifically as a
>>>>>> "baculum" and in the indigenous languages of the Arctic as an "oosik.=
> "
>>>>>> -----
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> The earliest citation I find on Google Books is 1966 (
>>>>>> http://ow.ly/fiGTc). I haven't been thorough, but the citations I saw
>>>>>> indicated that "oosik" is a walrus penis bone. Also, I don't see whic=
> h
>>>>>> languages that "languages of the Arctic" refer to.

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org