Edition #11 – November 2023

Uluk is a woman’s tool and I had watched my mother using different Uluit for different jobs. She used a small uluk to cut (Ilittik) Seal skin kamitinasak. A large uluk to Qitsirik scraping fat from the seal skin and a medium uluk to cut meat including making nikkuk Purpose: The edges of small Uluit have to be filed narrow in order to cut through the skin. For larger uluk the edge has to be sharp and filed properly so it won’t make holes when you are scraping fat from the seal skin (Qitsirik). When you Qitsirik and accidentally make a hole on the skin sew it right away, so always have a needle and thread ready. Uluit have to be maintained. Don’t wash them in hot water, hot water dulls the metal. Wash them after each use. Avoid caked up metal fasteners on the neck from the seal and whale oil. Some women clean the rusty uluk with coke cola only the metal part. Women can have five or more Uluit for different uses. Men can file to sharpen the edge. The filed edge has to be right side up when you are using the uluk. Acknowledgement: I want to thank Louisa Cookie Brown for helping. 

BETSY TOOKALOOK Former Elder’s Appointee for QYC Board of Directors