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From: thom@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu (Thom Gillespie)
Newsgroups: comp.ai
Subject: Re: Eskimo Snow Words
Keywords: How Many?
Message-ID: <30026@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Date: 12 Jul 89 05:59:09 GMT
References: <9364@phoenix.Princeton.EDU>
Sender: usenet@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Reply-To: thom@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu.UUCP (Thom Gillespie)
Organization: School of Education, UC-Berkeley
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In article <9364@phoenix.Princeton.EDU> harnad@phoenix.Princeton.EDU (S. R. Harnad) writes:
>
>It is a well known fact that the Eskimos have many words for snow. How
>many do they have, and what is your source?
>
>Please reply to harnad@princeton.edu and I'll post the results.
>
>-- 
>Stevan Harnad  INTERNET:  harnad@confidence.princeton.edu   harnad@princeton.edu

I lived in Alaska for 7 years and was lucky to spend a year in the village of
Kivalina on the Chukchi Sea about 70 miles north of the arctic Circle. I've
heard that they have 37 different words for snow and ice but I'm not sure where
I've heard it. It may have been in "Hunter's of the Northern Ice" by Richard
Nelson, an anthropologist. He spent 2-3 years living in Wainright up near
Barrow and studying survival skills. The book is very good. There is also a
chance that another anthropologist named Van Stone mentioned the fact in one of
his articles. You might also read Oswalt's book on the Eskimos, or you might
try ot reach Ray Barnhardt, Judith Kleinfeldt or Pat Dubbs at the University of
alaska in Fairbanks. Might be hard to figure out how many words are used for
snow or ice because the language varies so much from village to village and
between the Yupik and Inupik people. The language isn't really written, it is
spoken. There is a written version of the versions but not many people read it,
there was never a good supply of writing material in the arctic...takes too long
to carve down bone. also probably only the traditional hunters had all the
words because they needed them for survival, traditional hunters are in short
supply because of fish & Game, religion and US education systems. Good luck.

Brr! Thom Gillespie