Umiak

The Umiak ( Greenlandic and Inuktitut: Umiaq, plural Umiat ), often referred to as a woman boat or large boat, is an open sealskin boat that used the Inuit, as they were not yet imported from the south boats.

Use

For the Inuit during their nomadic way of life, a large boat was indispensable, not only the transport of entire families, but also their possessions as sled dogs, sled dogs, tents, weapons and other equipment enabled them in overcoming wider waters. While the kayak was predominantly used by men and primarily used for hunting, the Umiak served mainly as a tourist boat, which was rowed by mostly women and control men. If the kayak when hunting large whales, such as the bowhead whale, proved to be unsuitable, the Umiak was also used. Not infrequently, the boat was used on the road as a makeshift sleeping tent by placing it upside down and used instead of a tent to be set up.

The oldest, dated to the period around 1500 Umiak was found in Northeast Greenland; So the Umiak already served the people of the Thule culture. In East Greenland and Northeast Canada, the Umiak was still in the 1930s in use. He was then replaced by more and more produced in the south canoes with outboard engines ( " freighter canoes " ) and smaller motor yachts.

With the "discovery" of the hitherto largely isolated East Greenland by the Danish explorer Gustav Holm in 1884 umiaks played a major role; the drive there was therefore known as " women boat expedition ."

Type

The Umiak was used throughout the Arctic; Size and type was recorded above regional differences. In Alaska, where the use was whaling in the foreground, agile narrow boats were built. In eastern Canada and Greenland, however, emerged larger and more massive transport boats that could accommodate up to thirty people; usually the boats were, however, constructed with a length of up to about eight feet and a width of up to about 1.50 meters for five to 20 people. The locomotion by rowing was occasionally assisted by a small sailing; a keel had no boats.