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Ulu Knives

With all the activity surrounding the recent postings of various ulu knives, it seemed like a logical step to create an Ulu subgroup. This will give us collectors with an ulu a common place to post, discuss, compare, and brag about the Ulu. Even if what one thinks is an ulu and it turns out to be something else, it’s a great place to share and learn.

Pronounced “oo-loo”, the Ulu is the iconic curved knife of the circumpolar peoples of the Inuit (including the Alaska Native Iñupiat, the Canadian Inuit, and the Greenlandic Inuit), the Yupik (or Yuit), and the Aleut, all of whom inhabit the Arctic regions of Eastern Siberia, the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, Canada, and Greenland.

Today, Ulu is the ubiquitous name for the style of knife – as the length and shape of the blade and handle vary by community or region, as does its name. The Uluaq, Ulluar, Uluk, and Sakiaq are some of the indigenous names for essentially the same style of knife – the Ulu.

The size of the ulu typically reflects its usage and was created to be a knife for all purposes of typical day-to-day tasks and the preparation of meat sources, such as salmon, seal, caribou, or fleshing out whale. The ulu itself has a history of more than 5,000 years with the earliest ulu knives dating back to 2500 BCE.

Prior to the arrival of Europeans, ulu blades were made from shale, slate, or quartzite with handles that could be made of wood, ivory, caribou antler, moose antler, or even bone. Today, uluit (the plural of Ulu meaning more than one) are made with a fine steel blade and its handle can be made of different ergonomic materials to best support cutting activities.

Common Characteristics of the Ulu

While the ulu can vary in shape and size, not all curved bladed knives are an ulu. The traditional or classic ulu comes in four distinct styles; the Iñupiat (or Alaskan), Canadian, Kalaallit (West Greenlandic) and Tunumiit (East Greenlandic).

With the Iñupiat style ulu, the blade has a center piece cut out and both ends of the blade fit into the handle.

In Canada, the blade more often is attached to the handle by a single stem in the center.

In the western areas of the Canadian Arctic, the blade of the ulu tends to be of a triangular shape, while in the eastern Arctic, the ends of the blade tend to be more pointed.

The traditional ulu has a beveled edge only on one side of the blade, whereas many modern uluit have a beveled edge on both sides of the blade.

Today, along with companies providing traditional and classic uluit, the ulu has been reimagined and is offered in a large array of styles, sizes, shapes, and materials.

Group Purpose and Mission

This subgroup is dedicated to the Ulu in all its forms - old & new, traditional or modern.

Its mission is to promote discussion and bring awareness to what makes an ulu unique among knives.

For your visual entertainment, here are a few links showing both how to use the ulu and the ulu in action.

Instructables – How to fillet a salmon with an Ulu:
https://www.instructables.com/How-to-Fillet-a-Salmon-With-an-Ulu/

How to use an Ulu (culinary):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqxDtdB2eR0

Ulu Cutting Competition:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0EXRKpDVeM

Everything you need to know about an Ulu:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6S8XW5v2nk

2 members like this

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Lars Ray 1 hour ago

I absolutely love the ulu. I love it because of its historical roots, cultural significance, versatility, uniqueness among knives, and its dominance in the knife scene today.

Unfortunately, like so many knives in a class all their own, the decades long rising popularity of the ulu has fallen prey to misinterpretation, misunderstanding, and poor marketing positioning. What makes a knife an ulu is described above. What an ulu isn’t is tactical, mythical, or used by Ninja’s (although that would make a cool action movie!), despite what the food shows or marketing campaigns tell you.

In terms of historical and cultural significance, the ulu knife was (and is) passed down from generation to generation. It was believed that an ancestor's knowledge and secrets were contained within the ulu and this knowledge would be passed on to the next generation. Because of its cultural symbolism throughout the Arctic, they are sometimes presented to people who have accomplished significant achievements in fields such as sports or education. Specifically, the Arctic Winter Games presents ulu-shaped medals to successful athletes, acting in place of a regular medal.

Although there are many half-moon or curve bladed knives, not all are uluit. Similar in shape, Herb and Mezzaluna culinary knives, or the Half-Moon (or Round) knife used in leather craft are often mislabeled as an ulu by the misinformed. Many more simply include “Ulu” as a tag word for product searches. The similarities in the blade shape alone make it easy for one to refer to these knives as an ulu, but it’s the function of the knife itself that separates the ulu from its distant cousins.

For the peoples of the Arctic, the Ulu is a multi-purpose tool, a cultural symbol, a family legacy, and a means of livelihood. For me, the ulu is a supreme culinary knife…a real cutting machine! But I have to admit, it’s a knife I had to learn how to use to fully appreciate its value. Not every ulu off the shelf functions the same. Some are clearly made to be a souvenir, and others are specifically marketed for the culinary use.

My first ulu is a classic Alaskan souvenir from the early 1980’s – an Alaskan / Canadian Arctic style ulu with a faux ivory handle and polar bear scrimshaw. For years it looked cool on the shelf (and still does), but I found it very uncomfortable to use for anything more than cutting some chives. Needless to say I have “outgrown” this toy and have since obtained some serious uluit for the kitchen. I’ll share some of them as this thread grows.

My souvenir Alaskan Ulu:

Thanks for reading….

Permalink Reply by Kevin D 1 hour ago

Very good information Lars!

And thank you for the links! I checked them all out and they confirmed what little bit I thought I knew and what I was seeing so far.

The creation and and now existence of this sub-group provides a good landing point for some as of yet unwritten posts sharing these knives. They really do not fit elsewhere very well.

I have created an album in my photo for these knives in case anyone wishes to check that out. ;)

Thank for creating this area for us!

Permalink Reply by Kevin D 34 minutes ago

Similar to Lars, my first ulu was a 'souvenir' ulu from when my sister went to Alaska several years ago. I spent several weeks in that area (Alaska, the Yukon, and the NW territory) back in 1989. During my visit, I saw a few ulu knives in use and saw many more being sold as "souvenirs". Honestly, I was not all that impressed with them at the time and thought that these souvenirs were sub-par in quality and not all that desirable. Since then, I have learned a little more about the materials that are being used.

Here is a photo of that first ulu.

It has a Moose antler base and the Handle is scrimshawed moose antler as well. The blade is 440C stainless steel.

The handle has never been comfortable at all, and the edge is marginal at best. A little sanding on one of those upturned corners should do wonders for its usability. It does have a historically accurate single sided edge bevel though.

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