An ulu (, plural: uluit, 'woman's knife') is an all-purpose knife traditionally used by Inuit, Iñupiat, Yupik, and Aleut women. It is utilized in applications as diverse as skinning and cleaning animals, cutting a child's hair, cutting food and, if necessary, trimming blocks of snow and ice used to build an igloo. Name In the Nunatsiavummiutut variety of Inuttitut, which is spoken in Nunatsiavut (Northern Labrador), the word is spelled , and in Tunumiit (East Greenlandic) it is or . The following chart lists both Eskimo-Aleut terms as well as two terms for the same tool in Athabaskan languages, which are an unrelated language family spoken by non-Inuit-Iñupiat-Aleut Alaska Natives. Materials Traditionally the ulu was made with a caribou antler, muskox horn or walrus ivory handle and slate cutting surface, due to the lack of metal smelting technology in the Arctic. The handle could also be carved from bone, and wood was sometimes used when it was available. In certain areas, such as Ulukhaktok Northwest Territories, copper was used for the cutting surface. The modern ulu is still often made with a caribou antler handle but the blade is usually made of steel. The steel is often obtained by purchasing a hand saw or wood saw and cutting the blade to the correct shape. A hardwood called is also used for handles. Uluit are often home made, but there is also an industry of commercially produced uluit, sometimes made with a plastic handle and complete with a cutting board. Usage and styles The size of the ulu typically reflects its usage. An ulu with a blade would be used as part of a sewing kit to cut sinew or for cutting out patterns from animal skins. An ulu with a blade would be used for general purposes. Occasionally, uluit can be found with blades as large as . The ulu comes in four distinct styles, the Iñupiat (or Alaskan), Canadian, West Greenlandic and East Greenlandic. With the Inupiat style ulu the blade has a centre 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 centre. 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