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quinzhee
< Athabaskan, possibly from Na-Dene (South Slavey) 'house'
DCHP-3 (Nov 2024)
Spelling variants:quinzee, Quinzhee, Quinzhee hut, Quinzhee building
The term is a post-WWII borrowing from a Na-Dene language (some sources list the more general umbrella language group Athabaskan instead). The term appears fairly late in the record (see both 1975 and the 1978 quotations). A possible source might be the South Slavey word for 'house', kúę, that seems roughly to match the Canadian English sound structure.
n. — Outdoors, Indigenous, originally Mountaineering
a snow shelter constructed by shaping a large pile of snow into a dome and hollowing out the centre.
Type: 1. Origin — The term quinzhee is likely borrowed from a Slavey word. The OED-3 suggests kǫ́ézhii, which directly translates to 'in the shelter' (see OED-3 reference), for which, however, we cannot find support in present-day Athabaskan dictionaries. There are a number of possible source words in these languages, one being South Slavey kúę for house, or a derivation based on it, as kúę is used in multiple compounds and derivations.
The term is used to describe a form of shelter that is built by compacting loose snow into a dome and hollowing out the centre (see Image 1). While much quicker to be constructed than an igloo, quinzhees are still time-consuming to make, therefore they are not recommended unless one is planning to use the shelter for several days and has planned to build it in advance (see Hiking British Columbia reference). Nevertheless, a quinzhee can be preferable to an igloo as it is much easier to construct. Quinzhee is common in Canada (see Chart 1).
The term does not appear to be listed in the Dictionary of Alaskan English (1991), Athabaskan Fort Good Hope Slavey Language Dictionary (1986), Ahtna Athabaskan Dictionary (1990), Tulita Slavey Dictionary (1986), or Délįnę Slavey Dictionary (2012). The term is listed in OED-3 as "North American".
The term is not listed in Merriam-Webster Unabridged.
The term is not to be confused with the Scottish form quinzee, found as of the early 19th century, a kind of supporting structure used to prop up narrow church steeples, nor the equivalent last name Quinzee.
The term is used to describe a form of shelter that is built by compacting loose snow into a dome and hollowing out the centre (see Image 1). While much quicker to be constructed than an igloo, quinzhees are still time-consuming to make, therefore they are not recommended unless one is planning to use the shelter for several days and has planned to build it in advance (see Hiking British Columbia reference). Nevertheless, a quinzhee can be preferable to an igloo as it is much easier to construct. Quinzhee is common in Canada (see Chart 1).
The term does not appear to be listed in the Dictionary of Alaskan English (1991), Athabaskan Fort Good Hope Slavey Language Dictionary (1986), Ahtna Athabaskan Dictionary (1990), Tulita Slavey Dictionary (1986), or Délįnę Slavey Dictionary (2012). The term is listed in OED-3 as "North American".
The term is not listed in Merriam-Webster Unabridged.
The term is not to be confused with the Scottish form quinzee, found as of the early 19th century, a kind of supporting structure used to prop up narrow church steeples, nor the equivalent last name Quinzee.
See: igloodefinition 1a
The process of building a quinzhee is described in the 2004 quotation.
Indicators for the beginning integration of the Na-Dene loan word into Canadian English are the compound noun formations Quinzhee hut (see the first 1975 quotation) or Quinzhee building (see the 1978 quotation), which are transparent, rendering Quinzhee, with capital initial letter, as a proper noun.
Quotations
1975
... building of a snow shelter or Quinzhee hut. The walk through the woods is strewn with straw from a former Tally-Ho. We stop to look at a tall ice structure, the result of a natural leak from the "squirrel run."
1975
My advice to others is the following. 1 Don't make a stop at the Mad Trapper and a chopper flight in the same day, or on two consecutive days. 2 live in a Quinzhee, but be careful of the roof. 3 never follow a Gerbie anywhere, and 4 pretend the bush whack to Forbes Brook is a bad dream. Brian Rose
1978
The outdoors provided a great meeting place for canoeing, hayrides, skiiing, Quinzee building with the Cubs and Scouts, winter and summer visits to Dead Lake, bicycle hikes and activities such as orienteering, tracking or building fires, at "Findlay's Bridge."
1982
"Even if there are only about six inches of snow on the ground, you can still build a snow shelter. Scrape as much snow as you can gather into a heap and stomp it down. Then let it set for two or three hours. You've compacted it and taken all the energy out of it. As the snow crystals freeze, you have a dense mass instead of the loose snow you started out with. Treat this pile of compacted snow as a drift. This is called a quinzhee.
1982
WINTER-ACTIVE SPIDERS AND INSECTS Once a hardy winter camper awoke in his quinzhee (a [s]now hut with its floor cleared of snow) after a night's sleep to find a mosquito-like insect flying around inside. His surprise is understandable since few people realize that the soil under the snow can be warm enough for animals to remain active there.
1994
Girls attending Massad Winter Camp Manitou near Headingly last month gather in a "Quinzhee Hut" they dug out of the snow. One is holding a candle to find out how warm they can make their temporary snow shelter.
1996
One way to do this is to build a great big snow hut. As a kid I had plenty experience with snow huts that were neither caves nor igloos. We would find a big pile of shovelled snow and tunnel in. My memory of such huts is that they were kind of cozy but scarcely the sort of thing you'd want to spend the night in. The Dene name for this structure is quinzhee.
2001
Despite the poor conditions, we manage to make a small snow shelter (known as a quinzhee). It's hard work, but surprisingly simply — just like building a snow fort as a kid: make elephant-sized pile of snow then dig out the middle. In the evening, to warm up, we crawl in and light tea candles. Everything sparkles, it's like sitting inside a disco globe.
2004
Quinzhee People who live south of the tundra invented a cavelike shelter made out of softer forest snow. It takes two people a couple of hours to build, but a quinzhee lasts only a few nights. Builders need just 15 cm (6 in.) of snow, but, unlike an igloo, layered snow from different storms works best.
Snow is tossed in the air with a shovel or broad end of a snowshoe and piled to form a mound about 2 m (6.5 ft.) high. It is left to settle, harden, or sinter for over an hour. Then a small hole is cut into the side and a room dug out of the center. A snow roof should be left, nor more than 30 cm (1 ft.) thick, with at least one ventilation hole poked through for fresh air. Usually the excavation hold is filled in and a small entrance cut at ground level at ninety degrees to the wind. Inside, the temperature stays below freezing, but much warmer than outside. Although unlikely to collapse, people who lie or sleep in quinzhees should keep a shovel beside them so they can dig their way out if necessary.
Snow is tossed in the air with a shovel or broad end of a snowshoe and piled to form a mound about 2 m (6.5 ft.) high. It is left to settle, harden, or sinter for over an hour. Then a small hole is cut into the side and a room dug out of the center. A snow roof should be left, nor more than 30 cm (1 ft.) thick, with at least one ventilation hole poked through for fresh air. Usually the excavation hold is filled in and a small entrance cut at ground level at ninety degrees to the wind. Inside, the temperature stays below freezing, but much warmer than outside. Although unlikely to collapse, people who lie or sleep in quinzhees should keep a shovel beside them so they can dig their way out if necessary.
2011
Many voles and mice show cyclical population dynamics but these cycles are disappearing likely due to more variable winters due to climate change. Grouse will take advantage of the insulative nature of snow by diving into the snow and making a kind of quinzhee (a shelter made by digging a cavity in a mound of settled snow) where they spend the night protected from the cold.
2021
Do you want to build a quinzhee? Of course you do.
It’s essentially a massive snow mound, excavated through a small entryway, that can be big enough to sit in or sleep in, cosy enough to stay warm in, and enjoyable enough to keep a family entertained and occupied for hours.
It’s essentially a massive snow mound, excavated through a small entryway, that can be big enough to sit in or sleep in, cosy enough to stay warm in, and enjoyable enough to keep a family entertained and occupied for hours.
2024
When the quinzhee is sufficiently hollowed out, use a larger stick or your fist (5 inches / 12 cm in diameter) to poke three or four holes through to the outside (one overhead, the rest along the sides). These holes will provide ventilation, helping to bring fresh air inside. If you are up for an adventure, insulate the bottom of the quinzhee with a tarp and sleeping pads, then add warm blankets and a sleeping bag.
References
- OED-3 • quinzhee
- Merriam-Webster Unabridged
- Hiking British Columbia • Winter Camping Shelters
- Fort Good Hope Slavey Dictionary (1986) • PDF version
- Ahtna Athabaskan Dictionary (1990) • PDF Version
- Délįnę Slavey Dictionary (2012) • PDF version
- Tulita Slavey Dictionary (1986) • PDF version
- Dictionary of Alaskan English
Images
Chart 1: Internet Domain Search, 24 December 2024
