There is a belief that the Eskimos have 100/1,000/1,000,000 words for snow. There are many reasons why this is not strictly the absolute truth, but the only one you really need to remember is this one:
It's completely wrong.
If you want the full discussion then countless others have already tackled this whole issue and you can join in the debate at the links below:
- Eskimo Words for Snow [Wikipedia.org]
- Counting Eskimo words for snow: A citizen's guide [Anthony C. Woodbury - University of Texas at Austin]
- Language/Eskimo words for Snow Derby [Stuart P. Derby]
- What are the nine Eskimo words for snow? [The Straight Dope]
- "Eskimo" words for snow [Steven J. Derose]
For anyone seeking more than just Inuit words for snow, and let's face it, it's nice to stop and chat a bit with clients, then WordGumbo's Inuit-English/English-Inuit Dictionary is an excellent place to start.
Within the business of selling snow to the Eskimos, some industry jargon and slang has arisen and anyone looking to move into this line of work will need to get acquainted with these phrases:
| AP | Abbreviation of 'Allington Point,' our snow processing plant over in Kent. |
|---|---|
| Blue Tung | Comet-enriched snow from the Tunguska region. It has alovely blue shimmer to it. |
| Christmas it | To switch on the UV lights around the viewing pane on a silo in order to give the snow a white glow. Mainly used when VIPs visit. |
| Fat man | Double sized 40,000 litre pod that takes up a whole flatbed trailer. |
| Fluffy | Used to describe the state of a silo with contents currently stored as actual snow. |
| Hailing | Return journey with an empty truck. |
| Husky's | The weak herbal tea served at Allington Point. |
| Little Boy | standard 20,000 litre pod. |
| Scrape | To clean out a silo in order for a new snow type to go in |
| SIP | Snow Integrity Promise. A percentage of how much of the ordered product is guaranteed to arrive as snow. Snowbrokers.com currently deliver to a 99.9% SIP. |
| Skimmers | Affectionate internal nickname for the Eskimo clients |
| Snowball | Frozen blockage in a pipe |
| Storming | Trip to Alaska fully laden with snow |
| Wet | Used to describe the state of a silo with contents currently stored as water. |
| Yeti | Pod with unknown snow in due to potential mislabeling or system error |
| Yellow Stuff | Swiss snow |
