Wikiups

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of temporary shelter made from natural materials such as willow or brush, traditionally used by certain Native American tribes ; an informal term for simple, rustic dwellings built quickly for short-term use ; a lightweight structure designed for temporary habitation, often resembling a hut or lean-to constructed from available vegetation
2. A basic shelter constructed from sticks, branches, and brushwood, commonly associated with indigenous groups ; a makeshift hut created for short-term occupancy using natural components ; a rudimentary outdoor dwelling built rapidly from flexible twigs and bark for temporary refuge
3. A primitive form of habitation made from woven branches and foliage providing basic protection from elements ; a simple, ephemeral structure assembled from brush and wood for shelter ; a native-style dwelling made to be portable or temporary, usually found in woodland or desert regions

Etymology: The plural of "wikiup" is "wikiups," and the singular form is the one that matters for the history. A wikiup was a domed shelter built by the Algonquian-speaking peoples of the Great Lakes and the Plains, with a frame of bent saplings or willow poles covered in mats, bark, or brush. Its name comes from the Algonquian languages, and it entered English through the speech of the settlers and traders who encountered these dwellings. The plural form simply follows the English habit of adding "-s" to a noun that has been borrowed into the language, so "wikiups" refers to more than one such shelter. Because the shelters were quick to build and easy to take down, they suited people who moved with the seasons, and the English word carried that sense of a shelter put up for a short stay.

Synonyms: wigwams, huts, shelters