Abraham Ulrikab

Who was Abraham Ulrikab?

Abraham Ulrikab was an Inuk from Hebron, Labrador, in the present day province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, who — along with his family — was to become a zoo exhibit in Europe in 1880 as an attraction at the Hamburg, Germany, public zoo.

Ulrikab, along with his wife and two daughters and four other Inuit, had agreed to become the newest attractions in the Hamburg Zoo. On August 26, 1880, all eight Inuit from Labrador boarded the schooner Eisbär to take part in a supposed display of the native way of the Inuit in northern communities. As instructed by zoo keepers, they simply had to walk, talk, wear their fur parkas and throw the odd harpoon to earn their keep.

The eight Inuit were from two families. Their approximate ages upon arrival in Europe were as follows:

Ulrikab's family

Abraham, 35,

Ulrike, 24, his wife

Sara, 4, daughter

Maria, infant daughter

Tobias, 20, Ulrike's unmarried nephew.

The other family, whose surname is unknown

Terrianiak, about 40, father

Paingo, as old as 50, wife

Noggasak, their teenage daughter.

Ulrikab was literate, an accomplished violin player and a devout Christian. He became the natural leader of the eight and had agreed to perform in this fashion to repay a debt of £10 to the Moravian mission in Hebron. Within weeks of arriving in Europe and taking up residence in the zoo, the families realized they had made a mistake in coming.