Ski-U-Mah ( ) is a slogan used at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

since 1884, when the newly emerging football team was coached by Thomas Peebles, a philosophy professor and former

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

faculty member. During the team's scrimmages, Peebles would often yell "Sis-Boom-Ah, Princeton!" after a score, relying on a cheer from his alma mater. Team captain John W. Adams and a co-captain sought a counter-cheer, one that would have "a characteristic Minnesota flavor." While brainstorming, Adams recalled hearing native

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Dakota, Minnesota, a ...

boys yell "ski-oo!" in athletic contests and canoe races at

Lake Pepin Lake Pepin is a naturally occurring lake on the Mississippi River on the border between the U.S. states of Minnesota and Wisconsin. It is located in a valley carved by the outflow of an enormous glacial lake at the end of the last Ice Age. The ...

. Adams incorrectly interpreted that phrase as the

word for victory, or exultation, and suggested it as a cheer for the university rugby team. His co-captain, "Win" Sargent, added the "mah" to make it rhyme with "rah," thus creating "Ski-U-Mah!" They used the cheer in their practices and games, and the campus paper (the ''

Ariel Ariel may refer to: Film and television *Ariel Award, a Mexican Academy of Film award * ''Ariel'' (film), a 1988 Finnish film by Aki Kaurismäki * ''ARIEL Visual'' and ''ARIEL Deluxe'', 1989 and 1991 anime video series based on the novel series ...

'') endorsed the cheer soon after.

Usage

The slogan has been used to cheer on the

Minnesota Golden Gophers The Minnesota Golden Gophers (commonly shortened to Gophers) are the college sports teams of the University of Minnesota. The university fields a total of 25 (12 men's, 13 women's) teams in both men's and women's sports and competes in the Big Te ...

athletics teams, and was written into the lyrics of university songs including the "

Minnesota Rouser The "Minnesota Rouser" is the fight song of the University of Minnesota. It is played at all Minnesota Golden Gophers games. Lyrics The phrase Ski-U-Mah (slogan), 'Ski-U-Mah' was part of an early cheer for the U of M. Gopher fans traditionally ...

", "

Go Gopher Victory "Go Gopher Victory" is one of the school songs of the University of Minnesota. Composed in 1925 by University graduate Addison H. Douglass, this tune was originally entitled "The Gopher M". It is frequently played at Minnesota Golden Gopher athle ...

", "Minnesota Fight" and "

Minnesota March Minnesota March is a march for wind band written by John Philip Sousa for the University of Minnesota. The piece was one of four marches written by Sousa expressly for a university. It is now used as one of the university's school songs, with lyr ...

". The slogan has had other uses at the university through the years. In the mid-20th century, '' Ski-U-Mah'' was a University of Minnesota humor magazine. It is currently used on the football team's helmets and jerseys, as the name of a meeting room at the

McNamara Alumni Center The McNamara Alumni Center at the University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Designed by Antoine Predock, it is one of the more architecturally striking buildings in the Twin Cities. The building, opened in 2000, con ...

, a campus tailgate lot/parking lot near

TCF Bank Stadium Huntington Bank Stadium (formerly known as TCF Bank Stadium) is an outdoor stadium located on the campus of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. The stadium opened in 2009, after three years of construction. It is ...

, and as the title of a yearbook-style publication put out by the ''

Minnesota Daily The ''Minnesota Daily'' is the campus newspaper of the University of Minnesota, published Monday and Thursday while school is in session, and published weekly on Wednesdays during summer sessions. Published since 1900, the paper is currently the la ...

''. Ski Yu Mah Lounge was a

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

-era

speakeasy A speakeasy, also called a blind pig or blind tiger, is an illicit establishment that sells alcoholic beverages, or a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. Speakeasy bars came into prominence in the United States d ...

near the campus, where players and other locals gathered after games. The Gopher football team was prominent during the Prohibition era, and the use of the phrase in the school rouser is said to be a holdover in commemoration of the lounge and the time period.

Interpretation

–

Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language, the language of the Lakota peoples Place names In the United States: *Lakota, Iowa *Lakota, North Dakota, seat of Nelson County *Lakota ...

specialists state that the word "Ski-U" or "Ski-yoo" or "Ski-oo" is not Dakota victory cry nor or the Dakota word for winning. What Adams heard on Lake Pepin, "ski-oo," may have just been an interjection, similar to "woo hoo." Other Dakota-Lakota words or phrases that have been suggested for what Adams heard include: * "Scheeh" or "scheen-shay" which means "Try Hard" * "Schkee ooh poh!" or "Scheee ooh!" meaning "Try hard, come on!" * "Oh-hee-yah" which means "To win" * "Oh-hee-un-yum" or "oh-hee-oohn-yum" which means "We won"

References

{{reflist

External links

Gopher Sports - traditions

Minnesota Alumni - guide to football Saturdays"Gopher Hole: Ski-U-Mah"
Slogans University of Minnesota 1884 introductions 1880s neologisms