The Collaborative Dictionary

Wike \Wike\, n. A temporary mark or boundary, as a bough of a tree set up in marking out or dividing anything, as tithes, swaths to be mowed in common ground, etc.; -- called also wicker. [Prov. Eng.] [1913 Webster]

Wicker \Wick"er\, n. [OE. wiker, wikir, osier, probably akin to AS. w[imac]can to give way. Cf. Weak.] [1913 Webster]

A small pliant twig or osier; a rod for making basketwork and the like; a withe. [1913 Webster]

Wickerwork; a piece of wickerwork, esp. a basket. [1913 Webster] Then quick did dress His half milk up for cheese, and in a press Of wicker pressed it. --Chapman. [1913 Webster]

Same as 1st Wike. [Prov. Eng.] [1913 Webster]

Wicker \Wick"er\, a. Made of, or covered with, twigs or osiers, or wickerwork. [1913 Webster] Each one a little wicker basket had, Made of fine twigs, entrail['e]d curiously. --Spenser. [1913 Webster]

Word Net

wicker

1 slender flexible branches or twigs (especially of willow or some canes); used for wickerwork

2 work made of interlaced slender branches (especially willow branches) [syn: wickerwork, caning]

English

Pronunciation

• (UK): /ˈwɪkə/, /"wIk@/
• (US): , /ˈwɪkɚ/, /"wIk@`/

Rhymes with: -ɪkə(r)

Homophones

• whicker (in accents with the wine-whine merger)

Etymology

Middle Engish wiker, cognate with Swedish vikker “willow,” Old Norse veikr “weak,” English weak

Noun

1. A flexible branch or twig of a plant such as willow, used in weaving baskets and furniture
2. Wickerwork.

Derived terms

• wickerwork

Translations

• Finnish: paju-, kori-
• German: Flechtwerk
• Korean: 고리 (gori)
• Portuguese: verga
• Russian: прутья для плетения (prút’ja dlja pleténija)
• Spanish: mimbre

Wicker is hard woven fiber formed into a useful object. Wicker is usually used for baskets or furniture. Wicker is made of material of plant origin, but nowadays plastic fibers are also used.

Materials used can be any part of a plant, such as the cores or canes of rattan stalks, or the whole thickness, as with willow switches. Other popular materials include reed and bamboo.

Often a frame is made of stiffer materials, after which more pliant material is used to fill in the frame. Wicker is light yet sturdy, making it suitable for furniture that will be moved often. It is often used for porch and patio furniture.

Wicker furniture has been documented as far back as ancient Egypt href="http://www.bergen.org/AAST/Projects/Egypt/egyptian_social.html">http://www.bergen.org/AAST/Projects/Egypt/egyptian_social.html, and wicker baskets have been found in Pompeii http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4695097.stm. It has been proposed that the extensive use of wicker objects in the Iron Age had an influence on the development of the patterns used in Celtic art. In recent times, its aesthetic was influenced heavily by the Arts and Crafts movement at the turn of the 20th century.

The oldest and most prominent North American manufacturer was Heywood-Wakefield in Gardner, Massachusetts. Antique wicker products are highly sought after by collectors.

See also

• Wicker Man

• The Wicker Man

External links

• Wakefield Library display (historic photos of factory and products)

• Wickerpedia (Information regarding wicker and its many uses)