The 21st century is the era of global industrialization and automation of all production processes. Against this background, traditional crafts seem something very ancient, archaic. One of the forgotten crafts is cooperism.
Who are coopers? What are they doing? And what are the meanings of the word coopers?
Ancient crafts in the modern world
Craft is understood as small-scale production, using manual work and primitive tools. It is also often called "artisanal production", and the corresponding workers - "artisans".
The first crafts arose long ago, and have come a long way in development, mutating and taking on new forms. In the Middle Ages, they contributed to the formation of individual layers of urban society. The industrial revolution (XVIII - beginning of the XIX century) led to the gradual crowding out of artisans to the sidelines of social and economic life.
The modern world is multinational corporations, large industrial concerns and mass production. It would seem that there is simply no place for traditional crafts in such a world. However, they continue to live and develop. Even in the field of information technology, today our “artisans” are born (copywriters, SMM specialists, etc.), and are very, very popular!
The following crafts should be classified as traditional (historical):
- weaving;
- blacksmith craft;
- pottery;
- cooperage;
- wood carving;
- carpentry and others.
Cooper is ... The meaning of the word
So who are these coopers? What and how do they produce? Let's answer these questions.
Cooper is a master in the manufacture of barrels (sometimes - and some other wood products). And the corresponding craft is called cooperage. Previously, it was ubiquitous. Today, meeting a real cooper is much more difficult. However, their craft is still relevant. Indeed, wine and brandy industry needs wooden barrels.
Where does the term cooper come from? This word, most likely, has Ukrainian roots. From the Ukrainian language it is translated as a “barrel”. It is curious that in medieval Scandinavia the word "bond" was common. So in the Scandinavian countries they called a free, free man.
Surname Cooper and its analogues in the world
One can not help recalling another curious fact. This profession gave rise to a fairly common surname - Cooper. It is very popular in Russia, Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus.
Other peoples of the world have its analogues. What surnames were born from cooperage in other countries, you can see in the following table:
| The country | Surname |
| UK, USA | Cooper |
| Israel | Bodner |
| France | Tunnel |
| Spain | Cubero |
| Italy | Bottai |
| Germany, Austria | Scheffler |
| Poland | Bednarski |
| Romania, Moldova | Butnaru |
Modern Cooper
Cooper is not just entertainment or tribute to traditions. This is a very hard work, requiring a lot of skills from the master. In addition, the cooper has a whole arsenal of tools that you need to be able to use correctly. In addition to the trivial and familiar to all, an ax among them there are exotic tools: a chopper, a jointer, plows.
Wooden barrels are a seemingly simple thing. But it only seems so at first glance. A modern cooper should be a carpenter, a machine operator, and a tinsmith. He must be well versed in tree species: not every wood is suitable for this business (oak, heather and linden are best for making barrels and tubs). The carpentry skills here are also important, because you need to perfectly fit all the bars and the bottom to each other.
To become a good cooper, you should have three main qualities. This is the utmost accuracy, accuracy and excellent coordination of movements. Coopers are in demand today, primarily in the wine and chemical industries. The work of such masters is estimated at about 30-50 thousand rubles.