What's a 'botica?'

Subject: What's a 'botica?'
From: Abby Sale
Date: 12 Mar 00 - 02:54 PM

Over at L of C American Folklife Center, Collections page, Clicky there's a pitcher of a "botica." Looks to me like a Spanish bagpipe, maybe made from a cow stomach. (guess, guess). The caption is botica.gif but all I find about a botica is that it's some kind of a drugstore. I wonder if maybe it's mislabeled & should be a "bota." I guess I could wait until the thing opens tomorrow & go into that collection... but hell, anybody know what that is?

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: Sorcha
Date: 12 Mar 00 - 03:15 PM

Abby, go back and read the caption again--a Botica is a John, as in proper name. The instrument is a misnice a Croatian instrument. Still looking to see whose stomach it is, but it is not John Botica's.

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: Sorcha
Date: 12 Mar 00 - 03:53 PM

Oh yeah--botica means "boutique"--little shop, and it could be a bladder instead of a stomach; no luck yet on exactly what it is.

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: Sorcha
Date: 12 Mar 00 - 05:13 PM

A HAH! About half way down the page--Diple or misnice "sometimes has a sheep or goatskin bag"

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: rangeroger
Date: 12 Mar 00 - 08:32 PM

And at the very bottom of that page a DUDE.Don't know if he's from california or not.
rr

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: Bob Bolton
Date: 12 Mar 00 - 09:30 PM

G'day rangeroger,

I must go back and read all the page, but 'Dude' is probably another word for bagpipe. The Czech word is 'Dudak' - the best word of all being the German name: 'Dudelsak'!

Regards,

Bob Bolton

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: MudGuard
Date: 13 Mar 00 - 03:09 AM

Bob, the spelling is "Dudelsack".
"Dudel" means "tootle",
"Sack" means "bag",
so "Dudelsack" means "tootle-bag".
MudGuard

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: wysiwyg
Date: 13 Mar 00 - 03:50 AM

Darn, I was hoping it was a variant on potica, pron, po-teet-sa, a special bread (Croatian?).

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: Abby Sale
Date: 13 Mar 00 - 08:38 AM

Thanks All. I was reading the description below instead of next to. The image is actually called 'botica.gif'. A "misnice," is it? Croatian. OK, library's open now & Clicky gives actual schematic & how-to. "Mjersnice [misnice]--Dalmatian goatskin bagpipes--owned and played by John Botica." Some sounds of it too.

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: GUEST,Bill in Alabama
Date: 13 Mar 00 - 09:42 AM

Whatever it is, it looks like something 'Spaw would be interested in playing.

Bill

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: GUEST,Paul Burke
Date: 14 Mar 00 - 08:05 AM

I thought everybody knew that a Botica was a Wigan fullback in the glory years of not-so-long-ago.

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: Tony Burns
Date: 14 Mar 00 - 08:19 AM

If you go to Google and put misnice in the search box you will find lots of information on this and some other interesting instruments.

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: GUEST,petr
Date: 14 Mar 00 - 12:08 PM

Dudy is bagpipes in Czech. (Dude would be Serbo-Croat) Petr.

Subject: RE: What's a 'botica?'
From: GUEST,A Girl with the Last Name Botica
Date: 10 Sep 14 - 02:55 PM

well it's hard to say what it is, but my last name is Botica

.Bota
Also called bota bag. a wine bag of Spain made of untanned goatskin and usually holding 1–2 liters (1.1–2.2 quarts).
2.
a wine barrel of Spain holding 500 liters (132 U.S. gallons).

Botica: Chemist, Pharmacy, Drugstore

A botánica (often written botanica and less commonly known as a hierbería or botica) is a retail store that sells folk medicine, religious candles and statuary, amulets, and other products regarded as magical or as alternative medicine. They also carry oils, incense, perfumes, scented sprays (many of which are thought to have special properties) and various brand name health care products.

The mišnice is an instrument like a bagpipe, made from goatskin. Its date of invention is unknown but it is known to have existed in Europe by the 9th century. Different forms of the instrument were found in North Africa and Eastern Europe, especially Croatia, Serbia, Hungary and Ukraine. ...