Talk:Olla

No longer a disambig page

The new information added to this page makes it less of a disambig page and more of a description of the object "olla" (a clay cooking jar). Since most of the linked definitions arise from this base definition, I propose removing this as a disambiguation page and making it a subject article. I would also merge olla (Roman pot) into this page as a history section. FiveRings (talk) 22:10, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't object to the merge, but the disambiguation page should be resurrected as Olla (disambiguation). Johnbod (talk) 19:53, 26 July 2009 (UTC)

I oppose the merge on the following grounds:

• The modern usage of olla appears to be entirely culinary. Therefore:

• The methodology and sources for discussing the typology of ancient Roman pottery differ dramatically, which would result in stylistic dissonance. The article Olla (Roman pot) is currently only a stub waiting to be developed (on my to-do list); when it is, it will be longer than the modern olla article.
• The Roman olla could also be a funerary urn. This material would be jarring (pardon the pun) in a culinary article.
• The olla is a symbol of the Celtic god Sucellus; it's unclear to me at the moment why. Celticists have varying views, but possibly because of its funerary use, or because it's supposed to contain some potent substance (see English slang "jarred"). It's also unclear whether this symbol predated the Gallo-Roman era; that is, is it Celtic, or is it a distinctive product of the "hybrid" culture that we call Gallo-Roman? This is a rather geeky, abstruse question that would be entirely out of place in an article on the culinary utensil.
• The article as I foresee developing it will contain a section on the use of the word olla as sexual slang in Latin poetry and graffiti; again, a rather specialized, peculiarly Roman thing.

I know I haven't worked on this one for a while, but I do plan to get to it eventually. Cynwolfe (talk) 23:16, 26 July 2009 (UTC)

response - the modern usage also includes irrigation in the United States. A confound, however, is that "olla" in European Spanish actually only means "pot", with the wide-necked rounded shape being the most common exemplar (much like "saucepan" and "pot" are interchangeable in American English). Does Aulla in Latin refer specifically to the shape, or does it just mean "vessel"? (This all bears more discussion - we may wind up with a "cooking jar" page and a disambig) FiveRings (talk) 05:12, 27 July 2009 (UTC)

link to the Spanish page: [[1]] (I think it's hilarious that this has wok as a "see also") FiveRings (talk) 21:16, 27 July 2009 (UTC)

Been six months since the original merge was proposed. You ever going to get to that expansion? FiveRings (talk) 22:48, 29 January 2010 (UTC)