name given to a wooden receptaclehollowed out of a solid block of some tree, such as the Batswing Coral ( Erythrina vespertio), or Mulga ( Acacia aneura), and carried by nativewomen in various parts of Australia for the purpose ofcollecting food in, such as grass seed or bulbs, and sometimesfor carrying infants. The shape and size varies much, and themore concave ones are used for carrying water in. The originof the word is obscure; some think it aboriginal, others thinkit a corruption of the English word pitcher.
1896. E. C. Stirling, `Home Expedition in Central Australia,Anthropology, pt. iv. p. 99:
«I do not know the origin of the name `Pitchi,' which is ingeneral use by the whites of the parts traversed by theexpedition, for the wooden vessels used for carrying food andwater and, occasionally, infants.»