Algonquian
/ælˈɡɑːŋkwiən/noun
Relating to a large family of Indigenous languages of North America, or to the peoples who speak them.
Did you know?The name Algonquian is not a single ancient self-name for one nation; it was applied by Europeans to a broad language family, and its exact origin is disputed, with proposed roots tied to an Ojibwe word meaning something like ‘at the place of spearing fish from the shore.’
Etymological Timeline
16th-17th Century
French
Algonquin
“A French colonial name used for certain Indigenous peoples encountered in eastern North America.”
17th Century
English
Algonquian
“An English form created to refer to the related peoples and languages grouped under the colonial label Algonquin.”
Proto-Algonquian?
Proto-Algonquian
*elen-kwé?
“The ultimate origin is uncertain; scholars have proposed various Indigenous sources, but no single secure reconstruction is established.”
18th-19th Century
English
Algonquian
“A linguistic term for the major North American language family including Ojibwe, Cree, Mi'kmaq, and many others.”
Modern English
English
Algonquian
“A standard scholarly term for the language family and, more broadly, the peoples associated with it.”
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