Araucanian
/ˌær.ɔːˈkeɪ.ni.ən/noun
Relating to the Indigenous Mapuche people or their language and culture of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina.
Did you know?Araucanian was once widely used in English by European writers, but many scholars now prefer Mapuche because Araucanian is an externally imposed colonial label and can obscure Indigenous self-identification.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-colonial period
Mapudungun?
ragko?
“A proposed source connected with a local place-name; the exact Indigenous origin of Arauco remains uncertain.”
16th Century
Spanish
Arauco
“The name applied by Spanish colonizers to a region and people in south-central Chile.”
16th Century
Spanish
araucan(o)
“Relating to Arauco or to the Indigenous people of that region.”
17th Century
English
Araucanian
“Relating to the Araucanian people or their language, as recorded in English colonial and scholarly writing.”
Modern English
English
Araucanian
“A historical or linguistic term for Mapuche-related people, language, or culture; Mapuche is generally preferred for the people themselves.”