Illiniwek
/ˌɪlɪˈniːwɛk/noun
A historical Miami-Illinois plural ethnonym meaning the Illinois people, also used for the Illinois Confederation.
Did you know?Illiniwek was not originally an English word but a Miami-Illinois form recorded by French colonists, whose spelling helped produce Illinois.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Algonquian
Proto-Algonquian
*elenywa
“Person or ordinary human being”
Pre-European period
Miami-Illinois
ileniwa
“Person or man”
Pre-European period
Miami-Illinois
ileniwaaki
“People or men; a plural form”
17th Century
Miami-Illinois
illiniwek
“A French-influenced transcription of the plural ethnonym used for the Illinois people”
17th Century
French
Illinois
“French rendering of Illiniwek, applied to the people and their region”
Modern English
English
Illinois
“The U.S. state whose name ultimately derives from the Miami-Illinois ethnonym”
Explore more surprising origins