Kwakwaka'wakw
/ˌkwɑːkwəˈkɑːʔwɑːkw/noun
A collective name for several Indigenous peoples of the central and northern coast of British Columbia who traditionally speak, or spoke, Kwak̓wala and related languages.
Did you know?Kwakwaka'wakw is a self-designation, while “Kwakiutl,” once common in English, properly refers to the Kwakiutl band rather than all Kwakwaka'wakw peoples.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-contact tradition
Kwak̓wala
kwakwaka'wakw
“A collective self-designation associated with the Kwak̓wala-speaking peoples”
19th Century
English
Kwakiutl
“An exonym used broadly by colonial ethnographers for several peoples in the region”
Late 19th Century
English
Kwakwaka'wakw
“An increasingly recorded form of the collective Indigenous name”
20th Century
Kwak̓wala/English
Kwakwaka'wakw
“A restored and widely used collective name for the related Indigenous nations”
Modern English
English
Kwakwaka'wakw
“The standard English form for the collective of Kwak̓wala-speaking peoples and their descendants”
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