Manitou
/ˈmænɪtuː/noun
A spirit or supernatural force in Algonquian belief systems, or a powerful mysterious presence.
Did you know?In many Algonquian languages, *manitou* referred broadly to a spiritual power or being, and French colonists used it to describe what they understood as “the Great Spirit.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Algonquian
PA
*maneto·wa
“a spirit; a powerful supernatural being”
Early Algonquian languages
Algonquian
manitou
“spirit, mysterious power, or supernatural force”
17th Century
French
manitou
“a spirit or deity as reported in Indigenous North American contexts”
18th–19th Century
English
manitou
“an Indigenous spirit or supernatural force”
Modern English
English
manitou
“a spirit or powerful mysterious presence”
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