Montagnais
/ˌmɒntənˈjeɪ/noun
A historical French-derived name for the Innu Indigenous people of eastern Canada.
Did you know?Montagnais is an exonym: French colonists applied a terrain-based name to the Innu, who generally use the self-designation Innu, meaning “person” or “human being.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*men-
“To project or stand out, a proposed root associated with prominent heights.”
Classical Latin
Latin
mōns; montis
“Mountain or elevated landform.”
Medieval Latin
Latin
montāneus
“Of or belonging to a mountain; mountainous.”
12th–13th Century
Old French
montaigne
“Mountain; a high or rugged place.”
16th–17th Century
French
Montagnais
“Mountain people or people of the mountains, a French exonym for the Innu.”
Modern English
English
Montagnais
“A historical name for the Innu, increasingly replaced by the community-preferred term Innu.”
Explore more surprising origins