Ojibwe
/oʊˈdʒɪb.weɪ/noun
A member of a Native American people of the Great Lakes region, or the Algonquian language spoken by that people.
Did you know?The name is widely believed to be related to a word meaning “to pucker” or “to roast/burn until puckered,” but scholars note the exact origin is uncertain and the form was filtered through French and English spelling traditions.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Algonquian (reconstructed)
PA
*oji-
“A proposed ancestral element often linked by scholars to puckering or roasting/burning, though the full etymology is uncertain.”
Early contact period
French
Outchibouec
“Early French spellings used for the people, shaped by French ears and orthography.”
18th Century
French/English
Ojibway / Chippewa
“Colonial spellings and anglicized forms referring to the same people and language.”
Modern English
English
Ojibwe
“The contemporary preferred spelling in English for the people and their language.”
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