Unangan
/uːˈnɑːŋən/noun
A member of the Indigenous Unangan, or Aleut, people of the Aleutian Islands and nearby regions.
Did you know?Unangan is a self-designation connected with Unangam Tunuu, the language traditionally spoken across the Aleutian Islands.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-contact period
Unangam Tunuu
Unangax̂ / Unangan
“Indigenous self-designations associated with the people of the Aleutian Islands; exact grammatical distinctions vary by source and dialect.”
18th Century
Russian
Алеуты (Aleuty)
“The Russian name applied to the Indigenous peoples of the Aleutian Islands; its ultimate origin is uncertain.”
19th Century
English
Aleut
“The common English ethnonym adopted through Russian usage.”
20th Century
English
Unangan
“An English ethnonym increasingly used to reflect the community’s own naming traditions.”
Modern English
English
Unangan
“A member of the Indigenous Unangan people, also widely known by the exonym Aleut.”
Explore more surprising origins