Wichita
/ˈwɪtʃɪtə/noun
A city in south-central Kansas; also the name of a Native American people and their language.
Did you know?Wichita is an English spelling of a French rendering of a Wichita self-name, and the city of Wichita was named for the Wichita people long before modern branding existed.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-Contact
Wichita
kirikirʔi:s? / related forms
“A self-name associated with their settled dwelling places and large grass houses”
17th Century
French
Wichitas
“French transcription of the Wichita people’s name”
19th Century
English
Wichita
“English spelling adopted for the people and later the Kansas locality”
1868
English
Wichita
“Name applied to the Kansas city and its surrounding settlement”
Modern English
English
Wichita
“A city in Kansas; the Wichita people and their language”