Yuma
/ˈjuːmə/noun
A city in southwestern Arizona, or a former name used for the Yuma people and their language.
Did you know?The name Yuma is an English form associated with the Quechan people, whose traditional homeland centered on the lower Colorado River, where names were inseparable from land and survival.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-Columbian
Quechan
unknown / native ethnonym
“The self-name of the people now commonly called the Quechan, traditionally tied to the lower Colorado River region.”
18th Century
Spanish
yuma
“A Spanish colonial name used for the Indigenous people of the lower Colorado River area.”
19th Century
English
Yuma
“An English place name and ethnonym adopted from Spanish usage.”
Modern English
English
Yuma
“The name of a city in Arizona and a historical name for the people and region associated with the lower Colorado River.”