Yup'ik
/ˈjuː.pɪk/noun
Yup'ik refers to an Indigenous people of western and southwestern Alaska and their Yup'ik language.
Did you know?Yup'ik is an autonym—a name used by the people themselves—and is commonly explained as combining yup- “person” with -ik “real” or “genuine.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Eskimo-Aleut period
Proto-Eskimo-Aleut
*yup-
“A reconstructed root associated with person or human being; the exact proto-form is less certain than the later Yup'ik forms.”
Traditional Yup'ik usage
Yup'ik
yupik
“Person or human being.”
Traditional Yup'ik usage
Yup'ik
-ik
“A suffix conveying real, genuine, or authentic in common explanations of the ethnonym.”
19th Century
English
Yupik
“An English rendering used by outsiders for the people, language, and cultural region.”
20th Century
Yup'ik/English
Yup'ik
“The standardized form commonly used for the Central Alaskan Yup'ik people and language; the apostrophe distinguishes the name’s orthography and pronunciation.”