Yupiaq
/ˈjuː.pi.æk/noun
A member of the Yupiaq people of southwestern Alaska and the Russian Far East, or relating to their language and culture.
Did you know?Yupiaq belongs to the Eskimo–Aleut language family, whose traditional self-designations often emphasize being a genuine or complete human community.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Eskimo–Aleut
PEA
*yupe-
“A reconstructed root associated with personhood or human identity; the exact reconstruction and segmentation remain debated.”
Traditional Yup'ik
Yup'ik
yup'ik
“Person or real person; a major self-designation among Central Alaskan Yup'ik communities.”
Traditional Yupiaq
Yupiaq
yupiaq
“A Yupiaq person; commonly analyzed as expressing the idea of a real or genuine person.”
19th–20th Century
English
Yupik
“An English ethnonym and language name applied to related Indigenous peoples of Alaska and Siberia.”
Modern English
English
Yupiaq
“The English ethnonym for the Yupiaq people and their language, especially in southwestern Alaska.”