Algonquian

[ al-gong-kee-uhn, -kwee-uhn ]

noun

, plural Al·gon·qui·ans, (especially collectively) Al·gon·qui·an

1. a family of languages spoken now or formerly by North American Indians in an area extending from Labrador westward to the Rocky Mountains, west-southwestward through Michigan and Illinois, and southwestward along the Atlantic coast to Cape Hatteras, including especially Arapaho, Blackfoot, Cheyenne, Cree, Fox, Massachusett, Mi'kmaq, Ojibwe, and Powhatan.
2. a member of an Algonquian-speaking tribe.

adjective

1. of or relating to Algonquian or its speakers.

Algonquian

/ -kwɪ-; ælˈɡɒŋkɪən /

noun

1. a family of North American Indian languages whose speakers ranged over an area stretching from the Atlantic between Newfoundland and Delaware to the Rocky Mountains, including Micmac, Mahican, Ojibwa, Fox, Blackfoot, Cheyenne, and Shawnee. Some linguists relate it to Muskogean in a Macro-Algonquian phylum
2. -ans-an a member of any of the North American Indian peoples that speak one of these languages

adjective

1. denoting, belonging to, or relating to this linguistic family or its speakers

Word History and Origins

Origin of Algonquian¹

An Americanism dating back to 1885–90; Algonqui(n) + -an

Example Sentences

Wisconsin is derived from the Menominee word Wēskōhsaeh, meaning “a good place” and the word Meskousing, which means “where it lies red” in Algonquian.

From Seattle Times

Its name is thought to come from Algonquian tribes in North America, with June being the month when strawberries begin to ripen for picking.

From BBC

The Blackfeet so venerated beavers’ water-creating abilities that they forbade killing them, and some Algonquian tribes consider the Great Beaver responsible for molding the Connecticut River Valley.

From Scientific American

Piscataway means “the people who live where the waters meet” in the Algonquian language.

From Washington Post

Tuesday's event will coincide with the "Beaver moon," a moniker for November's full moon adopted by the Old Farmer's Almanac supposedly from Algonquian languages once spoken by Native Americans in the New England territory.

From Reuters