List of Ojibwa ethnonyms

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This is a list of various names the Ojibwa have been recorded. They can be divided based on who coined the names. The first type are names created by the Ojibwa people to refer to themselves, known as endonyms or autonyms. The second type are names coined by non-Ojibwa people and are known as exonyms or xenonyms.

Contents

Endonyms

Anishinaabe(g)

The most general name for the Ojibwa is Anishinaabe . Though several definitions are given for this name, the most common one is "spontaneous men", referring to their creation as being ex nihilo, thus being the "Original men." When syncoped, the name appears as "Nishnaabe":

In more recent spelling includes:

Inini(wag)

The general term for many Ojibwa is to refer to themselves as an Inini ("man"), opposed to some other life forms:

Ojibwe(g)

Several different explanations are given for the common name Ojibwe.

  • from ojiibwabwe (/o/ + /jiibw/ + /abwe/), meaning "those who cook\roast until it puckers", referring to their fire-curing of moccasin seams to make them waterproof, [1] though some sources instead say this was a method of torture the Ojibwe implemented upon their enemies. [2]
  • from ozhibii'iwe (/o/ + /zhibii'/ + /iwe/), meaning "those who keep records [of a Vision]", referring to their form of pictorial writing, and pictographs used in Midewiwin rites [3]
  • from ojiibwe (/o/ + /jiib/ + /we/), meaning "those who speak-stiffly"\"those who stammer", referring to how the Ojibwe sounded to the Cree [4]

Today, it finds its way in English as "Ojibwa(y)" or "Chippewa", but have had many different recorded variations in the past:

Baawitigong

Due to the long association of the Ojibwa with the Sault Ste. Marie region, and more specifically with the Rapids of the St. Mary's River, the common name for the Ojibwa became Baawitigong, meaning "those at the rapids":

Nii’inawe(g)

The term Nii'inawe means "[those who speak] our nation's language" and is a generic term used by the Algonquian peoples to refer to fellow Algonquian peoples.

Bangii(yaad)

The term Bangii means "a little bit", often used to refer to the Métis:

Exonyms

Wendat names

The general Wendat name for the Ojibwa is "Ehstihaĝeron(on)," which is a translation of "Baawitigong":

French names

The general French name for the Ojibwa is "Saulteur(s)", a translation of "Baawitigong". In early French North America, the term "sault" referred to a type of rapids in which the waters appeared to tumble or roll:

Dakota names

The general Dakota name for the Ojibwa is "Iyoħaħáŋtoŋ(waŋ)" or "those at the waterfall", which is a loose translation of "Baawitigong":

Iroquoian names

The general Iroquoian name for the Ojibwa is "Dwăkănĕņ", recorded variously as:

Athapaskan names

Other names

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Multilingual Dictionary for Multifaith and Multicultural Mediation and Education
  2. ↑ Warren, William W. (1885; reprint: 1984) History of the Ojibway People. ISBN   0-87351-162-X.
  3. ↑ L. Erdrich, Books and Islands in Ojibwe Country (2003) Archived 2007-09-26 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ↑ Johnston, Basil. (2007) Anishinaubae Thesaurus ISBN   0-87013-753-0

References

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