Alternative spellings

• Esquimau
• Esquimaux
• Esquimo

Etymology

First attested 1584, as Esquimawes. From , from plural (possibly from Spanish or ), from the Algonquin language . This was once thought to mean "eaters of raw meat", but most authorities now believe it signifies either "netters of snowshoes" or "speakers of a foreign language". Compare Ojibwe . The name was originally applied by the Innu people to the Mi'kmaq, and later transferred to the Labrador Inuit; see usage notes.

Proper noun

1. A group of indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic, from Siberia, through Alaska and Northern Canada, to Greenland, including the Inuit and Yupik.
2. Any of the languages of the Eskimo.

Adjective

1. Of or relating to the Eskimo peoples.
2. In, of, or relating to the Eskimo languages.

Usage notes

has come to be considered offensive, especially in Canada. However, it remains an acceptable term for northern peoples in Alaska—including the Inuit and the non-Inuit —and the only encompassing term for all of these Arctic peoples. It is also used worldwide by historians and archaeologists.

The name declined in use because it was thought to stem from a Cree pejorative meaning “eaters of raw meat” rather than from the Inuit people's name for themselves, but this etymology is now discredited (in fact, both the Cree and Inuit ate raw meat).

In Canada, has been superseded by for the people, which name has official status, and for the language. The Inuit group of Canada's Western Arctic call themselves . Greenland natives also call themselves or , and their language or .

Also note that does not include the related people , nor the Indian or First Nations peoples of the Arctic.

Etymology

From Esquimau (now also Eskimo as well) (possibly from Spanish or ), from the Algonquin language . This was once thought to mean "eaters of raw meat", but most authorities now believe it signifies either "netters of snowshoes" (compare Ojibwe ) or "speakers of a foreign language".

Proper noun

1. An Eskimo
2. The Eskimo language (group)