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Webster 1913 Edition

Eskimo

Es′ki-mo

,
Noun.
;
pl.
Eskimos
(#)
.
[Originally applied by the Algonquins to the Northern Indians, and meaning
eaters of raw flesh
.]
(Ethnol.)
One of a peculiar race inhabiting Arctic America and Greenland. In many respects the Eskimos resemble the Mongolian race.
[Written also
Esquimau
.]
Eskimo dog

Definition 2024

Eskimo

Eskimo

See also: eskimo

English

Alternative forms

Proper noun

Eskimo

  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.

Usage notes

  • Eskimo has come to be considered offensive, especially in Canada. However, it remains an acceptable term for northern peoples in Alaska—including the Inuit Inupiat and the non-Inuit Yupik—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 (and in fact, both the Cree and Inuit ate raw meat).
  • In Canada, Eskimo has been superseded by Inuit for the people, with that term having official status, and Inuktitut for the language. The Inuit group of Canada's Western Arctic call themselves Inuvialuit. Greenland natives also call themselves Greenlanders or Kalaallit, and their language Greenlandic or Kalaallisut.
  • Eskimo does not include the related Aleut people (Unangam).

Synonyms

Translations

Noun

Eskimo ‎(plural Eskimo or Eskimos)

  1. A member of any of the Eskimo peoples.

Translations

Adjective

Eskimo ‎(comparative more Eskimo, superlative most Eskimo)

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

Derived terms

Translations

References

  • “Eskimo” in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006.
  • “Eskimo” in the Canadian Oxford Dictionary, Second Edition, Oxford University Press, 2004.
  • “Eskimo” in Dictionary.com Unabridged, v1.1, Lexico Publishing Group, 2006.
  • “Eskimo” in the The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Oxford University Press, 2005
  • “Eskimo” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary (2001).
  • “Eskimo” and “Origin of the name Eskimo” in Wikipedia

Anagrams

Dutch

Pronunciation

Etymology

From French Esquimau; for more, see Eskimo.

Noun

Eskimo n ‎(plural Eskimo's, diminutive Eskimootje n)

  1. Eskimo (person)

Proper noun

Eskimo n

  1. the Eskimo language (group)

Derived terms

French

Alternative forms

Noun

Eskimo m ‎(plural Eskimos)

  1. an Eskimo

Derived terms

German

Noun

Eskimo m ‎(genitive Eskimo or Eskimos, plural Eskimo or Eskimos)

  1. an Eskimo

eskimo

eskimo

See also: Eskimo

Danish

Noun

eskimo c (singular definite eskimoen, plural indefinite eskimoer)

  1. Eskimo

Inflection

Synonyms

Derived terms

Dutch

Pronunciation

Etymology

From Eskimo m

Noun

eskimo n ‎(uncountable)

  1. A thick woolen fabric, mainly used for warm winter coats

Derived terms

  • eskimojas
  • eskimojekker m

Finnish

(index es)

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈe̞skimo̞]
  • Hyphenation: es‧ki‧mo

Noun

eskimo

  1. An Eskimo.

Declension

Inflection of eskimo (Kotus type 2/palvelu, no gradation)
nominative eskimo eskimot
genitive eskimon eskimojen
eskimoiden
eskimoitten
partitive eskimoa eskimoja
eskimoita
illative eskimoon eskimoihin
singular plural
nominative eskimo eskimot
accusative nom. eskimo eskimot
gen. eskimon
genitive eskimon eskimojen
eskimoiden
eskimoitten
partitive eskimoa eskimoja
eskimoita
inessive eskimossa eskimoissa
elative eskimosta eskimoista
illative eskimoon eskimoihin
adessive eskimolla eskimoilla
ablative eskimolta eskimoilta
allative eskimolle eskimoille
essive eskimona eskimoina
translative eskimoksi eskimoiksi
instructive — eskimoin
abessive eskimotta eskimoitta
comitative — eskimoineen

French

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Eskimo m

Adjective

eskimo m, f ‎(invariable)

  1. Eskimo

Italian

Noun

eskimo m ‎(invariable)

  1. A parka coat

Etymology

First attested 1584 in the (now obsolete) spelling Esquimawe, from French Esquimaux ‎(“Eskimos (plural)”), from Spanish esquimao, esquimal (used by Basque fishermen in Labrador), from Old Montagnais ayaškimew ‎(“snowshoe-netter”); compare Montagnais assime·w ‎(“she laces a snowshoe”), Cree asâm ‎(“snowshoe”); compare also Ojibwe aagimike ‎(“she or he makes snowshoes”). The name was originally applied by the Innu people to the Mi'kmaq and later transferred to the Labrador Inuit; see the usage notes below.

The Montagnais term was once thought to have meant "eaters of raw meat", but this has been discredited and is now dismissed by most authorities.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈɛs.kɪ.moʊ/
  • Hyphenation: Es‧kimo

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