The etymology, pronunciation, and spelling of Algonquian (and Algonquin)

Will Oxford, 26 June 2023 | how to cite | home

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Etymology of Algonquian (the family)

The Algonquian language family is named after one of its members, Algonquin, a Central Algonquian language spoken in Quebec and adjacent parts of Ontario. Linguists would classify Algonquin as a member of the Ojibwe language continuum.

The English family name Algonquian was derived from the English language name Algonquin through clipping (Algonqu-) and the addition of the derivational suffix -ian 'relating to, like' (also found in Newtonian, Shakespearean, Iranian, etc.). From an etymological perspective, then, an Algonquian language is literally an 'Algonquin-like' or 'Algonquin-related' language.

The earliest attestation of Algonquian in the OED is from 1807.

Etymology of Algonquin (the language)

The English language name Algonquin was borrowed from French Algonquin [alɡɔ̃kɛ̃], which, like in English, is the French name for the Algonquin people and their language.

The earliest attestation of Algonquin in the OED is from 1607.

The etymology of the French word Algonquin is uncertain. It was first written by Samuel de Champlain in 1603 as Algoumequin (Day 1972: 226). Given the context in which Champlain heard the donor word—at a celebratory gathering of allied Innu, Etchemin/Maliseet, and Algonquin people—Day suggests that the donor word may have been Maliseet [ɛlæɡómoɡwik] ‘they are our (incl.) relatives, allies’. But this is just a guess.

(In the orthography normally used for Maliseet-Passamaquoddy today, Day's [ɛlæɡómoɡwik] would be written elakumoqik. This is the TA stem olakum- [əlakum-] ‘be related to anim’ inflected for 21→3p in the changed conjunct, meaning ‘we (incl.) are related to them’ or, as a participle, ‘they whom we (incl.) are related to’.)

Pronunciation and spelling of Algonquin / Algonkin (the language)

The most common pronunciation of the English word Algonquin is [ælˈɡɑŋkwɨn] with [kw], but [ælˈɡɑŋkɨn] with [k] is also attested, as reflected unambiguously by the alternate spelling Algonkin.

Given that the French word is pronounced [alɡɔ̃kɛ̃] with [k], the less common English pronunciation of Algonquin as [ælˈɡɑŋkɨn] with [k] is more etymologically accurate than [ælˈɡɑŋkwɨn] with [kw], the latter being a spelling pronunciation that reflects the typical English mapping of <qu> to [kw]. In contemporary usage, at least in Canada, the spelling pronunciation has mostly won the day.

Pronunciation and spelling of Algonquian / Algonkian (the family)

Pronunciation: [k] or [kw]?

Like the language name Algonquin, the family name Algonquian also has alternative pronunciations with [k] and [kw]: [ælˈɡɑŋkiən], [ælˈɡɑŋkwiən]. The pronunciation with [k] is reflected unambiguously by the alternate spelling Algonkian, used notably by Mary Haas (e.g. Haas 1958, 1967) and John Hewson (e.g. Hewson 1968, 1991).

Unlike the case for the language name Algonquin, where the spelling pronunciation with [kw] is more prevalent, for the family name Algonquian it is the more etymologically accurate pronunciation with [k] that is standard, although the spelling pronunciation with [kw] is also in use.

Spelling: <qu> or <k>?

The alternate spelling Algonkian is rarely used nowadays, but from a prescriptive perspective it can be seen as preferable to the standard spelling Algonquian on three grounds (Hewson n.d.: page 1 of foreword):

  1. French vs. English spelling. The spelling with <qu> is from French, where <qui> is regularly pronounced as [ki]. In English, <qui> is not regularly pronounced as [ki], so it would be more phonetically transparent to use an English spelling with <k>.
  2. Ambiguity. The traditional pronunciation of the name of the family, [ælˈɡɑŋkiən], is unambiguously conveyed by the spelling Algonkian, whereas the French-based spelling Algonquian opens the door to a non-traditional spelling pronunciation [ælˈɡɑŋkwiən] with an intrusive [w].
  3. A parallel case. The French-based spelling Esquimau had already been replaced in English by Eskimo, and it would follow suit to replace Algonquian with Algonkian.

These points notwithstanding, it is the French-based spelling Algonquian that remains standard.

Algonquian is pronounced differently from Algonquin

No matter whether the language name Algonquin and the family name Algonquian are pronounced with [k] or [kw] or a mix of both, an important point is that the two names are always pronounced distinctly: