squaw
English edit
Etymology edit
From Massachusett squàw (“woman”), from Proto-Algonquian *eθkwe·wa (“(young) woman”). Cognate with Abenaki -skwa (“female, wife”), Mohegan-Pequot sqá, Cree iskwew / ᐃᐢᑫᐧᐤ (iskeyw, “woman”), Ojibwe ikwe (“woman”). In the 1970s, some non-linguists began to claim that the word originally meant "vagina"; this has been discredited.[1] The first recorded version of the word was found in a book called Mourt’s Relation: A Journey of the Pilgrims at Plymouth written in 1622. The term was not used in a derogatory fashion but spoke of the “squa sachim or Massachusets Queen” in the September 20, 1621 journal entry.[2]
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
squaw (plural squaws)
Usage notes edit
Previously used neutrally, the word began to be used as a term of contempt in the late 1800s; it is now generally considered offensive.[3] See 
Squaw § Historical usage on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
Derived terms edit
Translations edit
References edit
- ^ Ives Goddard, The True History of the Word Squaw, in Indian Country News (April 1997), page 17A
- ^ The Word Squaw: Offensive or Not?, indiancountrytoday.com (archived)
- ^ Rina Torchinksy (2022 February 23) “The U.S. looks to replace a derogatory name used hundreds of times on federal lands”, in Race[1], NPR, retrieved 2022-02-23
French edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
squaw f (plural squaws)
- squaw (not pejorative in French), Native American woman
- Synonym: Amérindienne
- Ces chefs, au nombre d'une douzaine, n’avaient point amené leurs femmes, malheureuses « squaws » qui ne s’élèvent guère au-dessus de la condition d’esclaves. (Jules Verne, Le Pays des fourrures, 1873)
Further reading edit
- “squaw”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.