Maricopa

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish, of uncertain origin.

Noun

Maricopa (plural Maricopas or Maricopa)

1. A member of a Native American people belonging to the Yuman linguistic stock, a part of the Hokan family. They originate in the Colorado River area, but following an exodus in the 1700s or 1800s, they live amongst the Pima in the vicinity of the Gila and Salt Rivers.
   • 1895, J[ohn] W[esley] Powell, chapter I, in Canyons of the Colorado, Meadville, PA: Flood & Vincent; republished as The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons, New York: Dover, 1961, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 24:

     In the valley of the Gila and on its tributaries from the northeast are the Pimas, Maricopas, and Papagos.

Proper noun

Maricopa

1. A city in Pinal County, Arizona, United States.
2. A city in Kern County, California.

Derived terms

• Maricopa County

See also

• Category:Maricopa language

Further reading

• Ethnologue entry for Maricopa, mrc ⁠