Kwakiutl

[ kwah-kee-oot-l ]

noun
  1. Also called Kwa·kwa·ka'wakw [kwah-kwah-ki-wuhk] /ˌkwɑˈkwɑ kɪ wək/ . a member of one of the First Nations of Vancouver Island and the adjacent coast of mainland British Columbia.

  2. Also called Kwak'wa·la [kwah-kwah-luh] /ˈkwɑ kwɑ lə/ . the Wakashan language of the Kwakiutl.

adjective
  1. of or relating to the Kwakiutl or their language.

Origin of Kwakiutl

1
First recorded in 1845–50; from Kwakiutl Kwagu'ł, a place name

Words Nearby Kwakiutl

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Kwakiutl in a sentence

  • South of these are the Kwakiutl, with descent wavering in a curious fashion between the male and female systems.

  • Even among the Kwakiutl, in their transitional state, the totem mark now is "in many cases a crest."

  • The northern Kwakiutl are divided, says Dr. Boas, into "septs" and "clans."

  • Further south than the Tsimshian dwell the Kwakiutl, of whom the most southerly are called "the Kwakiutl proper."

  • The main arguments for original paternal descent among the Kwakiutl are three in number.

British Dictionary definitions for Kwakiutl

Kwakiutl

/ (ˌkwɑːkɪˈuːtəl) /


noun
  1. plural -utl or -utls a member of a North American Indian people of N Vancouver Island and the adjacent mainland

  2. the language of this people, belonging to the Wakashan family

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012