The story
- Ojibwe · derived fromnaadawesiwag“little snakes”
- French · borrowed fromSioux
- English todaySioux
From French Sioux, shortening of Nadouessioux, from Ojibwe naadawesiwag (“little snakes”), which could refer to the massasauga snake (Sistrurus catenatus), a small rattlesnake.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.