Etymology

wigwam

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Today it means: A dwelling having an arched framework overlaid with bark, hides, or mats, used by Native Americans in the northeastern United States. Full definition →

Abenaki wigwôm ← Penobscot wigwom ← Proto-Algonquian *wi·kiwa·ʔmi
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The story

  1. Proto-Algonquian · derived from*wi·kiwa·ʔmi“house”
  2. Penobscot · borrowed fromwigwom“house”
  3. Abenaki · borrowed fromwigwôm“house”
  4. English todaywigwam

Borrowed from Abenaki wigwôm (“house”) or Penobscot wigwom (“house”), from Proto-Algonquian *wi·kiwa·ʔmi (“house”). Doublet of wickiup.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.