Chipewyan

C3H4I1P3E1W4Y4A1N1
/t͡ʃɪp.əˈwaɪ.ən/

noun

A member of a Native American tribe of Central Canada, in the regions of Alberta, Manitoba, Northwest Territories, and Saskatchewan.

Similar
DeneDene SulineDene SųłinéDenesulineDenésolinéChippewyanChippewaianChipewyan language
UncommonScrabble 22

Meanings

nounChipewyan (plural Chipewyans or Chipewyan)

plural Chipewyans · alternative Chippewyan

  1. A member of a Native American tribe of Central Canada, in the regions of Alberta, Manitoba, Northwest Territories, and Saskatchewan.

    In addition to their leatherwork, woodwork, stonework, and bonework, the Chipewyan also worked in metal.

    2006, Carl Waldman, Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes, page 65
    1 more example

    One of the big challenges, it turns out, is the government itself. Last week, Shene Catholique-Valpy, an Aboriginal woman born and raised in the Northwest Territories, spoke out publicly about her year-long fight to have the the^([sic]) traditional Chipewyan spelling of her daughter’s name, Sahaiʔa May Talbot, on her birth certificate. Sahaiʔa roughly translates to: “As the sun breaks through the clouds or over the horizon.” And the symbol, which resembles a question mark without the dot, called a glottal stop, indicates the correct pronunciation and meaning; without it, the name is incorrect.

    2015 March 12, Rachel Browne, “What’s in a name? A Chipewyan’s battle over her native tongue”, in Maclean's, archived from the original on 13 Mar 2015
proper noun

alternative Chippewyan

  1. The Northern Athabascan language spoken by this tribe.

    Synonyms: Dene, Dene Suline, Dene Sųłiné, Denesuline, Denésoliné

Synonyms & antonyms

proper nounThe Northern Athabascan language spoken by this tribe.

Similar
DeneDene SulineDene SųłinéDenesulineDenésoliné

More synonyms by meaning

nounthe language spoken by the Chipewyan

Similar
ChippewyanChippewaianChipewyan languageChippewaian languageChippewyan language

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Plains Creeᒌᐘᔮᐣ“pointed skin”
  2. EnglishChipewyan

From Plains Cree ᒌᐘᔮᐣ (Cīpwayān, “pointed skin”), from ᒌᐚᐤ (cīpwāw, “to be pointed”) + ᐘᔮᐣ (wayān, “skin, hide”) — a reference to the cut and style of Chipewyan parkas.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Russian чипевиа́н
  • чипевиа́н (čipevián)language
Cite this entry
APA

Chipewyan. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Chipewyan

MLA

“Chipewyan.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Chipewyan. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Chipewyan,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Chipewyan.

Source: Chipewyan on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.