orenda

O1R1E1N1D2A1
/ɔˈɹɛn.də//oʊˈɹɛn.də/

noun

A mystical power thought by the Iroquois to pervade all things.

OriginIroquoian →
UncommonScrabble 7
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Meanings

nounorenda (uncountable)
  1. uncountableA mystical power thought by the Iroquois to pervade all things.

    In the Handbook of American Indians, Alice Fletcher describes the Iroquois conception of orenda as "a fictive force, principle, or magic power"

    1920, George Willis Cooke, The Social Evolution of Religion

Origin

  1. Iroquoian
  2. Englishorenda

Supposedly coined in 1902 by American ethnologist John Napoleon Brinton Hewitt using a Wyandot (Iroquoian) cognate to Mohawk orę́·naʔ (“inherent power”).

More words from Iroquoian

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with orenda

agendaBrendahaciendaGlendaVendatiendadelendatacenda
All rhymes →

Anagrams

ArnedoEdnora
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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