Native American Indian language
Indian people
Native American genealogy
Picking Native American tribe names
Q: How did the indians pick their tribe names? ( need
answer by 8-11 please!)
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A: Most tribes did not choose the names they are known by
today. Europeans gave them most of those names. Since
in most cases each tribe had their own language, they
each referred to themselves by the word "people" in
their own language (the Navajo called themselves
Dineh, the Sioux called themselves Dakota, the
Delaware called themselves Lenape, etc.) The names the
Europeans gave the tribes come from various sources:
the name of a town or river in their territory, a
French or English name for them, a nickname for them
that a different tribe used to call them or even an
insult.
Hope that helps!
Native Languages of the Americas
Related Links
Native American naming
Original tribal names
Dineh
Dakota
Lenape
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