Athabascan

American  

[ath-uh-bas-kuhn] / ˌæθ əˈbæs kən /

(Older Spelling) Athabaskan;

noun

Athabascans plural

1. a family of languages spoken by North American Indians in most of Alaska and inland northwest Canada, in coastal Oregon and California, and in Arizona and the Rio Grande basin, and including especially Navajo, Apache, and Chipewyan.

2. a member of any of various North American Indian peoples speaking Athabascan.

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adjective

1. belonging to or characteristic of the Athabascan.

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• Athabascans
  plural
• Athabascan
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Athabascan

First recorded in 1770–80; earlier Athapasca(s), introduced as a term for the Canadian Athabascans (from Woods Cree ahδapaska·w “Lake Athabasca,” literally, “there are reeds here and there,” from Proto-Algonquian aʔlap(y)- “net, reticulated” + -ašk- “plant” + derivational elements) + -an

Example Sentences

In 2015, then-President Barack Obama redesignated the mountain Denali, a name long championed by Alaskans, which roughly translates to “the great one” in Koyukon Athabascan, a Native Alaskan language.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 20, 2025

The Dena’ina Athabascan tribe supports the restoration and some tribal members turned out on a recent October day to watch the removal of the bell tower and to reminisce.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 28, 2023

Denali, the mountain’s federally recognized name since 2015, is a Koyukon word that meaning “the tall one” that has been in use for 10,000 to 12,000 years by many Athabascan peoples, an Alaska Native group.

From Scientific American • Apr. 22, 2022

There is also a chief’s coat from the Athabascan people with floral beaded designs, rawhide fringe and red felt ties from the 1950s.

From New York Times • Apr. 19, 2022

Brother," she said in her soft Oneida tongue, "I am an Athabascan of the Heron Clan, adopted into the Oneida nation.

From The Little Red Foot by Chambers, Robert W. (Robert William)