Chinook Jargon

American  

[shi-nook jahr-guhn, -gon, -nook, chi-] / ʃɪˈnʊk ˌdʒɑr gən, -gɒn, -ˈnuk, tʃɪ- /

noun

1. a pidgin based largely on Nuu-chah-nulth (Nootka), Lower Chinook, French, and English, once widely used as a lingua franca from Alaska to Oregon.

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Chinook Jargon British  

noun

1. a pidgin language containing elements of Native American languages, English, and French: formerly used among fur traders and Indians on the NW coast of North America

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Etymology

Origin of Chinook Jargon

First recorded in 1830–40

Example Sentences

Chinook Jargon is a language developed in the Puget Sound region in the mid-19th century that served as “a mix of languages for the diverse peoples that lived here to facilitate trade,” Rudrud said.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 21, 2022

The event name, Klahowya, is Chinook Jargon for “welcome,” and it’s the phrase these diverse groups of people greeted each other with at the time.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 21, 2022

Joseph sought them out and calmly informed them in Chinook Jargon, a widely spoken regional trade language, that they were trespassing.

From Slate • May 24, 2017

"Words used in the Chinook Jargon," pp. 147-152.

From Dictionary of the Chinook Jargon, or, Trade Language of Oregon by Gibbs, George

Chinook Jargon, the trade language of Oregon: Id., ib.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 4 "Diameter" to "Dinarchus" by Various