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• Iroquoian
  Iroquoian

  noun

  a family of North American Indian languages that includes Cherokee, Seneca, Mohawk, and Oneida.
• iroquoian
  iroquoian

  noun

  a family of North American Indian languages including Cherokee, Mohawk, Seneca, Oneida, and Onondaga: probably related to Siouan

Iroquoian

American  

[ir-uh-kwoi-uhn] / ˌɪr əˈkwɔɪ ən /

noun

1. a family of North American Indian languages that includes Cherokee, Seneca, Mohawk, and Oneida.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of the Iroquois people.

2. of or belonging to the Iroquoian family of languages.

iroquoian British  

/ ˌɪrəˈkwɔɪən /

noun

1. a family of North American Indian languages including Cherokee, Mohawk, Seneca, Oneida, and Onondaga: probably related to Siouan

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adjective

1. of or relating to the Iroquois, their culture, or their languages

Etymology

Origin of Iroquoian

First recorded in 1690–1700; Iroquois + -an

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Iroquoian

It is derived from an Iroquoian word commonly translated as “lake of shining waters.”

From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2026

In 1758, the Shawnee tribe, the Delaware tribe, and the powerful Iroquoian Confederacy agreed to ally with the English in exchange for their promise to respect Indigenous rights to contested lands on the frontier.

From Textbooks ● Dec. 14, 2022

To illustrate this concept, Snyder points to the story of the Westo Indians, a group originally from around Lake Erie, who spoke an Iroquoian language.

From Slate ● Jan. 18, 2016

Iroquoian, in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec; Hurons in the valley of the St Lawrence and lake Simcoe.

From Man, Past and Present by Alfred Court Haddon

An Iroquoian town situated, in 1535, on Montreal Island.

From The Makers of Canada: Index and Dictionary of Canadian History by Various

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