Common English Words You Might Not Know Were Native American

Sure, you know Tobacco entered the English language from the indigenous peoples of the Americas, via the Spanish. But there are dozens of other words that we use every day that you may not realize are rooted in North, Central, and South America.

• 1. Avocado

  

  Root language: Nahuatl
  Region: Mexico
  From the word huacatl meaning "testicle."
  via

• 2. Barbecue

  

  Root language: Arawakan
  Region: South America
  From the word barbakoa meaning "framework of sticks."
  via

• 3. Bayou

  

  Root language: Choctaw
  From the word bayuk meaning "creek, river."
  via

• 4. Cannibal

  

  Root language: Cariban
  From the word "karípona" meaning "person." Early Spanish explorers believed that the Caribs ate people.

• 5. Canoe

  

  Root language: Arawakan Taino
  From the word "canoa." via

• 6. Caribou

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  From the word qalipu meaning "snow shoveler."
  Via

• 7. Cashew

  

  Root language: Tupi Guaraní
  From the word acaîu
  via

• 8. Cayenne

  

  Root language: Tupi Guaraní
  From the word: kyinha
  via

• 9. Chili

  

  Root language: Nahuatl
  From the word ch+lli
  via

• 10. Chipmunk

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  Originally "chitmunk," from the Odawa word jidmoonh meaning "red squirrel."
  via

• 11. Chocolate

  

  Root language: Nahuatl
  Comes from the words xococ -"bitter", and tl - "water."
  In its traditional form, chocolate was primarily served as an unsweetened drink.
  via

• 12. Cocoa

  

  Root language: Nahuatl
  From the word cacahuatl.
  via

• 13. Condor

  

  Root language: Quechua
  From the word kuntur
  via

• 14. Cougar

  

  Root language: Tupi Guaraní
  A corruption of guaçu ara.
  Via

• 15. Coyote

  

  Root language: Nahuatl
  From the word coyMtl
  Via

• 16. Guacamole

  

  Root language: Nahuatl
  From huacamMlli meaning "avocado sauce."
  Via

• 17. Hammock

  

  Root language: Arawakan
  From Taino via Spanish hamaca.
  Via

• 18. Hickory

  

  Root language: Algonquin-Powhatan
  From pocohiquara meaning "milky drink made with hickory nuts." Today hickory can refer to the tree, the finished wood, the nuts, or even the flavor.

• 19. Hooch

  

  Root language: Tlingit
  A shortened form of Hoochinoo, from the word xutsnuuwú, originally the name of a village meaning "brown bear fort.

• 20. Hurricane

  

  Root language: Arawakan - Taino
  From the word hurakán.
  Via

• 21. Husky

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  A variant of the word Eskimo from the Innu language word aiachkimeou.
  Via

• 22. Iguana

  

  Root language: Arawakan
  From the word iwana
  Via

• 23. Jaguar

  

  Root language: Tupi Guaraní
  From the word jaÈwar
  Via

• 24. Jerky

  

  Root language: Quechua
  From the word ch'arki
  Via

• 25. Kayak

  

  Root languages: Eskimo-Aleut
  From the word qajaq.
  Via

• 26. Llama

  

  Root language: Quechua
  Via

• 27. Manatee

  

  Root language: Cariban
  From a word meaning "woman's breast."

• 28. Moose

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  From Eastern Abenaki moz
  via

• 29. Ocelot

  

  Root language: Nahuatl
  From a href= oclMtl.

• 30. Opossum

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  From the Powhatan word aposoum meaning, "white dog-like animal."

• 31. Pecan

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  From the Illinois word pakani.
  Via

• 32. Petunia

  

  Root language: Tupi Guaraní
  From the word petun meaning "smoke."
  Via

• 33. Potato

  

  Root language: Arawakan
  Via the Haitian Carib word batata.
  Via

• 34. Puma

  

  Root language: Quechua
  Via

• 35. Raccoon

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  From the word arahkun.
  Via

• 36. Skunk

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  From the Massachusett word squnck meaning "urine fox."
  Via

• 37. Squash

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  From the Narragansett word askútasquash.
  Via

• 38. Tapioca

  

  Root language: Tupi Guaraní
  From a word meaning "juice squeezed out" the word is now applied to the root starch and the pudding made from it.
  Via

• 39. Toboggan

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  From Míkmaq word topaaqan meaning "to drag with a cord." Today the word primarily refers to the sled throughout most of the United States. However, in some southern states where it doesn't snow enough for sledding, the word has become a regional slang for the type of hat one would wear in cold weather, such as a knit stocking cap.  Via

• 40. Toucan

  

  Root language: TupiGuaraní
  Via

• 41. Tomato

  

  Root language: Nahuatl
  From the word tomatl.
  Via

• 42. Woodchuck

  

  Root language: Algonquin
  A corruption of the word ockqutchaun.
  Via