Ojibwemowin · The Ojibwe Language
Saying the Names
A short guide to the Anishinaabe words used across this site — what they mean and roughly how they sound.
A quick key: aa = “ah” · ii = “ee” · oo = “oh/oo” · e = “ay” · zh = the “s” in “measure” · g is hard. Stressed part shown in CAPS.
The tree's true name. Manidoo = spirit; giizhik = cedar; the ending -ens is a diminutive, “little.”
From gichi (great) + gami (body of water).
The Ojibwe name for the place and community. Onigam refers to a portage — a place where canoes and goods were carried overland.
Plural Anishinaabeg (…NAH-bayg). The broader cultural group that includes the Ojibwe.
Ojibwe (oh-JIB-way) is the people and language; -mowin marks “the speech/language of.”
A spirit or sacred being. Also seen spelled manido / manito.
Offered in prayer and thanksgiving — including to the Spirit Tree before crossing the lake.
Powerful spirit of the deep water, also widely known as Mishipeshu (mish-ih-PEH-shoo).
Northern white cedar — one of the sacred plants of the Anishinaabe.
Used to begin stories set in the distant past.
Often heard as chi-miigwech (chih-MEEG-wetch), “a big thank you.”
Learn more from the Ojibwe People's Dictionary →