Eskimos – Wikipedia

Esquimals or Eskimos (or more rarely Eskimaux ^{[ first ]} ) is an exonymous used to mainly name Inuit but also yupiks. These Arctic Aboriginal peoples live in Alaska, the Far North Canadian, Greenland and Eastern Siberia. Although the Inuit represent the majority of the population designated by the Eskilu term, this term, popularized by the explorers of the XIX ^{It is} century, does not distinguish any particular ethnicity. It is not used by the Inuit themselves and is nowadays considered discriminatory or even insulting by the latter ^{[ 2 ] , [ 3 ]} . All the peoples covered by the term “Eskimos”, including the Yupiks, are represented within the Inuit circumpolar council.

By extension, the expression “Eskimos languages” also designates a group of the Eskimo-Alétes family of languages ​​which includes inuit languages ​​and Yupik languages.

The most common French term, Eskimo (feminine Eskimo , Sometimes squirrel , plural esquimals ) is attested for the first time in 1691 in the New Gaspésie relationship of Christian the clerk (under spelling Eskimi , plural eskimaux ), where it designates the “inhabitants of the Arctic regions of America” ^{[ first ]} .

The name could come from an Algonquin term of XVII ^{It is} century meaning “raw meat eater” ^{[ 4 ] , [ 5 ] , [ 6 ]} . Another hypothesis emanating from certain linguists argues that the first European explorers obtained the term from another Algonquin Micmac word related to snowshoes ^{[ 7 ]} . Still others proposed that he meant “speakers of a foreign language” ^{[ 8 ] , [ 9 ]} .

The term was popularized by polar explorers of XIX ^{It is} century, especially in travel reviews such as Around the world ^{[ note 1 ]} . According to the missionary Francis Barnum (1849-1921), the name came from the French Jesuit missionary Charlevoix established in Canada at XVII ^{It is} century ^{[ ten ]} ; This is not very credible, since Charlevoix arrived in Quebec in 1705 when the term was attested in 1691.

Eskimologists, now Inuitologists, have adopted at XX ^{It is} century, the term “eskimo”, invariable in Danish spelling, to traditionally designate the linguistic group ^{[ 11 ]} .

In Canada, the name “Inuit” has been official since 1970 and replaces the term “Eskimos” ^{[ twelfth ]} can be considered derogatory or offensive.

Some authors, such as ethnologist and linguist José Mailhot, question the derogatory character of the word “Eskimoles” based on his etymology ^{[ 13 ] , [ 14 ]} .

In Greenland, the term “eskimos” is also considered an offense by the Inuit ^{[ 2 ] , [ 3 ]} . The natives designate themselves as Greenlanders (in Greenlanders: Kalaallit ).

In Alaska, the term “eskimos”, rejected by the Inuit Iñupiat, is tolerated by the Yupiks populations who do not want to be assimilated to the people of the Iñupiat ^{[ 15 ]} . Yupiks nevertheless simply prefer the term “yupik”. The term ” Alaska Natives “, Literally” Alaska Alasska “, is more suitable than” Eskimo “to designate all the populations Yupiks and Iñupiat of Alaska. ^{[Ref. necessary]}

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• Daniel Royot , North American Indians , Paris, Armand Colin, 2007 , 288 p. (ISBN  978-2-200-26779-7-7 And 2-200-26779-7-7 , Online presentation ) .
• (in) Francis Bar , Grammar Fundamentals of the Eskimo Language , G. Olm, 1901 , 384 p. ( Online presentation ) .
• Philippe Mennecier , Le Tunumiisut, Dialecte Inuit du Groenland Oriental: Description and analyze , vol. 78 Linguistic collection, Paris, Peeters publishers, 1995 , 605 p. (ISBN  2-252-03042-9 And 9782252030424 , Online presentation , read online ) .
• L. J. Door , Inuit speech: language, culture and society in the North American Arctic , vol. 3 of Arctic (Peeters), Peeters publishers, 1996 , 331 p. (ISBN  90-6831-741-5 And 9789068317411 , Online presentation , read online ) .

: document used as a source for writing this article.

• (translated by Maurice Métayer) Nuligak, Memoirs of an Eskimo; Nuligak’s life, Les Éditions du Jour, 1972.

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• Notes in generalist dictionaries or encyclopedias :
• (in) Steve Sailer, ‘ Feature: Name game – ‘Inuit’ or ‘Eskimo’? » , on United Press International , June 20, 2002 (consulted the May 8, 2013 )
• Quebec Office of the French Language, ‘ Inuit / Inuit » (consulted the May 8, 2013 ) : “In their language, the Inuktitut, the Inuit is Inuk (singular name) and Inuit (plural name). However, to promote the integration of borrowing into the linguistic system of French, the Inuit name (and the adjective Inuit) agree in gender and number. »» .
• ‘ Eskimo, Aude » , on National Center for Textual and Lexical Resources (CNRTL) (consulted the May 9, 2013 ) .
• (in) ‘ Eskimo » , on Online Etymology Dictionary (consulted the May 9, 2013 ) .