[Monahammer]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

I have been doing a lot of reading on this lately and it sounds like it is a pretty divisive issue. I don't think the word "Eskimo" was meant to be derogatory when it was originally used. The exact origin of the word seems to be from the Algonquian languages (possibly Ojibwe or Cree) for what they called the Inuit. It's not uncommon for natives in a nation to refer to themselves as one name and foreigners to use another name. Just to name a few common examples, Albanians, Hungarians, Croats and Japanese don't call themselves that in their own languages, but they aren't derogatory either.

In the context of naming a sports team after a nationality, whether the name itself is a slur or not, I think it becomes a different issue. I mean, what does it say about how you view a group of people when most other sports teams are named after animals, natural disasters, weapons, or other things that are meant to be intimidating? At the very least, the name should have some geographical or historical connection to the team (like Islanders, Leafs, etc...). Eskimos and Inuit are from nowhere near Edmonton. You could probably call the team the "Mohawks" or "Na###o" and it would be just as geographically and historically appropriate.

Whether someone likes or doesn't like the word "Eskimo" used to describe Inuit people might not be as important as how the word is applied in this case.

But like you said, I don't think there is a majority opinion even among Inuit, and there also seems to be some animosity about the issue. For example, it seems that Inuit in Nunavut are more against the team name than those in the Western Arctic.

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

I have been doing a lot of reading on this lately and it sounds like it is a pretty divisive issue. I don't think the word "Eskimo" was meant to be derogatory when it was originally used. The exact origin of the word seems to be from the Algonquian languages (possibly Ojibwe or Cree) for what they called the Inuit. It's not uncommon for natives in a nation to refer to themselves as one name and foreigners to use another name. Just to name a few common examples, Albanians, Hungarians, Croats and Japanese don't call themselves that in their own languages, but they aren't derogatory either.

In the context of naming a sports team after a nationality, whether the name itself is a slur or not, I think it becomes a different issue. I mean, what does it say about how you view a group of people when most other sports teams are named after animals, natural disasters, weapons, or other things that are meant to be intimidating? At the very least, the name should have some geographical or historical connection to the team (like Islanders, Leafs, etc...). Eskimos and Inuit are from nowhere near Edmonton. You could probably call the team the "Mohawks" or "Na###o" and it would be just as geographically and historically appropriate.

Whether someone likes or doesn't like the word "Eskimo" used to describe Inuit people might not be as important as how the word is applied in this case.

But like you said, I don't think there is a majority opinion even among Inuit, and there also seems to be some animosity about the issue. For example, it seems that Inuit in Nunavut are more against the team name than those in the Western Arctic.

Thanks for this post- you seem to be right about the origin of the term eskimo and certainly are right about the frequency with which indigenous bands referred to each other as "us" and "other people". The point you make about naming standards and conventions is very valid for the eskimos, and definitely makes me question the intent of the name originally.