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Sasquatch

2 stages from Halkomelem to English.

Today it means a legendary large, hairy, ape-like creature said to inhabit forests of the Pacific Northwest, also called Bigfoot

Where does the word "sasquatch" come from? It comes from Halkomelem sásq'ets, adopted directly into English (1929).

sásq'ets→sasquatch

Halkomelem · pre-1900s

"a hairy, wild man-like creature"

literally 'hairy man', a figure from Coast Salish oral tradition

English · 1929

"a legendary ape-like creature said to inhabit North American forests"

coined by journalist J.W. Burns, who anglicized the Halkomelem term while collecting local legends

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