tamarack

Where does the word "tamarack" come from? It comes from Abenaki (Algonquian) akemantak, and was adopted directly into English (1805).

Tamarack’s story begins in Abenaki (Algonquian): akemantak meant “wood used for snowshoes.” Referred to the tough, flexible wood used to make snowshoes. It reached English by 1805 as tamarack. Adapted by English settlers as the name of the North American larch tree. Today, tamarack means the American larch, a cold-hardy deciduous conifer of northern North America.

1. Stage 1 · Abenaki (Algonquian) · pre-1800s akemantak "wood used for snowshoes", referred to the tough, flexible wood used to make snowshoes.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1805 tamarack "the North American larch tree", adapted by English settlers as the name of the North American larch tree.