different between manicou vs manitou

English

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “probably from a Carib language, ? Arawakan”)

Noun

manicou (plural manicous)

1. The common opossum, taxonomic name Didelphis marsupialis

Synonyms

• (Didelphis marsupialis): common opossum, black-eared opossum

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ma.ni.ku/

Noun

manicou m (plural manicous)

1. manicou, common opossum

English

Etymology

From Pidgin Delaware Manétto, from Unami manëtu (/man?t?u/) and Munsee manutoow (man??to?w) (later influenced by French manitou, from Cree/Montagnais manito?w); from Proto-Algonquian *maneto·wa (“supernatural being”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?man?tu?/

Noun

manitou (plural manitous)

1. A god or spirit as the object of religious awe or ritual among some American Indians.
   • 1826, James Fenimore Cooper, The Last of the Mohicans, 1888 p. 319:

     If it were possible to translate the comprehensive and melodious language in which he spoke, the ode might read something like the following: "Manitou! Manitou! Manitou! Thou art great, thou art good, thou art wise: Manitou! Manitou! Thou art just."

   • 1987, John A Grim, The Shaman, p. 143:

     Each Ojibway shaman's method of communication with the manitou patron is unique and is related to a personal dream experience.

   • 2005, Joseph Boyden, Three Day Road, Penguin 2008, p. 43:

     My father strung it high in a tree for the manitous to watch over.

Usage notes

Sometimes used as a proper noun, in which case it is often capitalized.

Translations

References

• Oxford English Dictionary, Third (online) Edition

Anagrams

• tinamou

French

Etymology

From Cree/Montagnais manito?w, Ojibwe manidoo, from Proto-Algonquian *maneto·wa (“supernatural being”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ma.ni.tu/

Noun

manitou m (plural manitous)

1. manitou

Further reading

• “manitou” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Anagrams

• tinamou