Seminole
/ˈsɛmɪnəʊl
/noun (plural same or Seminoles)
1A member of an American Indian people of the Creek confederacy, noted for resistance in the 19th century to encroachment on their land in Georgia and Florida. Many were resettled in Oklahoma.U.S. slaveholders, Creek Indians, Seminoles, and the blacks themselves harried each other over slave property....
- After the defeat of the Cherokees, the Seminoles decided to fight for their land, and succeeded in maintaining it.
- The fact that they were very mild-mannered, and not cannibalistic, favours the opinion that they were kin to the Seminoles of Florida.
2 [mass noun] The Muskogean language of the Seminoles, now with fewer than 10,000 speakers.The storekeeper, a pleasant young woman, was deep in conversation with an older gentleman. They spoke Seminole, sprinkled with American brand names....
- Before that all Floridians spoke Seminole and Cherokee or whatever.
adjective
Relating to the Seminoles or their language.The war began when some Seminole Indians refused to leave Florida, defying the Removal Act....
- But another line of evidence can be brought to bear on the question of Seminole origins: bioarchaeology, the study of human remains excavated from cemeteries and other archaeological sites.
- Well, as some folks on Sixth Street will tell you, that's like slapping a Gator bumper sticker on your car in Tallahassee or hanging a Seminole flag on your front porch in Gainesville.
Origin
Via Creek from American Spanish cimarrón 'wild, untamed'.