Nomenclature
The name Kuril originates from the autonym of the aboriginal Ainu, the islands' original inhabitants: "kur", meaning man. It may also be related to names for other islands that have traditionally been inhabited by the Ainu people, such as Kuyi or Kuye for Sakhalin and Kai for Hokkaidō. In Japanese, the Kuril Islands are known as the Chishima Islands (Kanji: 千島列島 Chishima Rettō, literally, Thousand Islands Archipelago), also known as the Kuriru Islands (Kanji: クリル列島 Kuriru Rettō, literally, Kuril Archipelago). Once the Russians reached the islands in the 18th century they found a pseudo-etymology from Russian kurit ("курить" - "to smoke") due to the continual fumes and steam above the islands from volcanoes.
Read more about this topic: Kuril Islands