Potawatomi

The Potawatomi /ˌpɑːtəˈwɑːtəmiː/, also spelled Pottawatomie and Pottawatomi (among many variations), are a Native American people of the upper Mississippi River region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a member of the Algonquian family. In the Potawatomi language, they generally call themselves Bodéwadmi, a name that means "keepers of the fire" and that was applied to them by their Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) cousins. They originally called themselves Neshnabé, a cognate of the word Anishinaabe. The Potawatomi were part of a long-term alliance, called the Council of Three Fires, with the Ojibwe (Chippewa) and Ottawa. In the Council of Three Fires, the Potawatomi were considered the "youngest brother."