Yakama

noun

Yak·​a·​ma ˈya-kə-ˌmȯ 

variants or Yakima

plural Yakama or Yakamas or Yakima or Yakimas

1

: a member of a group of Sahaptin peoples of the lower Yakima River valley, south central Washington

2

: the language of the Yakama people

Examples of Yakama in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Aja DeCoteau is a citizen of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation and is the executive director of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission. —Dan Perry, Newsweek, 31 Jan. 2025

Washington: Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation. —Dan Perry, Newsweek, 5 Jan. 2025

The mountain itself is a place of immense spiritual and cultural importance to the Puyallup, Cowlitz, Muckleshoot, Nisqually and Yakama people, to name just a few. —Corbin Reiff, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Oct. 2024

Washington state already allows tolling exemptions for a handful of tribes, including the Nez Perce and Yakama Nation. —Carleen Johnson | The Center Square, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 2 Oct. 2024

As usual, here are some stories about the challenges and opportunities of the clean energy transition: Federal officials promised the Yakama Nation $32 million to put solar panels over canals. —Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2024

The Green Energy Traffic Jam The Yakama Nation in many ways faces the same pressures that are holding back new wind and solar farms across the country. —ProPublica, 20 Sep. 2024

They were joined shortly after by the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation. —B. “toastie” Oaster, ProPublica, 12 Aug. 2024

Third, the Yakama Nation could withhold sensitive information altogether, which would present similar problems. —B. “toastie” Oaster, ProPublica, 26 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

earlier Eyakima, the Yakima River, Yakamas, perhaps from Sahaptin iyakíma, literally, pregnant ones

First Known Use

1838, in the meaning defined at sense 1