nishiime
The Ojibwe word for brother is nishiime. Wiktionary also lists nisayenh and niijikiwenh.
Meaning: male sibling (noun)
Ways to say it
| Ojibwe |
|---|
| nishiime |
| nisayenh |
| niijikiwenh |
These words are used to refer to a male sibling.
Which one should you use?
nishiime specifically denotes 'my brother', whereas nisayenh and niijikiwenh are also used to refer to a brother.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form nishiime includes a first-person possessive prefix, which means the word translates specifically to 'my brother' rather than just 'brother'.
Did you know?
- The language uses a complex system of kinship where the word for 'brother' can change depending on whether the speaker is male or female.
- In traditional Ojibwe culture, a 'brother' might be identified through a clan system, meaning a person could call someone 'brother' even if they share no biological parents.
- Ojibwe is a polysynthetic language, meaning a single word like nishiime can be modified with various affixes to change the meaning to 'my little brother' or 'my older brother' without adding separate adjectives.
Example sentences for Ojibwe are not verified yet.
Example conversation
Nibi and Bemizii are talking about their family.
- NibiNishiime gaa-izhaa gichi-ogamaag.My brother went to the leaders.
- BemiziiAaniin nishiime gaa-izhaa?Where did your brother go?
- NibiGaa-izhaa zaagi'igan.He went to the house.
- BemiziiMiigwech, Nibi.Thank you, Nibi.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “brother” translations and entries nishiime, niijikiwenh, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
