chinook, warm, dry air mass that descends the eastern slopes of the U.S. and Canadian Rocky Mts. after having lost moisture by condensation over the western slopes. Chinooks occur mainly in winter. They sometimes replace the cold continental air mass over the western plains, causing rapid melting of snow and temperature increases as great as 40°F; (22°C;) within a few hours. Similar winds occurring in the Alps and elsewhere are known as foehn winds. The term chinook was originally applied by Oregon settlers to a moist Pacific wind blowing from the direction of a Chinook camp.

Northwest Coast Indian people of Washington and Oregon, U.S. At the time of first European contact, the Chinook—who were in fact composed of several smaller groups, including the Lower Chinook, the Clatsop, the Clackamas, and the Wasco—lived along the lower Columbia River and spoke Chinookan languages. They were famous as traders, with connections stretching as far as the Great Plains. They traded dried salmon, canoes, shells, and slaves. Chinook Jargon, the trade language of the Northwest Coast, was a combination of Chinook with Nuu-chah-nulth (Nootka) and other Indian, English, and French terms. The Chinook were first described ethnographically by the explorers Lewis and Clark, who encountered them in 1805. Their basic social unit was the clan. Chinook religion focused on salmon rites and guardian spirits, and the potlatch was an important social ceremony. Following a smallpox epidemic in the early 19th century that brought about the collapse of Chinook culture, most of the remaining Chinook were absorbed into other Northwest Coast groups and many were removed to reservations. In 2001 the Chinook gained federal recognition of tribal status. Chinook descendants numbered more than 1,500 in the early 21st century.

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Chinook may refer to:

Main uses

• The Chinookan nation of Native Americans, and their language.
• Chinookan languages, in specific, Coastal Chinook and Upper Chinook
• Chinook Jargon, a hybrid of Chinookan, Nootka, Chehalis, French, English and other languages
• Chinook salmon
• Chinook wind, a wind observed in the Pacific Northwest and interior West of North America

Vessels and aircraft

• MV Chinook, a car ferry built in 1947 and operated by Black Ball Lines between Victoria, British Columbia and Port Angeles, Washington from 1947 to 1954
• MV Chinook, a passenger ferry in Washington State built in 1998
• MV Chinook II, the car ferry MV Chinook after being transferred to Canadian registry in 1954 to operate between Nanaimo, British Columbia and Vancouver
• USS Chinook (PC-9), a U.S. Navy coastal patrol ship
• CH-47 Chinook helicopter
• Boeing Chinook (UK variants) or the RAF Chinook

Places

• Chinook, Montana
• Chinook Park, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Calgary, Alberta, Canada
• Chinook Centre, a shopping mall in Calgary, Alberta, Canada
• Chinook, Washington, a census-designated place in Pacific County, Washington, United States
• Chinook Pass over the Cascades in Washington State
• Chinook Scenic Byway, a scenic highway over the Cascade Range in Washington State
• Chinook College, aka Chinook Learning Services, an adult education program of the Calgary Board of Education, and its campus
• for more placenames see List of Chinook Jargon placenames#C

Other

• The Chinook, an early 20th Century newspaper in Vancouver, B.C., published by George Murray
• Chinook (draughts player), an artificial intelligence computer program that plays draughts (checkers)
• Chinook (dog)
• Chinook (hops), a variety of hops used to brew beer
• Chinook (Beanie Baby), a Beanie Baby bear made by Ty, Inc. in 2000, exclusive to Canada

Chinook