derouine

Etymology

From French dérouine.

derouine means an expedition made to First Nations camps or villages for trade rather than waiting for the natives to come to the forts, often involving wintering in the camps. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 79 out of 100.

Why “derouine” is a great word

DEROUINE — [Noun] An arduous trading expedition, undertaken to travel to and winter with Indigenous camps in the North American fur trade, rather than waiting at a fixed post. From the French dérouine, a term specific to the fur trade. Unlike a "voyage" (a generic journey, often by water) or "factory trade" (the static commerce of a fortified post), a dérouine was a mobile, seasonal immersion. It is the rhythmic crunch of snowshoes on a frozen river, the sting of woodsmoke in a borrowed lodge, and the protracted barter in a circle of firelight—a fleeting architecture of commerce built on the fragile gamble of a winter's arrival.

noun

An expedition made to First Nations camps or villages for trade rather than waiting for the natives to come to the forts, often involving wintering in the camps.“St Germain &co returned from a Derouine L.L.P. [Rainy Lake] & R.L. [Red Lake] The Indians [arrived] with Two hundred Skins all good Furs, and the best Derouine ever made at the Panbian River.”