Anishinabe, Ojibwe, Saulteur, Chippewa;
These are the various names given to the native people who have called the northern area of Wisconsin, including Sawyer county, their home for nearly three centuries.

Anishinabe, meaning "original or spontaneous people" is the name given by themselves while migrating from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the "big lake", Lake Superior.

Ojibwe, meaning "to roast until puckered", refers to the distinctive moccasins worn by them, and the name used by their then enemies, the Sioux. Also interpreted to mean "those who keep the faith", the Ojibwe were one of three members of the Three Fires confederation who met each year to renew their alliance after seperating from the larger group of Anishinabe while migrating westward from Saulte Ste. Marie.

Saulteur, or "people of the rapids" was the name given to them by the early French explorers when they first encountered them near the rapids of the St. Mary's River between the upper peninsula of Michigan and Ontario, Cananda.

The word Ojibwe was poorly pronounced by the english and americans and subsequently became Chippewa. This was the official name written in treaties between the United States and these native people. The Bureau of Indian Affairs still uses this name today, even though the people who live at Lac Courte Oreilles primarily refer to themselves as Ojibwe.