Bytownite

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person originally from a historical Canadian settlement known as Bytown which later became the city of Ottawa ; an inhabitant or native of the early community that developed into the capital of Canada ; someone associated with the early population of the area established as Bytown before its renaming or growth into a larger urban center
2. An individual belonging to the population of Bytown, a former town in Ontario, Canada, which is now Ottawa ; a former resident of the settlement that evolved into the modern capital city of Canada ; one who lived in or had roots in the community initially named Bytown prior to its status change
3. Someone hailing from the original Canadian town named Bytown, known for its historical significance before becoming Ottawa ; a member of the early town's populace that formed the foundation of Canada’s capital ; a native or longtime resident of the area previously designated as Bytown in Canadian history

Etymology: Bytownite is a mineral name, not a term for people from Bytown. It belongs to the plagioclase feldspars, a group of common rock-forming minerals, and its name comes from Bytown, the settlement that grew into Ottawa, the capital of Canada. The "-ite" ending is the standard suffix for mineral names. The name honours the place where the mineral was first recorded, its type locality in Bytown. That locality was later discredited, meaning the site did not hold up as the source of the mineral as first described, but the name was kept. So the mineral still carries the name of a town that no longer goes by it.

Synonyms: Ottawan, Canadian, local resident