Héron

Húron is a term used in Spanish-language contexts to refer to multiple related topics, most notably historical and geographic references connected with the Huron or Wyandot peoples of North America, as well as to places named after them. The Huron were an Iroquoian-speaking Indigenous confederacy that inhabited parts of the Great Lakes region, particularly around the northern shores of Lake Huron and the upper St. Lawrence River. The name Huron is an exonym historically used by French explorers and traders; the people today identify as Wyandot or Hodinöhsö:no’, among other spellings in use by different communities. In the early modern period they played a central role in regional trade networks and intercultural contacts, but population decline occurred after European contact due to disease and displacement.

Geographically, Lake Huron is one of the Great Lakes and was named after the Huron by early European explorers. The Huron River in Michigan and Ontario, as well as various towns and institutions, bear the same association to the Huron name. The usage reflects the historical presence of Huron communities in these regions.

In contemporary Spanish, hurón (with the acute on the ó) refers to the ferret, a mustelid species, and is unrelated to the Indigenous peoples or the lake. The form húron with an acute on the u is not standard in modern Spanish and is typically seen only as a typographical variant or misaccent.