Save Type River & Settlement Usage English, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, German, Dutch Pronounced Pron. AHT-ə-wah(English) AW-TA-WA(French) o-TA-wa(Spanish) [key·IPA] Meaning & History From the name of the Odawa or Ottawa people, derived from Ojibwe odaawaa meaning "trader". This is the name of a river and the capital city of Canada.