1. A member of the people inhabiting the Aleutian Islands and western Alaska; Also called: Aleutian.
2. The language spoken by the Aleut people.
Member of a people indigenous to the Aleutian Islands; a few thousand remain worldwide, most in the Aleutian Islands and mainland Alaska. They were exploited by Russian fur traders in the 18th and 19th centuries, and their forced evacuation 1942–45 earned the US a United Nations reprimand 1959; compensation was paid 1990. From the 1980s concern for wildlife and diminishing demand for furs threatened their traditional livelihood of seal trapping.

A member of the people inhabiting the Aleutian Islands and southwestern Alaska

An archipelago in the North Pacific extending southwestern from Alaska; Also called: Aleutians.
Volcanic island chain in the N Pacific, stretching 1,200 mi/1,900 km SW of Alaska, of which it forms part; Aleuts (most of whom belong to the Orthodox Church, plus a large US defense establishment). There are 14 large and more than 100 small islands running along the Aleutian Trench. The islands are mountainous, barren, and treeless; they are ice-free all year but are often foggy, with only about 25 days of sunshine recorded annually.
history
The islands were settled by the Aleuts around 1000 BC and discovered by a Russian expedition 1741; they passed to the US with the purchase of Alaska 1867. The Japanese occupied Attu and Kiska islands 1942–43; Attu was retaken May 1943 in the only ground fighting on North American soil during World War II.

A member of the people inhabiting the Aleutian Islands and southwestern Alaska