I. -pēən adjective
Usage: usually capitalized
Etymology: Mississippi state & river + English -an
1. : of, relating to, or characteristic of the state of Mississippi or the Mississippi river
2. : of, relating to, or characteristic of the people of Mississippi or of the Mississippi river region
3. : of, relating to, or constituting the division of the Paleozoic era or system in No. America following the Devonian and preceding the Pennsylvanian — see geologic time table
II. noun
( -s )
1. capitalized : a native or resident of Mississippi or of the Mississippi river region
2. usually capitalized : the Mississippian period or system of rocks
III. adjective
Usage: usually capitalized
: of, relating to, or being a prehistoric mound-building culture of American Indians centered in the river valleys of southeast and central North America, characterized by settlement in large villages and dependence on agriculture, and extending from about 800 A.D. until the arrival of European settlers