Vogel suggests the following interpretations for the source of Kalamazoo as more credible than other accounts: Vogel suggests that the word "may be from the Miami, because of the presence of l." He cites Father Chrysostam Verwyst saying the name Kalamazoo comes from Ojibwe as a "corruption of Kikanamsoso", meaning "it smokes, or he is troubled with smoke", and pronounced "kee-kah-nah-mo-zo or kee-kau-nau-mo-zo".
Vogel cites William R. Gerard as concurring in this opinion, that "Kalamazoo is a slight alteration of older Ojibwe kikalâmoza, meaning 'he is inconvenienced by smoke in his lodge'."
Vogel cites Gerard as dismissing Schoolcraft's opinion that the name was from negikanamazoo, or "otters beneath the surface" as an "etymological absurdity".
However, Vogel also suggests that both Verwyst and Gerard accounts also "deserve this label".
Vogel also dismisses the view that the name means "mirage or reflecting river".