Archaeology Paper Reports Meaning Of Indian River Names

Monterey Herald ^ | 3-10-2003 | Ernest Herndon

[Willie Green]

Allegheny River -- "beautiful water".
Monogahela River -- "steep banks along the water".
Ohio River -- "fair waters"
Youghiogheny River -- "circuitous or winding stream"
Susquehanna -- "Long, Winding River"
Juniata River -- "a projecting rock" or "Standing Stone"
Shenango River -- "bull thistles"
Kishacoquillas Creek -- "The snakes are already in their dens"
Tuscarora Creek -- "hemp gatherers"
Ohiopyle -- "water whitened by froth"
Pymatuning Creek -- "crooked mouthed man's dwelling place"
Kinzua Creek -- "they gobble"; referring to wild turkeys frequenting the watershed
Punxsutawney -- "gnat town"

Many more (PDF)

[Willie Green]

And "Cuyahoga" means "river that burns in flames".

[martin_fierro]

pingiminetas!

[HP8753]

Vegetarian is an old indian word that means "Poor Hunter"

[null and void]

What does Blix mean?

Ignorance

[null and void]

My personal favorite (from here in AK) -- Anaktuvuk Pass/River: Means, "Place where the caribou poop."

[Black Agnes]

ping.

[Consort]

Chappaqua -- Swamp of the ugly squaw.

[Black Agnes]

Now that's funny!

[Black Agnes]

Local color ping. BTW, a river in LA not far from the MS border, the Bogalusa river means Black creek or river (Losa means black). Choctaw territory included part of LA as well.

[Doctor Stochastic]

Doesn't Seattle mean 48 degrees and raining?

[Black Agnes]

Probably. Maybe it means 'liberal infested' also.

[Black Agnes]

You poor thing. BTW, I think Oktibbeha creek was the dividing line between the Chickasaw and Choctaws & means something like creek that runs with blood or creek of no mans land or something.

[Consort]

Choctaw Nation

[Black Agnes]

Lots of Indian named things in MS...

[Black Agnes]

ping.

[Consort]

Chickasaw Nation

[Hanging Chad]

From Palatka, Florida - we have this :
"Palatka" is Seminole Indian language for
"Hey, let's stop here and let the horses take a shit"
Or at least that is what I was always told.

[Consort]

Cherokee Nation
(Oklahoma Band)

[blam]

American Indian Place Names

by Borgna Brunner

Many American places have been named after Indian words. In fact, about half of the states got their names from Indian words. The name of Kentucky comes from an Iroquoian word (Kentahten), which means "land of tomorrow." Connecticut's name comes from the Mohican word (Quinnehtukqut), which means "beside the long tidal river." And the word "Podunk," meant to describe a insignificant town out in the middle of nowhere, comes from a Natick Indian word meaning "swampy place."

Here are some others:

Alabama: may come from Choctaw meaning "thicket-clearers" or "vegetation-gatherers."

Alaska: corruption of Aleut word meaning "great land" or "that which the sea breaks against."

Arizona: from the Indian "Arizonac," meaning "little spring" or "young spring."

Chicago (Illinois): Algonquian for "garlic field."

Chesapeake (bay): Algonquian name of a village.

Connecticut: from an Indian word (Quinnehtukqut) meaning "beside the long tidal river."

Illinois: Algonquin for "tribe of superior men."

Indiana: meaning "land of Indians."

Iowa: probably from an Indian word meaning "this is the place" or "the Beautiful Land."

Kansas: from a Sioux word meaning "people of the south wind."

Kentucky: from an Iroquoian word "Ken-tah-ten" meaning "land of tomorrow."

Massachusetts: from Massachusett tribe of Native Americans, meaning "at or about the great hill."

Michigan: from Indian word "Michigana" meaning "great or large lake."

Minnesota: from a Dakota Indian word meaning "sky-tinted water."

The state name Utah is from the Ute tribe, meaning "people of the mountains."

Mississippi (state and river): from an Indian word meaning "Father of Waters."

Malibu (California): believed to come from the Chumash Indians.

Manhattan (New York): Algonquian, believed to mean "isolated thing in water."

Milwaukee (Wisconsin): Algonquian, believed to mean "a good spot or place."

Missouri: named after the Missouri Indian tribe. "Missouri" means "town of the large canoes."

Narragansett (Rhode Island): named after the Indian tribe.

Nebraska: from an Oto Indian word meaning "flat water."

Niagara (falls): named after an Iroquoian town, "Ongiaahra."

The name Tahoe (the lake in California/Nevada) is Washo for "big water."

North Dakota: from the Sioux tribe, meaning "allies."

Ohio: from an Iroquoian word meaning "great river."

Oklahoma: from two Choctaw Indian words meaning "red people."

Pensacola (Florida): Choctaw for "hair" and "people."

Roanoke (Virginia): Algonquian for "shell money" (Indian tribes often used shells that were made into beads called wampum, as money).

Saratoga (New York): believed to be Mohawk for "springs (of water) from the hillside."

South Dakota: from the Sioux tribe, meaning "allies."

Sunapee (lake in New Hampshire): Pennacook for "rocky pond."

Tahoe (lake in California/Nevada): Washo for "big water."

Tennessee: of Cherokee origin; the exact meaning is unknown.

Texas: from an Indian word meaning "friends."

Utah: from the Ute tribe, meaning "people of the mountains."

Wisconsin: French corruption of an Indian word whose meaning is disputed.

Wyoming: from the Delaware Indian word, meaning "mountains and valleys alternating"; the same as the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania.