LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. UNITED STATES OP AMERICA. Indian Names ;)f Places Near the Great Lakes BY / DWIGHT H. KELTON, A.M., w CAPTAIN U. S. ARMY, Author of Annals of Fort Mackinac; History of the Sault Ste. Marie Canal, Corresponding Member of the Wisconsin State Historical Society, Corresponding Member of the Chicago Historical Society, Member of the American Historical Association, Member of The American Folk-Lore Society. o7' / I VOL. I. DETROIT, MICHIGAN. 18 8 8, Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year iS88, by D W 1 G H r H . K E L T O N , in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. Printed by Detroit Free Press Printing Co. THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF MY FRIEND, HONORABLE LUKE POTTER POLAND OF VERMONT. BORN, NOVEMBER i, 1815. DIED, JULY 2, 1887. The last of all tlic Romans, /ar<- ihcc well." CONTENTS. PAGE Alg-onkin, 17 AshlandBay, 18 AuroraBorealis, . . . .20 Chee-chee-ping-way, 20 Chesapeake, .... 21 Chicago, . 22 Connecticut, . .23 Detroit, 23 Eskimo, 24 GardenRiver, 25 Gogokazhogan, 2fi Housatonic, 26 Huronlslands, . . . . , .26 Illinois, 27 Kaukauna, 30 LakeWinnebago, 30 LeechLake, 32 LesChenaux, 33 Manitoulinlsland, 33 ManitouPayment, .34 MauchChunk, 37 5 COx\ TENTS. I'AGfe Metomen, 37 MissouriRiver, 37 MindemoyaLake, 41 Monkey, 42 Monongahela, 42 Mudjekee wis, 43 Nahma, 43 Ottawa, 44 Penetanguishene, 46 Pontiac, 46 Pyramid Rock, ....... 47 Quebec, .47 Quinnesec, 47 Sachem, 48 Saskatchiwan, . 48 Saut Ste. Marie, 48 Shiawassee, 50 Sun-Dial, 50 Tadoussac, 51 Thermometer, 51 Totem, 52 Wabash, 53 Washington Island, 53 Wicomico, 54 Yenadizze, 55 Yorklsland,. 55 GREETING. A glance at a map of the country adjacent to our Great Lakes, will show that a large num- ber of Indian Names of places, rivers, et cetera, have been retained in their original or in a mutilated form ; and it is with some of these, of Algonkin origin, with which we deal, in order to rescue from oblivion some interesting historical facts and legendary tales, as well as to give a clearer insight into the beautiful and well-equipped lan- guage of the fast disappearing race of red men who once occupied that country. Most of these words have never appeared on the printed page, at least not in their present form ; and those which the reader may have en- countered in similar publications, will here be found interpreted either differently, or more fully. Absolute freedom from errors and inaccuracies. S GREETING. is not claimed ; and scholars acquainted with the difficulty of the task will be the most lenient critics. As to the extent of explanation, a middle course has been followed. Some readers, would be content with a simple interpretation ; others, might ask for even more stringent proofs, or de- sire a still fuller account of the processes by which the results were obtained. Explanations which, to some, may appear mere verbiage, will, to severe critics, seem to be still wanting in com- pleteness. Let the former pass over what is, to them, devoid of interest. The terminology of Indian grammar, being as yet in an unsettled state, some liberty has been taken in this matter. Thus, by "formative," will be understood any single sound, syllable, or aggre- gate of syllables, that never appears as an inde- pendent word, but still conveys some idea or concept — often quite vague indeed — and obtains a definite meaning, or serves to determine the vague concept, when combined with other forma- tives or words, or when completed by mere formal GREETING. 9 endings, or prefixes. The formative may be sub- stantival, verbal, adjectival, or adverbial ; also, a single root, a mutilated, enlarged, or metamor- phosed root ; or even the fragment of a compound ; and employed in the way of a prefix, infix, or suffix. But, in all cases, it is to be distinguished from mere formal sounds or syllables, employed to show the relation of ideas, whether they be used in the form of prefix, infix, suffix, or of reduplication, augment, et cetera. This distinction may sometimes be difficult, or appear arbitrary ; but, as a working rule, for the present purpose, it is convenient. A word about the use of the short dashes, in this volume. They serve to show whether a formative, or any other component of a word, is employed as a prefix, infix, or suffix. Thus, in Maiuo- nawangwatan, ma- (a formal syllable, a reduplica- tion), is a prefix ; so is mon- (a formative, a verbal, a metamorphosed root) ; -aiuaiig (a forma- tive, a substantival, an enlarged root), is a suffix ; -lu- (a formal sound, a truncated verbal ending), is an infix ; -ataii (a formative, a verbal, an en- iO GREETING. larged root), is a suffix. The fact that 771071-^ and -awa7ig, in the example here analyzed, appear in the form of infixes, is left out of consideration, their proper character being that of prefix and suffix, respectively. (See MoTiOTigahela^ For the purpose of more definite explanation, let us take the word Kakizveo7ia7ii7i^^ " at the place where they cross a point by water." Kak- (" straight," "right across," "diagonally"), is a formative (an adverbial, a simple root), that re- quires a terminal addition ; hence the dash is placed at the end. In the present case, that addition is -I'we, a verbal ending implying action or motion in a general way. It gives the compound {kakiwe) the conventional meaning, " he crosses a point," " he travels straight across ;" and, if no more be added,- the journey will be understood to be made by land. Now, to derive from this verb a noun designating a place, and the manner of crossing, the formative -07ia7i, " a boat channel," is added ; thus, kakiweoitan, " a place where one travels straight across in a canoe, or, by water." The formal ending, -ifig', places the word in the GREETING. II locative case ; thus, " at the place where one travels straight across in a canoe, or, by water." (See Keweeiiaiv.) The accentuation of the Ojibwa names in this volume is a venture. Readers practically ac- quainted with the language will easily perceive that in many cases the acute accent (') has been placed on syllables pronounced with no other stress of voice than others not thus distinguished. But they will also find that all these syllables contain long vowels. To insure a perfect pronun- ciation, not only every long vowel should be marked as such, but also those pronounced very rapidly should be distinguished by a sign of quantity. Such a degree of accuracy being hardly required in a work not intended to teach the language, accents have been somewhat liberally employed to make up for the deficiency in this respect. Moreover, the accentuation of Ojibwa words is frequently optional (as in the French language), and cannot be determined with the same precision as in English. Other words produced by means of the forma- 12 GREETING. tives contained in this term, are e. g., kakakatna- gad, " it is square ;" ( kak-kak-^ " straight-straight," "straight on all sides;" -ajnagad, "it is thus;") giwideoonan, "a turning point leading into a channel;" (^giwi'de-, "around," "turning;" -o, con- tracted from -lua, the last syllable in giwideica. "he turns, sailing or rowing;" -onan^ "a boat chan- nel," from 071-, "a canoe," and the substantive ending -an; iiiaonan^ when used as an independent word.) (See Dctoiir?) This example, while illustrating the manipula- tion of formatives, also shows how necessary it is for the successful analysis and full interpretation of Indian words, to leave not a single component untouched by the critical scalpel. The neglect of this rule has led to innumerable failures. Hence, in preparing this collection, that rule has been strictly adhered to in all cases, where the meaning was not sufficiently obvious and certain without applying that severe test ; and whenever deemed desirable, the process has been embodied in the explanation. To do this in all cases would have swelled this volume to an undesirable size. GREETING. 1 3 These remarks may serve as an apology, to the general reader, for the philological min,uti(^ embodied in this collection of Indian names. Of the approval, by linguists, of the course here followed, there can be no doubt, whether the re- sults obtained a^-ree with their own views, or not. Approximate pronunciation of vowels and con- sonants in the Ojibwa and other Algic dialects, used in the text : a^ as in father^ though frequently short. e, as in net, g, as in get. /, as in live. 0, as in bone. d, i, t, o, represent the nasal sounds of these vowels. b, d^ g, /, k, m, n, p, s, t, as in English ; though the distinction between the sonant and surd mutes ((9 and /, d and t, g and /c) is not so pronounced. In -many instances these sounds are interchange- 1 4 GREETING. able. The same holds good of / and ch^ zh and sh. The sound of s sometimes approaches that of z. The letters f, /, r, and v^ are not found in the Ojibwa alphabet, and in the case of older Indians these sounds are often utterly unpronounceable. They generally substitute b or /, for f and v; and n^ for / and r. w is pronounced as in English, or nearly so, except at the end of words, where aw is almost equivalent to ao; iw to iu; ow to o-o. c and 4 occur only in the combination ch, which is pronounced as in church. For qu we write kw. X (a compound sound) would have to be written ks^ but this combination does not occur; whenever English ears hear it, it is in reality kas, kis, or kos; e. g., Metaxigay, or Mei-ax-e-kay, properly Metdkosige; Pawtuxet, from Pawitikoset. a is peculiar to the Menominee dialect. It has a sound intermediate between that of a in man and the same vowel in fare. The same, or nearly the same, sound occurs in the Delaware (^Lenape) dialect, where the Moravian {German) GREETING. I5 writers rendered it by the combination ae. Both of these dialects have also the gutteral German ch, pronounced as gJi in the Celtic lough (or loch, as spelled in Gaelic and Irish). The combination ai has almost the (diphthong) sound of the English i; in many words, however, each letter is distinctly pronounced. The same holds good of aa, ee, it, oo, ae, ao, ou, and ei; pronounced ah-ah, ay-ay, e-e, et cetera. In addition to the usual abbreviations of the names of states and territories, the following are used : Co County. L. H Lake Huron, L. S Lake Superior. L. M Lake Michigan. S. of M. . . . . . . . Straits of Mackinac. U. P. Mich. . . . Upper Peninsula of Michigan. L. P. Mich. . . . Lower Peninsula of Michigan. 1 6 GREETING. The particular locality to which the Indian name properly belongs (although the same geographical name may be found elsewhere) is in parenthesis following the geographical name. Unless otherwise noted, the Indian words are in the Ojibwa (Chippewa) tongue, one of the best preserved and most widely known among the dialects of the great Algonkin family of languages, Detroit, Mich. INDIAN NAMES. Algonkin. Yr^noh Aigongum; originally y^^ goumekin {Angofneki), a tribal name of obscure signification. It was first applied to the Indians of the Upper St. Lawrence and some of its northern tributaries ; afterwards, to all the 'Western tribes of a similar speech, such as the Ottawa, Ojibwa, Pottawatomies, Sacs and Foxes, the '' Upper Algonkins'' of the early French writers, and finally to all tribes of kindred speech, including the Micmacs, Abenakis, Delawares, and others in the east ; the Illinois, Shawnees, and others in the south ; the Crees and the Salsikaa, or " Blackfeet," in the north and northwest. To distinguish the whole family from the Algonkins proper, or " Old Algonkins," all these Indians may be conveniently comprised under the name of the Algic tribes, or Indians of the Algic tongue. The term is of spurious coinage, but has l8 INDIAN NAMES. obtained sufficient currency to be considered legiti- mate. A small remnant of the "Old Algonkins" now have their home on the Lake of Two Mount- ains, near Montreal. The early French mission- aries studied their dialect, in preference to the Montagnais (in use on the Lower St. Lawrence), as more distinctly spoken, and more closely resem- bling the dialects of the " Upper Algonkins," among ' whom many of them went to labor. Among the Algic dialects, the Ojibwa is the most widely understood, and extensively studied. The nearest approach to the parent dialect, or original form of the language, is found in the Cree, Old Algonkin, Ojibwa, and Ottawa dialects. Note. — Angomelchik, a name found in the Del- aware " Walum OlumJ' but hardly yet explained, may have some connection with Algou7nekm. Ashland Bay. (Ashland Co., Wis.) Zhagd- wamik^ in the locative Zhdgawdjnikong, "long- stretched beaver." Zliagaw-, "oblong;" aniik^ *'a beaver." INDIAN NAMES. I9 Probably the original form of the name was zhagawamikay locative zhagawamikag, " a long shoal," or ''far-stretching breakers." Zhagaw-, " oblong ;" minamika, -a77tika, " a shoal/' " there are breakers." The change of form and signification would seem to be due to a legend which runs thus : Menabosho, pursuing the Great Beaver from the St. Mary's River (where he broke his dams, and thus formed the upper and lower rapids), through his pond (Lake Superior), drove him into Ash- land Bay. To secure his capture, Menabosho built a long dam from the south-shore to Madeline Island. While engaged in this work he threw handfulls of earth behind him into the outer lake, where they remain as the smaller Apostle Islands, The dam being finished, Menabosho sure of having cornered his game, entered through the North Channel, between Madeline Island and Bay- field Peninsula, but, behold ! the Great Beaver, digging out the South Channel (between Made- line Island and Shagawamikon Point), broke through Menabosho's dam, and escaped. 20 INDIAN NAMES. The width of the South Channel is now two and a half miles ; but the older inhabitants say that formerly a point of land, extending from the western extremity of the island towards S/iao^a- zvamikon, made it much narrower ; and at one time, according- to tradition, the distance was so short that an arrow could be shot across. The neck of the long point has been washed through, within the last thirty years. Aurora Borealis. Chibdyag nimiidtwag, Cree chipayak niinituivak, " the dead are dancing." Chibai, "a dead person," "a corpse," '' a ghost ;" niini, "he is dancing;" nimiidhuag, "they are dancing with each other." Chee-chee-ping-way. The Indian name of Alexander Robinson, (" Indian Robinson," also " Chief Robinson,") who was partly of Indian descent, and one of the best known characters in the early history of Chicago. ChicJiibingwe, " Blinking Eyes ;" thus nicknamed by the Indians on account of a physical peculiarity. Chibmgweni^ INDIAN NAMES. 21 or chichibingweniy " his eyes are twinkling ;" from chib-, "moving rapidly hither and thither, or up and down f -iiigwe, " eye ;" -eni, an ending of verbs referring to bodily states. Chibai, "ghost;" and chibani, (Ottawa) ''soul," are from the root chib; cJiicJiag (Ojibwa), "soul," is from chac, which has a similar meanino-. The conception is that of a fluttering shadow. Some- times they use Ckichag for " shadow." Chesapeake. (Bay.) Delaware KichizJiiiL'i- pe/c, or Kichisizuipek, "at the great salt water." Ojibwa Kichizhiwibitig, {K'lchi-, "great;" zhhcz-, "sour," ''salty;" -bz\ "water;") though ordinarily, they now say zhiwitaganikichigami ; zhhuitagaii, "salt;" kk/tigami, *' great body of water." , Zhiwitagaii literally means " something used for making things sour." This shows the modern origin of the term ; for salt, as a spice, was a commodity unknown to the Indians before their acquaintance with the whites." 22 INDIAN NAMES. Chicago. (111.) Zhikdgoiig, the locative case of zhikdgOy ''a skunk," also used as a personal name. Early French writers mention a chief named Chicagou, who lived near the site of the present city. According- to tradition, Chicagou was drowned in the river. Whatever may have been the occasion for applying that name to the locality, there can be no question about the etymology of the word. Algic proper names are very commonly derived from the name of animals by the addition of o. Thus Zhikdgo, is zJiikag used as a man's name ; and zhikag, or zJiigag, is the Mephitis Ainc7'icana, or "skunk." The English term "skunk," itself is a corruption of the Abenaki form of the word, which is, sikango. Some have sought to lend dignity to the term, by tracing in its first s)llable, the second syllable of kichiy "great." This is plain!)' inconsistent with the Indian pronunciation of the name. The origin of the word, however undignified, is plain : zJiig, is the Latin mingere ; and kag, or INDIAN NAMES. 23 gag, though now restricted to the porcupine spe- cies, was originally any horrid little beast ; hence zhi-kag, is equal to bcstiola focda mingens. Others have had recourse to zhigagawdzh, " wild garlic ;" but this does not help matters, for the ugly root zJiig, is still there, followed by -aga- zvdzh, " a plant ;" hence planta iwinani redolens. (See Des Piai7ies.) Connecticut. KinncHikwat, " at the long river." Ojibwa gonuatigweyag, or ge7iwatig07ig ; from gino-, "long;" and -tigzucyji, "the water runs." The verbal -tigzveya is derived from tigow, " a wave ;" and this from the root ^/g, from which we have -n^ig, " a tree f and -Iz'g, -shligwau, "head;" the common idea being that of ''top," " elevation." Detroit. (Mich.) From the French Le De- troit, "The Strait," ?'. c, the passage between. Lakes St. Clair and Erie. The Indian name is IVawiydtaitong, the loca- tiye case of VVazuiyatan, "the river turns," or "a 24 INDIAN NAMES. curvino- channel." IVawiya-, ''round" (circular, or semi-circular) ; -atan, *' the river runs thus/' " a channel." (Compounds with this ending are used as verbs or nouns.) Hence the name of the IVeatanons, Oiialanoiis, or IVeas, a small tribe, now at the Ouapaw Agency, Indian Territory. Their original home seems to have been at the turn of the Illinois river near Hennepin (111.), which ■ also bore the name of IVawiyataii. (See Appleton.) Eskimo. Eshkihod, "one. who eats his food (meat) raw." Aslik-, "raw," ''green;" -piva, "to taste," " to eat." From the root ashk, in the Massachusetts dialect asq, plural asquash, we have the word "squash." In Ojibwa, the term eshkan darning, "what is eaten raw," from the same root, is used for melons, cucumbers, ct cetera. The Micmac form of the word is said to be Eski77iook, or Eskumoga ; Cree Ayiskinieiv. Frenchman. WcmitigozJii (Cree Wcniistiko- zhi), "one who has a canoe (vessel) of wood." INDIAN NAMES. 25 Mitig, "tree," "wood;" -on, (Cree osi, ozhi^ "canoe," "boat," "snip;" oniitigoni (Cree omisti- kosi), "he has a wooden boat." The change of the initial o into ivc, makes the participle. The change of n to zh is quite common. The term dates from the first appearance of the French in the St. Lawrence River, when their vessels excited the admiration of the natives. Among the Cree, the word is now also applied to any white or civilized man ; just as the Ojibwa call whites of any nationality KicJiiniokomanag, " Big Knives ;" which originally meant Virginians, and later, Americans. Garden River. (Ontario. A tributary of St. Mary's River.) Kitiganisibi, "Plantation River." Kit-, kichi-, "notching," "hacking;" kitigc, "he plants," "he makes a garden;" kitigaii, "a planta- tion." In the beginning of this century, the In- dians living on that stream raised all the corn needed for the fur trade in the Lake Superior country. 26 INDIAN NA^iES. Gogokazhogan, or " The Bridge of the Dead." The meaning' of this word is not " Owl Bridge " {J<[okokoo-azhogaii), as has been suggested, but "unsteady bridge;" from the reduphcated root gok, goshk, givashk, "trembhng," "jumping." Azho- gan, "a bridge;" from azhoge (azkaiu, "on the other side"), "he crosses over." The brido;e of the dead consists of a tree so lightly supported that it swings up and down, when the soul of the departed steps on it to cross the river which must be passed in order to reach the "happy hunting grounds;" consequently many fail, and falling into the river are changed into toads. Similar myths are met with among most Indian tribes throughout America, not to speak of thfi ancient beliefs of the old world. Housatonic. Wassdtinak, the New Enof- land form of the Ojibwa Awassaciinang, " beyond the mountain (or mountains)." Aivass, "further," "beyond;" -adin, "there is high land." Huron Islands. (Marquette Co., Mich., L. S.) Majidkondning, " whither they go for moss." Maji-, INDIAN NAMES. 27 contracted from inaiuau-, "to go for;" wakon, "moss," "lichen;" -ijiq; locative affix. The lichen referred to is the edible gyropJioca known b}^ the French name of tripe dc rockc, "stone tripe;" in time of starvation used for making soup. Ojibwa ozJiashakon, from ozhash-, "slippery," "gelatinous;" and wakon, "moss." Other species are windigowakon, " giant's {ivindi- go) moss;" iuissabciijako]i, {jiiissabc, "great man;" -oji, "abdomen," "bowels;") "great man's bowels' moss;" both names referring to a legend in which McnabosJio changed his bowels, or other parts of his body, into eatable moss. Illinois. This is the French rendering of Ininowc (pronounced c-jicc-no-zca), the Indian name of the larofe tribe which once dwelt on the Illinois River. The substitution of the letters // for n, is accounted for by the circumstance that the / sound being wanting in many of the Algic dialects, the Indians of that speech generally change it into n when trying to pronounce it in foreign words. Now, by a curious process, — not without its analo- 28 INDIAN NAMES. gies in other linguistic phenomena, — the whites, when pronouncing Algic words containing the n sound, frequently replace this by the /. The Indians say N'oc, N'ossi, Binib, and Nazheiickwe, for the French Louis, Lucie, Phillipe, and L' Angel i que; while the French have chang-ed the Indian Mishi- nimakinang., Minezvag, Okaganing, and Lniuowe, into Michilliuiakinac, Milouaki or Mellcoki (Milwau- kee), L^akalin, and Lllinois. The word Lniuowe, is the Illinois form of a name apparently once common to all the Algic tribes. Its original form, probably in i naive, or ani- nazve, underwent various modifications with the breaking up of the parent tribe and the conse- quent formation of dialects. With the Crees it became neJiiyazi\ ninawe, and neif/iawe; and with the Algonkins proper, niina. It appears in the lenuilenape of the Dela- wares, and in the corresponding anishinabe (orig- inally inininabe, anininabe,) of the Ojibwa, Ottawa, et cetera. Etymologically, the word consists of inin, "simply," "without any specification;" and aive, "a INDIAN NAMES. 29 living- being;" and means "a person," and in the plural, "people." Readers superficially acquainted with some one of the Algic tongues, will be apt to doubt the correctness of this explanation, since the words ////;/, and azac, are probably unknown to them ; nor are the)' to be found in dictionaries. Neither of them, it is true, occurs independently, but their meaning is evident from such combinations as the following : Zhishib, means a duck of an)' kind; while inijiishih means "the common duck," "the duck that has no other name." Kiuosra', (Cree) etymologically ^'long mouth," is any sort of fish; iyiiiikinosew, is the fi.sh, "the fish that has no other name," "a pike." Other examples are ininatig, "a maple;" ininandag, "a spruce;" Cree iyinimin (Ojibwa iniii)^ "a huckleberry;" ct cetera. Awe appears in oshkinawe, "a youth;" awessi, "an animal;" azucncji, "who;" awegzven, ''some one unknown to me;" tibinawc, ''self;" in hawdtok (Menominee), "a spirit," literally "who may he be," and Mdj-Haivcitok, "the Great Unknown," 30 INDIAN NAMES. /. e., God ; also in awenuts, the New England form of hawdtok, and once applied to the whites, who were for some time looked upon as "spirits," or superior beings. Kaukauna. (Outagamie Co., Wis.) Ogdka- niiig, "at the place where pickerels are caught." Little Kaiikaiina, farther down on the Fox River, is the locality mentioned by Father Allouez, and by him called Kekalin. He made the portage May 1 8, 1670. (See Kawkawlin River ^ Lake Winnebago. (Wis.) The Indians now call it Winibigo-Sdgaigan, "the Lake of the Winnebago Indians;" but the original name was Winibi (pronounced win-ne-be), "dirty water;" in the locatix e case, VVinibing; or, in the southern Algonkin dialects, Winibig, Winipeg, is the Cree form of the same word. From the Lake, the Winnebago Indians, who lived in that neighborhood before they moved to Green Bay, received their Algonkin name ; and the early French^ being informed of the fact that INDIAN NAMES. 3 1 the tribe had formerly Hved on the '^ dirty water'' were led into the erroneous belief that the tribe had formerly lived on the sea, or on salt water, which the Indians also called ''dirty water." This circumstance accounts for Nicolet's much discussed assertion that on his voyage to Green Bay he was within three days' journey of the sea. A three days' sail from Green Bay, would have brought him to Winihig, the ''dirty ii.'afcri' The assumption that he reached a point within three days' journey of either the W^isconsin or the Mississippi, and mistook the JMishisibi, "the great river," for the ocean, is entirely improbable. No one acquainted with the Algic tongues, as he zuas, would have made such a mistake ; for sibi never means any other than riDining water. There is absoliLtcly nothing in the account of Nicolet's journey {Relations of 1643,) that would make a trip up the Fox River probable ; no more so than the diversion to the Rapids of St. Mary, which has also been surmised. The assertion that, by the word "sea," Nicolet meant '*a river lead- 32 INDIAN NAMES. ing to the sea," should be supported by at least one analogous example, to obtain credit. The removal of the Winnebagoes from Lake Winnebago to Green Bay, was caused by the Dakota raids mentioned in the Relations of tJic Jesuits. The shores of the lake were still unin- habited in 1670, for that very reason. Leech Lake. (Minn.) Gasagdskzvajzm^ka, "there are leeches there;" generally used in the locative case, Gasagaskwajimekang. Sagas kwaaji7ne, "a leech." Saga-, ''coming forth ;" -skw- (-skwi, -skiva, the radical part of miskzui), "blood;" oji-, "drawing in;" -m-, "mouth;" (as in ashajna, "he is fed," "something is put in his mouth;" ojihiv^'ino, "he speaks Ojibwa;") -e, a substantive ending, for the names of beasts, birds, fishes, et cetera; hence, sagas kwajzme, ."a beast that makes come forth blood by drawing with the mouth," "a blood-sucker." (Sangsice, the French for "leech," also means "blood-sucker.") The prefix ga-, and the ending -ka, are explained else- where. INDIAN NAMES. 33 Les Chenaux. (Mackinac Co., Mich.) **The Channels ;" the plural of the French le chenal, **the channel," The Ojibwa name is Andniinang, "in the bowels." Ajidiunia, "underneath," "in the body." The name refers to the intricate tortuosity of the channels. Manitoulin Island. (L. H.) Manitbwdnmg^ "at the Spirit's cave." Manito, "a supernatural being;" wazh, "the den of a wild animal;" -iiig, locative ending. WazJi is a modification of wan, "hollow;" (e. g, wanike, "he digs a hole.") The term refers to a 'Mightning hole" on the rocky shore of the deep inlet on the north side of the island. This hole was believed to be the den of the Spirit-Snake, — personified lightning. The form Manitoulin is a corruption of Mani- tooualin, which is the French rendering of Mani- towaning. The Indians generally call it Otazvaminiss, "Ottawa Island;" as the ancient home of that tribe and now again inhabited by a considerable number of them. Its Huron name was Ekaentoton. 34 INDIAN NAMES. Manitou Payment. (Mackinac Co., Mich.) A French corruption of the Ojibwa Manito Binizua, "the shooting of the Spirit." Legend, Misliiniakwa, the Big Bear, a spirit of the great lakes, had wantonly slain Mcnaboshds nephew and ward MamganSs, the Little Wolf. The hero, wan and haggard from grief, and planning revenge, wandered along the shore until he discovered the playground of Mishimakwa and his spirit companions. It was on the sand beach at the foot of the clay banks {Les E cores), east of Manitou Payment Point. There Menabosho waited his chance. His stratagem and success are related by the Indian story tellers, with appropriate panto- mines, in this wise : The sun stood high. The spirits emerged from their mansions under the water; Mishimakwa and Mishiginebig (the Big Ser- pent), with the Nibanabeg (Half-Fish Men), and other monstrous beings. They played and gamboled on the broad smooth beach, like happy children. Menabosho stood on high at the brink of the bank, silent and motionless. His toes had spread out, and, root-like, worked themselves into the loose soil. His nether limbs and his trunk were scaly and spotted with patches of lichen. His unevenly ex- tended arms looked knotty and crooked, like the limbs of a tree hoarv with ao^e, and his finLrers like its leafless branches. Thus stood Menabosho mo- tionless. Tiwe ! ("hello") cried the I'jig Serpent, what is that up there? A tree ? No, brothers, I tell you, INDIAN NAMES. 35 it is not a tree. There was no tree there before. Perhaps it is Menabosho. If it be Menabosho, said the Big Bear, we shall soon know it. I will try him. Ugh, ngJi, shouted the spirits. Mishimakwa climbed the bank, stood up against the tree-like man, hugged him, scratched and scratched, till the scaly bark came down in pieces from his Hanks and back. It pained Menabosho, but he did not wince. He neither shivered nor moaned. The Great Bear loosened his 'hold, rolled down the bank, and quietly walked back to his com- panions. It is not Menabosho. he said to them. I have tried him. Easy, easy ! whispered the Big Serpent. Be on your guard ! Menabosho is wily. Let mc try him. Ugh. ngh, shouted the spirits. Mishiginebig went to work. With mighty folds he twisted around the trunk of the man-tree, up to the spreading limbs ; and then he began to squeeze him. It pained Menabosho, but he bore it without a moan. Once more the Big Serpent tightened his folds, and squeezed with twofold power. The pain was so great. Menabosho gasped for breath ; but he did not moan. And again Mishiginebig tried him. With all his might he squeezed the man-tree. It was beginning to be too much, even for Menabosho. Another squeeze and he would have cried out; but Mishi- ginebig gave up, satisfied with the trials. 36 INDIAN NAMES. Slowly he unfolded his coils, and glided down the bank. It is not Menabosho, said he. I have tried him. Menabosho is a coward. He would have moaned. Come, comrades, to our sport again ! Thus spoke Mishiginebig. Again the spirits gamboled on the broad, smooth beach. After a while they rested. Scattered on the shining sand, they lay basking in the sun. This is thy time, Menabosho ! He does not stir. Easy, easy ! See his arms move, slowly, cautiously, keep still ! He draws an arrow from his quiver, a sharp, stone-tipped arrow. Easy, easy ! The bow is in his hand ; Kichiinitigwab, Menabosho's good bow. Keep still ! The arrow is on the string. He draws it back with might. The arrow flies. Whoop ! whoop ! ! whoop ! ! ! the war-whoop sounds from on high. The monsters are startled. The tree is gone ; Menabosho's war-whoop resounds through the woods. The spirits scamper. Mishi- makwa lies on the ground, d)'ing. The arrow sticks in. his heart. It was Menabosho. Note. — A tall pine overlooking the Epoufette settlement and visible from a great distance, has, in the Indian mind, some connection with this fabulous event. (The sequel to this legend can be found under Mis ha Mo/czca.) INDIAN NAMES. 2>7 Mauch Chunk. (Carbon Co., Penn.) Delaware Maskdchiwink, "on the bear mountain;" corresponding to the Ojibwa Makwajiwmg ; from makzaa (Delaware uiasko), "a bear;" and wajkv, "a mountain." (See Bea^'- Creek?) Me torn en. Manddmin, "a grain of corn (maize);" used as a personal name. Pottawatomie Diatamin, Ottawa unndamin, " large grain ;" from mind-, mand-, "large." Mandaniincs, "Little Corn," was the Indian name of the famous voyageur Nicolas Perrot. A Pottawatomie of the same name {JMan-daw-mht) was one of the signers of the first (1821) Indian Treaty made at Chicago. Missouri River, (i.) Mislwjiisibi, or MesJw- nisibi, " River of the Big Canoe Tribe ;" " River of the Big-Tubs ;" " Mandan River." Mishi; inisk-, "large;" -on, "canoe," "vessel;" -z, verbal ending ; misJioni, ^' he has (or sails in ) a large canoe ;" mesJionid, " one who owns (or uses) a large canoe." When a partici[)le is used 35 INDIAN NAMES. as a proper noun, the ending . d is generally dropped ; and in this case, the change of the first vowel is also sometimes omitted ; as, c. g., in Wemitigozhi, " a Frenchman ;" instead of Wemiti- gozJiid, from oinitigoue, " he has a wooden canoe." The name Mishoiii appears on old maps, and is mentioned by early writers, under the guise of Missourites, the ending, tcs, being added by the French, according to their custom ; the sh changed to ^i- (as in Mississippi) ; and n turned into r, also a matter of frequent occurrence. Accordingly, La riviere dcs JMissouritcs^ or the River of tJic Massorites, as Coxe has it, is the '' River of the Big Canoe Tribe." Among the Indians who lived upon the upper Missouri, in the seventeenth century, the allied Majidaus, Arickarees, and Gros Ventres, are the only ones now known to have made use (as a rule) of boats different from those of all other tribes, — not large, indeed, but of a very pecu- liar construction. They were the so-called "bull- boats," made of wickerwork in the shape of a tub and covered with skins ; and, though but INDIAN NAMES. 39 about five feet in diameter, capable of holding six persons. If not large canoes, they were certainly large tubs; and Mishoui means also "one who uses a large tub ;" for the formative -on (from the root wan, "hollow"), originally signified any kind of liollow fixture or vessel, as, e. g, in the word ona- i^an, "a dish." Any of those three tribes, then, or the whole confederacy, may be the people whose ancient Algic name is preserved in the name of the Missouri River. This surmise would gain strength, if the name Mandan could be proved to be also of Algic origin, like Sioux, Winnebago, and the current names of several other tribes of different speech. In that case, its most obvious interpretation would be the same as that of Mishoni ; for mandoni, or niindoni (ixoxw. mand-, or mind-, "large"), and man- ooni (from niang-, "big"), likewise mean "he has a large canoe ;" and any of these words might in the course of time, or in the mouth of white speakers, have become Mandan. (2.) Pcngiviivdnow^esibi , " River of the Painted 40 INDIAN NAMES. Cheeks;" "Piegan River." Pingwi, "ashes," "dust," ^* paint in the form of powder ;" pingwiwiiwe, " he powders a person ;" -now, -a?zow, " cheek ;" piiigwi- wanozve, "he has powdered cheeks/' or "his cheeks are painted." This name was mentioned to Father Mar- quette in the form of Pekitanoui, most hkely by the IlHnois, whose dialect differs very much from that of the Ojibwa. Pekitanoui is said to signify "muddy water," or "muddy river," which, in the Cree dialect, would be pikaganiisipiy, pikagamichi- wan, pikinichiwaii, or, simply, pikittin. The last of these terms would explain a part of the name PekitanoiLi ; but the ending -anoiu' must be accounted for. Now, the Cree pikinana- ivew {irom. pikni-^ "powder," and -anaway, "cheek"), is the same as the Ojibwa pingwiwanawe ; and changing the first n to t (a frequent transition in the Algic languages), we obtain pikitaiiawcw, which resembles Father Marquette's Pekita7ioui, as closely as can be desired. The name, then, would seem to refer, like Mzskoni, to a tribe living on the Missouri (or INDIAN NAMES. 4! some of its tributaries), whose peculiarity was to paint the cheeks. And, in fact, there is such a tribe. In the sign language of the western Indians, the Piegans are still known as the "Cheek-Painters," or "Painted Cheeks." (See the gesture in "The Indian Sign Language," by W. P. Clark, U. S. Army.) And their Cree name, Pi kajiowiyiniw (from pik- "muddy," "dirty;" and -anaway^ "cheek"), means "dirty cheek man." The river itself is now called, in Cree, Piega- nowisipiy, " Piegan River." As to the transition from 7i to t or d, and vice versa, compare Cree atak, and Ojibwa anang, "3. star;" Ojibwe viwe, and Cree. ttowe, "bespeaks such a language ;" Ottawa zhizhodewaam, and Cree sisonchaam, "she sails along the beach." It is possible, however, that Pckitanwi was a misunder- standing on the part of Father Marquette, and that the name ofiven to him was Pekinanwi. Mindemoya Lake. (Manitoulin Island, L. H.) Mindimoyesdgaigan, " Old Woman Lake." It has its name from an island, which is said to bear 42 INDIAN NAMES. a Striking resemblance to a woman floating on the water, and therefore called by the Indians Mindi- moye, " the old woman." Monkey. Nandomdkomdshi, "louse-searching beast." Nandomakonie, " he is searching for lice ;" -s/ii, a substantive ending, for the name of beasts, birds, insects, e^ cetera. Cree ayisinakesk, also otayisinakesk, "one who is in the habit of imitatinor." Monongahela. (River in Pennsylvania.) Memondwangehdak (Delaware), the participle of Mainonawangekela, " the river is digging away its shores." The Ojibwa equivalent is Mondwangwdtan, or Mamondwangwdtan, in the participle, Meiuoua- wangwatang. Monawe, " he is digging ;" {e. g. inonaapini, " he is digging potatoes ;" monas/ikwe, " he is tearing out weeds ;") -awang, " sand," " sand Ijank ;" [e. g. viitawanga, " the beach con- sists of pure sand ;") vwnawangwe, " he is digging out sand ;'' -a tan, " there is a water-course ;" " the INDIAN NAMES. zt - Stream Is acting In such a way." The reduplica- tion of the first syllable (mo, as customary, being changed to ma,) marks the repeated action. The Delaware termination -/ic/a, {-hclla, -henna,) sig- nifies -running water;" like the Ojibwa sibi, -tigweya, and -atan. Instead of monawangwata7i, the Ojibwa usually say metatawangwatan ; from met-, "wearino- out;" -ataivang, ''sand bank;" and -atan, as above. The French rendering of Mamonawangehela, is Malangiiele. (See La Pointe, for mon- ; Sandy Lake, for -awang; and Detroit, for -atan.) Mudjekeewis. ^^The West-Wind; father of Hiawatha r in Longfellow's poem. Majikiwiss, "the first-born son;" from maji-, "beginning;" and the obsolete kiwis, "man." Hence akiwesi, ''an old man;" kwiwises, "a. boy;" -gwiss, "a son." Nahma. (Delta Co., Mich.) JVame, "a stur- geon." The town is situated on Sturgeon River {Namesibi). The Delaware namaes, pronounced namds, is 44 INDIAN NAMES. the diminutive form of this word, but in that dialect means " fish." This is the meaning- of name {^-ameg) in other dialects also, whenever it forms part of compounds, such as, c. g. Ojibwa nanictcg, zhigwameg, " dried fish ;" Cree zvabamek, " a whitish fish ;" attikamek, " a white-fish." The X^Q\2j\\2iX& Namasisipee, '''V\'^\ River," men- tioned in the traditional account of their wander- ings, is the same word. The pronunciation of a in the Delaware dia- lect is practically the same as in Menominee, — a sound intermediate between a in man, and ay, with somewhat of a nasal tone. Ottawa. One of the largest and most ad- vanced Algic tribes, and nearly related with the Ojibwa. Otaiva, plural Otawag, shortened from the obsolete odawdwe, Cree odattaw, " he has (owns) fur." (From -waive, -azue, " fur," we have e. g. mznwawe, "it has a good fur;" d/ssagwawe, ''it has a thick ^costly fur;" atawe, " he traffics; " atawagan, " peltry " (in trade); Cree nandawaga- new, "he hunts for fur.") INDIAN NAMES. 45 Like the names of many other tribes (as well as of some nations, ancient and modern), this name is of foreign origin. It was first given b)- the Algonkins on the St. Lawrence to one of the Ottawa clans on the east shore of Georgian Bay, who opened the fur trade with the French (de- scending by way of the Ottawa River), and, for some time, claimed its monopoly. From these, it passed to other clans of like speech, and for some time, was even applied to all the " Upper Algon- kins ;" (Pottawatomies, Ojibwa, Menominees, e/ cetera^ The French first called the tribe Cheveux RelevSs, "Standing Hairs," from their fashion of wearing the hair in crest-like shape ; afterwards, Outaouan, Ondataonaotcat (pronounced odatawa- wd) ; and finally Otiiaouak, and Outaivais. The term Cheveux Releves has made room for the more modern nanie Coiirtes Oreilles^ " Short Ears." This is an erroneous translation of Otawao; Kishkakoyag (or Kiskkakosag), '' Otawa of the Short-tailed Bear Totem," one of the most prom- inent clans of the tribe. {Kishkitaivage, "' his ear 46 INDIAN NAMES. is cut off," or ''his ear is shortened;" a part being cut off.) (See Kish-kau-ko^ Penetanguishene. (Ontario. Canada.) Benatdwano-wishino; "where the sand sHdes down the bank." Bin-, bina-, "coming- off," ''dropping," "casting" (as in hinawe, "it moults;" binakivi, "the trees shed their leaves;" binagidoncshka, "the skin comes off his lips"); mitawanga, "there is sand on the shore;" hence binataivanga, "the sand slides down the bank." The remaining part of the word may include the vituperative or com- miserative ending -ish (as in Nadoivckweyainish- ing; see St. Igiiacc), or the formative -isJiin, "it lies thus." Pontiac. Ottawa BzvanSdiyag, or Boititiyak, "Anchor." Bon- "stopping;" anit^ "a spear;" -ak, "a stick;" anitiyak^ "a spear handle;" hence boni- tiyak, a stick planted in the ground to anchor (stop) a canoe. The term is not in common use; thev say instead, bonakajigan, from boiiakajigc, " he stops something [bon-), by means of a stick {juk).'''' INDIAN NAMES. 4^ The name just suits the famous chief Pontiac, who was the last anchor of the Indian cause. Pyramid Rock. (Mackinac Island, Mich.) Petakdlnkideg dzhihik^ "standing rock." Petaki- deg, "standing-," "sticking in the ground;" -abi'h, "hard mineral;" azhibik, "rock." The term petakabikideg^ is a sample of the curious system of compounding words, called "incapsulation." An imitation of the word in English, would be stick-stone-up-ing^ instead of sticking up stone. The modern name, " Sugar-Loaf Rock," would be translated, sisibakwatong ezhinagwak azhidik, "sugar shaped rock." Quebec. (Canada.) Montagnais Kazvdpak, "where the river is narrow." Ojibwa gawibwak, the archaic participle of zuilnua, "it becomes nar- row;" Cree ivapa, "a strait." Quinnesec. (Menominee County, Mich.) Pekivenesseg, "where the river forms smoke (spray)." Pakwene "there is smoke," "a rising 48 INDIAN NAMES. cloud of smoke ;" -esse, " the river runs thus ;" the change of a to e, and the tinal £; make the participle. Pekwinesseg is the name of a fall of the Menominee River, in the neighborhood of the village. A few miles distant there are the '' Little Quinnesec Falls ;" Ojibwa Pekwencsses. Sachem. Sdgiiua, " a chief." From sag-y "comingf forth," or " rising above." Sagamore is a corruption of the same word. Saskatchiwan. (River in Canada.) Cree Kisiskdchiwaii, " the river runs rapidly." Ojihwai I^z's/izyzwan, from kizhi-, "fast," and -zj'iwan, -Jzwan, "the river runs thus." Saut Ste. Marie. (Mich.) Father Dablon named the mission established by him at the foot of the rapids in 1668, Samte Marie du Sault, " Saint Mary's of the Rapids." Sazit^ is the modern spelling ; " Soo,'' the popular pronunciation. From the word Saiit, "falls," or "rapids," the Ojibwa tribe obtained its French name, Sazitezix. INDIAN NAMES. 49 At first, those only whose home was at the "Soo" were called by that name ; but by degrees it jDassed to all Indians of the same speech. The spelling "■ SauteiLT,'' though very common, is wrong; this word is pronounced differently, and denotes "a springer," or "a jumper." The Indian name of the town or rapids is Bazviting^ from bazoitig, "rapids." This is an abbreviation of batvitigweya, "the river is beaten into spray." (Some Indians pronounce it bagivi- ting, "where the river is shallow.") The Ojibwa band residing at the Saut were called Bawitigowininiwag^ or Bawitmg-ddzhi-inini- wag, "Men of the Rapids." The Indians have no general name for St. Mary's River; but have for the lakes into which it expands. The mouth of the river is called Giwideoonaning, "where they sail around a point." Pawtuckct, Powatan, Pawcatiick, Pawtttxet (Ojibwa Bazvitigosing, "at the little falls"), and many other similar names in different dialects, are of the same root as bawitig, and denote a fall or rapids. The root is bazu^ "to scatter by striking;" 56 INDIAN NAMES. hence, e. g. bawinioodc "it is shaken off;" hazvisi- dcshiiuono, "he shakes the (hist (or snow) off his feet." Cree pawahainoyaw^ "the snow falls off the trees." (See Detour.) Shiawassee. (River in L. P. of Mich.) AzJiabzuesse (generally used as a participle, Azhao- lucssig), "it runs back and forwards," "the river twists about." Azhaia-, "across," ''from one side to the other" (as in azhawa, "he crosses a bod)- of water;" az/iaok, "from one side to the other"); and -esse, "the river runs thus." A look at the map shows the appropriateness of the term, espec- ially if you compare the course of the S/uawassee with that of the Tittabawassee. S u n - D i a 1 . Dibaio-isisszvan^ " sun-measure." Dibaioan, "measure ;" ;'v'.sv'.s\s\ "sun." The only sun-dial known to the Indians in their untutored state was a stick or twig stuck into the ground or snow, with a line traced in the direction of its shadow. This contrivance was, and is still, us(;d bv travelers. The intention INDIAN NAMES. 5 1 is to let those in the rear know the time of the day at which the advance party started from, or passed, the spot thus marked. At present, dibaigisisswaii is the name of a watch, clock, or any time-piece. Tadoussac. (Canada.) Tofoshak, ''breasts." The place is so called from its landmark, two dome-shaped mountains. Thermometer. Kissina-dibdbishkddeg, "where the cold is weighed," "cold-balance," "cold-scales." Kissina, "it is cold;" dib-, tip-, "equal," "opposite;" -abishk, -abik, "stone," "metal;" -ode, verbal end- ing ; -g, participle ending. Dibabishkode, " it is weighed," literally means, " it is balanced by means of a stone (or piece of metal)." The archaic form -abishk (now -abik; Massa- chusetts -ainbsk: Cree -abis/c), shows that the term is not of modern coining, and, consequently, that the Ojibwa made use of weights before civiliza- tion reached them. 52 INDIAN NAMES. Totem. Ode, , " isLmWy," "gens," "family mark," " ancestral animal." Whenever this word is used in the sense of "family mark," or "ances- tral animal," it is invariably connected with a per- sonal pronoun ; and as in this case the connective d, and the possessive ending m are required, it has passed into the French and English languages under the form of dodcin, or totem. Here are some examples of its use. Nizhode ayawagf "there are two families there." Wedetojig, "persons living together in a village." Nindodcm, "my family mark," "my ancestral animal." Migi- si nind ododeminan., " I have the eagle for my totem." Makzvan odododcniiuan, "his totem is the bear." The principal totems of the Ojibwa tribe are, the bear {inakwd), the crane iajijak), the marten {ivabiz lies III), the catfish (inanavieg), the wolf (inaingaii), the loon {/nang), the moose {7}ios), the burbot (awassi, azvassissi\ the bear's sirloin {iioke), the pigeon-tail {aawe), the eagle (iJiigisi). Others, less wide-spread, are the reindeer (ati'/c), the "merman" (nibanabc). the hnx {bis/iha), the INDIAN NAMES. 53 black cluck {niakafcs/izb), the pike (^ginozke), the whitetish {atikainco^, the sucker {iiauicbin), the beaver {aniik), the wild goose {nika), the gull (^gayashk), the hawk [kckek). Most of these totems are also found among the Ottawa, tooether with the following: the rattle-snake [z/iis/iio-zuc), the water-snake {cmiissan- daiuo), the sturgeon {name), the sparrow-hawk [ p'ipigizvises), the thunder, or thunder-bird (t?///;;///7J, and the fork [nissawakwad). "Wabash. (River in Indiana and Illinois.") Wdbashkikisibi, " I)og River." Wabashkiki, "a bog," " a marsh ;" from wab-, " white ;" -ashk, "orass;" -//'/, "oround." Washington Island. (Green Ray, Wis.) Wassekigancso, ''his (sweat-covered) breast is shin- ing." IVasse-, "shining;" kakigan, "breast;" -eso, the ending of many verbs referring to the condi- tion of the human l)ody. This compound is used when a man is perceived at a distance, by the reflection of the sunbeams from his bare breast 54 INDIAN NAMES. covered with perspiration ; c. g. while paddHng a canoe. The term is properly applicable to per- sons only; by a bold hgure of speech it has been transferred to that island, visible at a great dis- tance when its perpendicidar white clifts reflect the light of the sun. The first name found on .maps, was " Potta- wattomie Island " (Poicwahiuiiniuiiss) ; it having been occupied bv that tribe about the middle of the 1 7th century. The French name was Isle des Poux ; from the nickname of those Indians. This name led some map makers to call it " Louse Island " iyPou^ "a louse "). W"icomico. (River in Maryland.) Delaware Wikdmika (Ojibwa ivigiwdDiika)^ " there are houses (lodges, wigwams) there." The term for "house," among the Ojibwa, is zvakaioau ; for "lodge," wioiivam ; while the Ottawa use the latter word for both houses and lodges, reserving the term zvakaigaii for a forti- fied enclosure, " a fort." Both words are appar- INDIAN NAMES. 55 ently derived from the root wag^ wak^ or ' wik^ "something round," which appears in the follow- ing derivatives; zvakwi (Ottawa), '' heaven ;" wagi- nogan, "a round lodge;" zvikwcya, "there is a bay ;" wak, " spawn ;" and many others, including those derived from the form waskk^ as zvas/ikossc, "he makes a crooked route;" meaning "he walks circuitously ;" watvisJikamo, "the trail is crooked;" and probablv also zvawasJikcsJii, "a deer." ^ Yenadizze. The ''idler and gambler^'' in Longfellow's Hiaicatha. Aiiiadisi, "he behaves in different wa\-s," "he leads a roving life;" anocli <22>2«^m, " he conducts himself oddly;" the iterative forni of iiiadisi, " he behaves thus ;" from in- (zzki-\ "so;" and -ad/s/, "he is," "he behaves." York Island. (One of the Apostle Islands, L. S. ) Ganiiskivdbiuiizhikano; " where red willows abound," or " where there is plenty of Kiuiiiki- jiiidc^ MiskK