New Signs
Dear Editor: After seeing the photo in the Sentinel last week of the new signs on Granite Creek and No Name Creek I had to write this: Whenever providing the place names of any area in Tlingit it is always good to put it in the correct context of: “Starrigavan River” is the English name for Ghajaa Héen, or Swan Lake Creek is the English name for X’wat Héenak’woo. It is not Kaasdaa Héen “is the Tlingit name for Indian River.” Whose names were first?
Ghajaa Héen, the river at Starrigavan has a rather long explanation to its origin and it is actually the one that flows out of the campground with the larger river by the road being called Ghajaa Heen Wát.
No Name Creek, by the ferry terminal, as it is sometimes called is known as Walachéixh’i or Wátlachéixh’i: This actually means “The Sun Never Shines In It” but literally refers to the shadows in the face of it.
It was good to see that names have finally been put back on theses streams, names that “go back to time immemorial.”
X’eisawaa Héen is “Ptarmigan River” and does not mean “where ptarmigan go to get rocks for its gizzard.” This is now called Granite Creek.
The next river in is S’us’ Héeni, now called Cascade Creek. Its name comes from the black ducks that are usually seen at the mouth of the river.
Kéet Gooshi Héen (Killerwhale Fin River) is the one that flows out by the old airplane turnaround into Kéet Gooshi Gheey (Killerwhale Fin Bay).
There was once a stream that flowed between the two houses across from the ramp to ANB Harbor. It flowed from a freshwater spring but after a battle there in 1853 the water turned red, the color of liver and thereafter it was called Kháa Dl’oogu Héen (Human Liver River).
Flowing out of “Swan Lake” the river was known as X’wat Héenak’wu (Trout Creek) long before it was ever called Swan Lake Creek. I don’t remember that creek before it was covered over and the salmon runs destroyed but my siblings remembered it. Environmental laws today wouldn’t allow salmon habitat to be destroyed like that!
The next stream is by the Episcopal Church, Kheitl Yádi Héeni, as my father called it, “Puppy Creek”, from another story that ties the local Kiks.ádi clan into much of their Sitka history from Tawóoli Shaa (the cave in Silver Bay) to the flat rock by the boat harbor where Láakíchínei lived, to the Yaaw T’eiyí (the Herring Rock).
The next stream is Kaasdaa Héen. When the Kiks.ádi arrived there were no other people in the area and upon entering the mouth of the river they saw a log with frogs on it floating in the mouth. The frogs jumped into the water while repeating, “Ch’as uhaan áyá Kaasdaa Héeni Sháa áyá uhaan!” or “It’s just us the Women of Kaasdaa River here!”, and so they called the name Kaasdaa Héen.
The next stream is at Thimbleberry. Sockeyes are called “ghaat,” but in Necker Bay the sockeyes are a smaller species which are called daghák, and these same smaller sockeyes used to go up this river wich is why it was called Daghák Yatin Héen, which could be translated as “You Can See Necker Bay Sockeyes In It, River.”
The next river is now called Sawmill Creek but the original name is Kijook Héen or Golden Eagle River.
To see our names acknowledged is refreshing and long overdue. “Yeisú haa aaní áyá, tsú haa yoox’atángi, tsú haa khusteeyí. – “This is still our land, our language, our way of life.”
As is said in an old Tlingit saying, “Lyee sakoowoo a saawx’ ch’a tléix ee jeedáxh goox lahaash ee khoosteeyí” – “If you do not know the names, your way of life will drift away forever.”
However, there are TLINGIT who know our names, and asking for or receiving information from a non-Native or an adopted person does more than irritate any Native, especially those of us who grew up in it and know these names and origins. Please come to us in the future for this information and nobody else.
Thank you, again, for recognizing the original names.
Harold Jacobs,
Cultural Resource Specialist,
Central Council Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska
Scrabble Champion
Dear Editor: In Wednesday’s paper I was captivated by a cool photo/caption! However, I am humbly offering a bit of clarification.
On Page 4 Mr. Apathy displays a word that is not allowed in Scrabble unless (!): at least one of the eight tiles intersects either vertically or horizontally with at least one tile that was previously placed on the game board in the game. Plus: all through the game, each player has only seven tiles to use.
No wonder he’s grinning . . .
This is perhaps a good time to tell folks about a silly thought of mine concerning ‘‘early education.’’ Instead of the kids’ ‘‘ABC’s,’’ it should be their ‘‘XYZ’s!’’ Figure that out and get lucky with the last three letters (X=8, Y=4, Z=10) and a smart kid from a hard Scrabble background could start a casino (Scrabble).
Look it in the eye: even ‘‘Scrabble’’ has eight letters – goofball.
Wayne C. Bowers, Sitka
Serving Sitka
Dear Editor: This is a thank you to Randy Hughey for sharing his time, good humor and expertise by serving on two committees – the vocational education and Sitka housing committees.
His efforts will have an impact for decades to come.
Shirley S. Anderson, Sitka
