Wednesday, May 18, 2016

AMERICAN INDIAN NAMES AND THEIR MEANINGS by CHERYL PIERSON



Anyone who knows me knows how crazy I am about name collecting. I’ve done it ever since I was a little girl—probably because my own name has such an odd pronunciation. Bear with me if you’ve read this before—it won’t take long. My parents named me Cheryl—but not pronounced SHARE-yl like most people would say. No, my name is pronounced CHAIR-yl. But wait, there’s more! As if that wasn’t bad enough—my dad had the bright idea to use “Kathlyn” for my middle name—not Kathryn or Kathleen—but his own combo. I think he did it on purpose so he could roll the entire thing off his tongue when he got perturbed with me.


Is it any wonder that I named my daughter Jessica and my son Casey? Though that proved to me nothing is fool-proof—Jessica was on a little league softball team with 8 other Jessicas, and Casey had 2 girls in his kindergarten class named Casey. The thing that saved the day was that there was also a girl named Michael—so he didn’t have to listen to “Casey’s a girl’s name”—since it really hadn’t been until the year he was born, evidently.
(CASEY AND JESSICA AT THE LAKE--THEY GREW UP AND DID OKAY!)


I wanted to talk a bit about Indian names we are all familiar with and what the meanings are—I thought that might be fun. Though no one really knows what their children will grow up to be, many of us choose names that have “meaning” behind them. My dad’s name was Frederic—which meant “Peaceful Ruler”—we had great fun with that over the years. Mom’s name was El Wanda—which she always told us meant “The One”—and my dad would say, “Well, THAT’S the truth! You’re THE ONE for me!”
(MY MOM AND DAD NEWLY MARRIED AND READY TO TAKE ON THE WORLD)

But what about some of the famous leaders in history who were Indian?


GOYATHLAY m Native American, Apache
Means "one who yawns" in Apache. This was the real name of the Apache chief Geronimo, who fought against Mexican and American expansion into his territory.
(GERONIMO IN HIS YOUNGER DAYS)

HIAWATHA m History, Native American, Iroquois
From the Iroquoian name Haio-went-ha meaning "he who combs". This was the name of a 16th-century Mohawk leader who founded the Iroquois Confederacy. He was later the subject of a fictionalized 1855 poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.


NANOOK m Native American, Inuit
Variant of NANUQ. This was the (fictional) name of the subject of Robert Flaherty's documentary film 'Nanook of the North' (1922).


POCAHONTAS f History, Native American, Algonquin
Means "she is playful" in Algonquin. This was the name of a young Algonquin woman, daughter of a powerful chief, who married a white colonist.



QUANAH m Native American, Comanche
Means "fragrant" in the Comanche language. This was the name of a 19th-century chief of the Comanche.
(IN THIS PICTURE, GERONIMO IS ON THE LEFT SIDE AND QUANAH PARKER ON THE RIGHT)

SACAGAWEA f Native American
Probably from Hidatsa tsakáka wía meaning "bird woman". Alternatively it could originate from the Shoshone language and mean "boat puller". This name was borne by a Native American woman who guided the explorers Lewis and Clark. She was of Shoshone ancestry but had been abducted in her youth and raised by a Hidatsa tribe.


TECUMSEH m Native American, Shawnee
Means "panther passing across" in Shawnee. This was the name of a Shawnee leader who, with his brother Tenskwatawa, resisted European expansion in the early 19th century.


WINONA f English, Native American, Sioux
Means "firstborn daughter" in the Dakota language. This was the name of the daughter of the Sioux Dakota chief Wapasha III.


These are just a few of the names and meanings that I found at this site. You might find it interesting to check out the others!
http://www.behindthename.com/names/usage/native-american


I'm curious--is there something odd about YOUR name? Do you wish you had a different one, or are you perfectly satisfied with the one your parents gave you?

38 comments:

  1. I do find it interesting that 'the Sherman' of the Civil War's march to the sea, middle name is Tecumseh. How names do show up in history and our lives.

    For myself, I once asked why my mother why I received my name. Her answer, "no one else had it, and I wasn't going to listen to people argue over who you were named for." By the way, it is from ancient Greece, meaning by the water. So what am I doing living in Colorado. Doris/Angela

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    1. Doris, that is so funny---and you should be glad that your mom named you something different, yet something that people could pronounce. I met a customer service representative the other day on the phone named Greta, but her parents pronounced it "GREET-a" rather than with the short "e" sound. We commiserated for a few minutes about our "weird" names. LOL

      Here's a good link about William Tecumseh Sherman and why/how he got his name. Very interesting stuff!
      http://teachinghistory.org/history-content/ask-a-historian/19530

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    2. http://teachinghistory.org/history-content/ask-a-historian/19530

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    3. My mother's name was Greta, pronounced GREET-a.

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    4. REALLY???? WOW--she was telling me that she'd never met anyone else who pronounced it like that. Wish she had a direct line in that call center--I'd let her know about your mom!

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  2. Great post, Cheryl. Reminds me of a hippie commune that lived near our property when I was a kid. They had these whacked-names which they assured us were "true" Native American names. One of them was "Apple Sprinkles." See, I have my doubts...

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  3. HA! Richard, I might doubt that too...but my daughter went to school with a boy whose last name was Heap of Birds. Pretty amazing, some of these names...but "APPLE SPRINKLES"????LOL

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  4. Cheryl,

    Sorry, but I'm pronouncing your name in the TRADITIONAL way and you can call me Charlie!

    I know it's old, but it is not the name one is given, but what meaning they give it through one's actions over a lifetime.

    Great Post!

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    1. Charlie, at this point, I answer to about any variation of my name there is. LOL Thanks for stopping by today!

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  5. When I was thirteen, my dad admitted that I was named after an old girl friend of his. Connie. Mom just rolled her eyes.

    My middle name is what Mom told Dad her name was for their first three or four dates. Then she finally confessed it was actually Inez, not Marie. AND---

    Had I been born a boy, they would have named me Paris! Dodged that bullet. Whew!

    Great post Chair-yl. :p

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    1. Hey Connie! Thanks for stopping by--that is a great story! Your mother was a saint for letting him name you that. My dad named me, both my "weird names"--CHAIR-yl and Kath-LYN (no, not Kathryn...) I think he loved the sound of it rolling off his tongue when he was mad at me. LOL

      PARIS! Now that is unusual! If I had been a boy, I would have been Stewart. Even though it was a family name--my great grandmother's maiden name--my sisters said they prayed every night for a SISTER.LOL

      I love all the possibilities of names in all cultures. These Indian names were so interesting to me.

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  6. I was supposed to be named John Wesley Walker, Jr., but I was born with the wrong equipment. Mom was not able to help with the birth certificate, and people called Dad "Jack," so he named me after his nickname (not wanting to go against Mom's wishes), but decided it looked too masculine. Hence, the "qu," even though he always added that he didn't like Charles DeGaulle. LOL. I've been battling that "qu" my entire life. And no, Jacquie is not short for Jacqueline. Sigh.

    I always had great fun naming my animals. I had a Holstein cow named Cleopatra and a horse named Penny Lope. Oh, and a steer named James Murdertroyd.

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    1. Jacquie, your dad did right well! And shoot, I'd just tell people I was named for Jacquie Kennedy (I know it was Jacqueline, but it's your story, you tell it like you want!)LOL

      I always love to see what names you come up with for your characters! And your animals...I think I remember a chicken named Cheryl...LOL

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  7. Thank you for this bit of edification, Miz Pierson. I'd heard of all of these people, but knew the meaning of only a few names. As difficult as this is for me to say, I...uh...er...um...learned something from an Okie. (I'll never be able to hold my head up south of the Red River again.)

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    1. Oh...I might have to hug you, sister! LOL Thanks for coming by Kathleeny! XOXO

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  8. Cheryl, thanks for a great post. It's fascinating to not only try to pronounce names, esp. Indian names, but to learn the meaning of the names. I too can get right into names and when I'm writing characters the name just has to fit or have meaning. My mother named me Beverly Alice, Beverly after one of her friends and Alice after her mother. Through my early school years I didn't much care for the Alice--seemed old fashioned to me (no one ever used that name, thank the good lord). Actually if anyone did ask what my middle name was I'd pronounce it Alise. I had all my friends and relatives call me Bev because when my mother was angry and yelling she called me Beverly! And I knew I was in trouble. Also There was a boy at school named Beverley (spelled with ey)I have an uncle named Americo--first born in America after my pat. grandfather arrived from Italy. My father's name was Mijo meaning May as he was born on May 1--he was the second to born on American soil. Funny how people named their children for different reasons.

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    1. Oh, Bev, I live it that you told people your name was Alise. My sister told me one time when I was complaining about my weird name, "WHY DON'T YOU CHANGE IT?" Now, I'd lived in this little tiny town in the heart of Oklahoma ever since I was 6--I'd started school with all these people and we'd been friends for 10 years. How could I go to school and tell everyone I was now going by a different name? Well, I decided to live with it, of course. LOL Beverley and Shirley used to be names for guys in the old days. Shannon also started out as a guy's name. Thanks so much for stopping by--I love all these comments and stories about names.

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    2. I love it, not I live it! SHEESH! LOL

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  9. As a kid I wanted a different name because no one ever said it right; DianE, Deanne. However, I'm happy with it now and Diana was goddess of the hunt. I like the idea of being a goddess. A co-worker kept calling me Deanna until another co-worker told him my name was Diana, like the princess. After that, customers came in asking for the princess, which he forever called me. Goddess, princess, it's all good! Thanks for the info!

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    1. Diana is a lovely name! And different. I don't think I ever knew but maybe one or two people named Diane or Diana until I was out of college. Goddess and Princess--both GOOD! LOL

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  10. Great post CHAIR-yl. Unique names can be cool, but when you're a teenager, they can be troublesome and embarrassing. I had fun naming myself when I started publishing. My grandmother was the one who first encouraged me to write, so I took her name: Emma Elisabeth, or E.E. My "real" name is Leigh. For some reason, people always got it wrong. They'd pronounce it LAY or LAYA or LEAH or LEITH. Anything but Leigh with a long e and silent gh. When people wrote it down, they wrote Lee (my dad's name). That kind of annoyed me.

    I loved reading about the names of famous Native Americans. One story I always liked was about a Cherokee warrior named Dragging Canoe. He was named that as a little boy when he chased after the warriors, wanting so badly to go with war party, he was ... you guessed it ... dragging a canoe!

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    1. I have always loved the name Leigh. My husband's middle name is Lee, and his father's first name was Lee. When Jessica was born, we thought about naming her Jessica Leigh. Also, I had a very good friend named Mari Lea--said quickly as one word, but Lea was pronounced Leah. I loved that name, but she had so much trouble with it and only those who knew her well pronounced it correctly. Incidentally, my grandmother's middle name was Elisabeth and her sister's name was Emma.

      I love the story about Dragging Canoe! Thanks so much for stopping by today, Elisabeth.

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  11. I discovered the name on my birth certificate was Katherine; 30 some years after I spent my entire life writing it as Kathryn. But my favorite "name story" is one re: my mother. My Dad was pursued by several young women during his youth because he was a great dancer (and he was). Mom had a very sly sense of humor. She named her first child, my elder sister, after TWO of Dad's most ardent admirers: Lola and Agnes. Kind of her way of saying "I won".

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    1. HA! That's a great story!

      Kind of along the lines of your Katherine vs. Kathryn--for a long time my hubby spelled his name with 2 r's-- GARRY. Oddly enough, no one corrected him until he went into the military. Only 1 "r" on his birth certificate. I've always wondered about that.

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  12. My favorite is still the Comanche leader Po-cha-na-quar-hip, which the Texans insisted on translating "Buffalo Hump" (and so does ye olde wikipedia, btw), when it really meant "Erection that won't go down." One of his contemporaries, Pah-hah-yuco, was called in English "The Amorous Man," but scholars say the name had a more priapic nature. There was also Poechna Quahip, "Buffalo Urine." Among the Lakota, when Crazy Horse surrendered all his warriors had to give the army their names (about 900 of them.) Some of them were pretty entertaining, and it has been speculated that they were either nicknames or fake names given to the army as a joke (much like modern Lakotas jokingly taught Kevin Costner to speak Lakota in a female dialect when filming Dances with Wolves). Among Crazy Horse's warriors:

    Fat Rump
    Soft Penis
    One Who Brings Shit from Far Away
    Shits on His Hands
    Stealer of Vaginas
    Don't Get out of the Way
    Imitation Iroquois
    Singing Penis

    Crazy Horse himself -Tashunka Witko -has a somewhat misunderstood name, it should actually be His Horse is Crazy. So also with his contemporary, Man-Afraid-of-His-Horses, whose name was actually They-Fear-His-Horses.

    There's a lot in a name.

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    1. OMG, Troy. I'm sitting here laughing myself silly. I love all of these but I have to say, my favorite is Singing Penis. That is the very best one of all. Thanks so much for commenting. This post just gets more entertaining with each person who comments.

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  13. Also, a lot of tribal names that are familiar to us are NOT what those people call themselves, but rather what their enemies called them -in cases where Europeans met the enemy tribes first and asked "who are those people who live over there?" For example, the people known to themselves as Nermeneh, or Numunu ("The People") were called "Comanche" by their enemies the Utes; Comanche, in Ute, means "they fight us all the time." The closely related groups the Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota (which means "friends" in each dialect) were collectively called "Sioux" by the French (which explains why that word is spelled so weirdly yet pronounced "soo"). Why? Because it is short for Nadouessioux, an Algonquin (Odawa/Ojibwe, specifically) word for "rattlesnake," which also means "foreigner" and "enemy" (which is why modern Lakotas do NOT like to be called Sioux.)

    My favorite, though, is the origin of the name of the city Des Moines, Iowa. The official story you will find in most sources is that the name is short for "Riviere des Moines," French for "River of the Monks." Early French explorers asked nearby Peoria Indians "Who lives over there?" and the Peoria named a tribe which sounded, to the French, just like the French words for monks, so that's what they call it. Linguists have determined, however, that the Peoria term that the French misunderstood was actually "The Shit Faces."

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    1. LOL! I love it! I need to save these names somewhere--you need to work this into the Wolf Creek stories!

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  14. Hi Cheryl. My Great grand mother on my mothers side was Cherokee. Here are some names I am familiar with:

    E-gee-doh Nu-doh (Sister Moon)
    Ah-doh-da Nu-doh (Father Sun)
    Ka-na-ne-ski E-Li-si (Spider Grandmother)
    E-gee-nu-tlee Ah-gah-sga (Brother Rain)
    a-lay U-ni-tsi E-lo-hi-no (Mother Earth)

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    1. Michael, you are lucky to have known her and her legacy. My great grandmother on my dad's side was Cherokee, but I never knew her. She died young--32, I think--leaving 4 children. I have a picture of her, though. One of my treasured possessions.

      So glad you came by today!

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  15. My name is Robert RICHARD Vaughan, emphasis on the Richard, because I have gone my entire left as Dick...which, of course, confuses people since I have always published as Robert Vaughan. The reason I am called Dick, instead of Bob, is because I have a cousin who is three years older, and he is called Bob. The family didn't want to get us confused, and apparently it worked, Bob and I have seen each other three times in the last 70 years, and nobody has gotten us confused at any of those meetings. My name later turned into an asset though, when the kids were growing up, if someone called and asked for "Robert," they knew it was professional. If they asked for Dick,, they knew it was a friend, if they asked for Dickey, it was either close family, or someone who has known me for a VERY long time. If they asked for "Bob" they knew it was a salesman, and knew to tell them I wasn't here.

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    1. Dick, that reminds me of a family "back in the day" whose matriarch was named Winnie. Two granddaughters were born within hours of each other--one in California and one in Oklahoma. Unknowingly, they both named their daughters Winnie.

      Something similar almost happened in my family--when my daughter Jessica was born, my cousin's daughter was born the next day. They had planned to name her Jessica but when they learned our baby was named that, they named her Elisabeth instead--which was our grandmother's middle name.

      And as for the differences in telephone callers--our last name, being Pierson, often is (for some odd reason) called "PERSON" by people who don't know us (salespeople or other callers who are unfamiliar with us). My sister's last name is QUALLS -- when she gets a call asking for MRS. QUAILS, it's a dead giveaway. LOL

      Thanks for stopping by. I love these "name" stories.

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  16. Interesting post, Cheryl. My mother drew my name out of a hat at a shower, Linda Gail, or at least that's the story I heard. If our first child had been a boy, my husband wanted to name her Clint, a name I didn't like because it reminded me of his aunt's dog, Clink. Fortunately we had a girl and I chose to name her Careese, a name I read in Dinner at Antoines. Later my daughter informed me I'd misspelled it. I like my spelling better.

    Our son got his middle name from his paternal grandfather, Bradley Thurston. My dad's middle name was Calhoun and I couldn't tag him with that.

    I like the pronunciation of your name!

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  17. WOW, Linda! Very interesting! My husband insisted the entire time I was pregnant that "It's a girl!" Not only that, he had it in his mind that her name was JESSICA. It meant so much to him to name her Jessica, I agreed. I never even realized, until later, just how many JESSICAs there were that year. I think it was the #1 name that year. (1986) Now, here's a funny story. Hubby had been married before and had a son with the middle name of "LEE" (which is my husband's middle name and was his father's first name). So when I had Casey--didn't want to name him Lee or tag him as a "Jr."--so we'd decided on either Casey or Derrick. I liked both of those, but we ended up going with Casey. I secretly wished my dad had had a name that we could have given to a baby with good conscience, but Frederic Marion...no. So Casey Thomas it was. When we went to a family reunion when Casey was about 4, an old-maid aunt said, "I'm so glad you named him a family name. You know, the Caseys came over from Ireland back in the 1600's. I have a paper about that somewhere." I had no idea that "CASEY" was a family name at all. It meant so much to me to learn that.

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  18. I loved this blog, and I found the comments pretty dang entertaining, too. I find the way you pronounce your name is pretty unusual, too, Cheryl. I like these interesting meanings and traditions about names, whether from the First Americans, or the rest of us immigrants. My sister and I were named after our great grandmothers. Knowing that I was named after an ancestor gives me a feeling of belonging. I come from my family's tribe.
    Lovely blog, Cheryl.

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    1. Sarah, in my case, I was glad my grandmothers' names had been used up. Both my grandmothers were named Mary and were both born on the same day, Dec. 17, 2 years apart. My oldest sister was named Mary Annette--went by Annette. She was the first granddaughter on both mom's and dad's sides, so it worked out great. My middle sister is named Karen Elizabeth--Mom's mother was Mary Elizabeth. Worked out great. But...my dad's mother was named Mary ALMA. So...I'm glad they did choose something else when I came along. LOL Growing up, she always called me her "Cherokee princess"--even though I had very blonde hair--I think because my hair was "Indian straight" and my eyes were very dark brown, and I had lots of the physical features...DESPITE the blonde-ness. LOL

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  19. G'day Cheryl;
    David isn't a mystery; it means "beloved". I've been married 3 times so apparently a few agreed, although apparently numbers 1 & 2 came to a point where they did not concur. Number 3 may have similar feelings on occasion but we have been together now for 30 years.
    My last name however is another story; difficult finding agreement.
    Mc or Mac of course means "son of". However the location of the speaker of Gaelic and subsequent pronunciation can make a big difference. The early spelling or pronunciation could be Gooen or Goine which apparently could mean "blacksmith" or a common flower that grows in the heather.
    Dave
    www.dmmcgowan.blogspot.ca

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    1. LOL David! You gave me a smile with this comment! My great grandfather on my mom's side had the last name of "McLain"--this, as it turns out, has proven to be a bit unusual, as most similar names are McCain or McClain. I've always wished I knew how to speak Gaelic--I worked with a girl one time named Siobhan. She got to where she spelled her name Chevonne. She just got tired of correcting people.

      So glad you came by today and commented!

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