Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1866-06-14
The Indian Names Of our Rivers
by REV. Y. roHTAINE.

The language of the Chickasaws, Choc.
taws, Cherokees, Muscogees, and all
the tribes of the Algonquin race, to
which they belonged, were very eupho-
nious; and the names which they gave
to the streams of the South were so beau
tiful that it is to be regretted they have
not been retained. Many of those which
are generally supposed to be aboriginal,
have been so changed that they bear but
little resemblance to the originals In
the msp of Joutel, the Lieutenant of La
Sale. the discoverer of Texas, appended
10 his work: "The expedition Of La
Sale" published in 1858, the Mississippi
river is spelled Mechasipi, which pro-
nounced in French would be Ma-chah-
see-pee. In the map of Capt. John Smith,
the first explorer of the Chesapeake Bay,
and which was published in 1907, the
Potomac is called Pat-ta-wo-meck and
the Susquehanah, Sas sas-que- han-ough
The Indian name of the Iombigbee Is
Itti-om-bee.- .-ik-a-bee.
But before Iproceed further l must
give my authority for what shall say
upon a subject which will be interest
ing only to Ethnologists and Antigua
rians
In 1888 / was Draughtsman in the
Land Office in Pontotoc and had orders
TO make a map of the Chickasaw lands
and their connections with those = the
Choctaws, for the General Land Office
in Washington City. The map was
large one, and included every river ana
creek in North Mississippi Disgusted
with the names given by uneducated
settlers to the streams, and with the clas-
sical but inappropriate nomenclature
applied to them by scholars-with the
Tibers, Bear rivers, Mud and Goose
creeks. and the Romes, Carriages, Ath-
ems and Spartas upon their banks; and
thinking that the Indian names were
much better, hoping too that l might
save something of beautiful language
which will be lost with the extinction OF
a warlike race rapidly passing away, l
determined TO fix the names they gave to
them upon my map, which was sent to
Washington: and which | suppose is
now in the General Land Office among
the archives OF the United States Gov
ernment | was aided in the work by
the chiefs of the Chickasaws, and some
excellent interpreters, and also by
vocabulary Of the language prepared by
the Presbyterian Missionaries, who
translated the Bible into Chickasaw.
Very valuable assistance was given me
by the Rev. Mr. Stewart, then a mission
ary, and who had lived many years
among them. / will give you few OF
these names as well as | can spell them
with English letters. found it impossi-
BILE to express BY our alphabet some Of
the sounds Of Chickasaw and Choctaw
languages. must first call your atten-
ton TO the fact that no Indian can sound
our letter r. The l. is always substi-
tuted for it They pronounce Cherokee
Chel-lo-kee, Cyrus, Sirius, and Christ,
Klist-spelt Klaist in their translation
of the Bible O-kah, means water The
ah is usually omitted before another
syllable, whether il begins with vowel
or A consonant, as in O-conee or Ok-o-
nee. and Ok-mulgee, Hatch-ah means
little river; and 0k-hin-ah a great river,
or hath of waters. All the names on our
mans with o or Ok, or hatchee, attached
TO them. are Of streams with traces OF
Indian names. will not weary yon with
any further pathological discussion; but
will give you the correct aboriginal
names Of few Of our streams with their
translations Il
The MIssIssIPPL-The Chickasaws had
no such name in their language; but
called it -nah-the path of waters.
Joutel says the Indians on the west side
oft called it Me-cha-sipi; but he did not
give the translation ef il; and none Of
The Chickasaws with whom cOnversed
knew its meaning. The father OF wa
tiers may possibly be its translation;
but can find no authority for IL
THE TENNESSEE may be
Cherokee word. The Chickasaws called
il Chel-lo-kee- Ok -hin-nah, or the Great