Place Name - Lions' Gate

[terry glavin]

funny about "the lions." the twin peaks of the mountain came to be called
the lions, but when i was growing up, an older term for the mountain
persisted: it was "the sleeping beauty," the twin peaks being the beauty's
breasts, but vancouver having been so british and ladeda, the lions - king
george and the lion and all that rot - was rather more able to be discussed,
how shall we say, in polite company.
by jove, etc. etc.

tg.
-----Original Message-----
From: Mike Cleven <ironmtn at BIGFOOT.COM>
To: CHINOOK at LINGUIST.LDC.UPENN.EDU <CHINOOK at LINGUIST.LDC.UPENN.EDU>
Date: 27 March 1999 11:48
Subject: Re: Place Name - Lions' Gate


>At 07:46 PM 3/26/99 -0800, Peter Cawley wrote:
>>Is anyone aware of a Chinook Jargon or First Nation place name for the
>>stretch of water at the mouth of Burrard Inlet that is now called Lion's
>Gate?
>>
>>If  there is no authentic name, how could Lions' Gate go into CJ? "Hyas
>>Pusspuss Yaka Lapote" perhaps?
>
>The image of the two seated lions is a British one; the native legend tells
>of two sisters enshrined there for their purity and devotion to their
>people.  I suspect that there IS a Squamish name for that stretch of water
>but I don't know what it is; the north bank is the site of Xwmelchtsen
>(Homulchesan), the principal Squamish village in the area then and now; the
>south bank at Prospect Point is Chay-tho-os (the high place) in Squamish,
>and is the legendary residence of "the rainmaker".  Some versions of the
>Squamish sisiutl myth place the double-headed serpent in this location
>(another has it at the mouth of Indian Arm, also called the North Arm).
>
>I almost was going to drive down to the Oregon City meeting on Saturday,
>but it turns out the Squamish and Kwakwa'kawakw are co-hosting a big feast
>at the main Squamish Nation Rec Centre in North Van on Saturday night.
>Supposedly this will be the largest exposition of Kwakiutl ritual dancing
>in this century - anywhere........
>
>
>
>Mike Cleven
>ironmtn at bigfoot.com
>http://members.home.net/ironmtn/
>
>The thunderbolt steers all things.
>                           - Herakleitos