skookum

[Mike Cleven]

>From: "Alan H. Hartley" <ahartley at D.UMN.EDU>

>
>The Beaver are an Athapaskan-speaking people of NE B.C. and NW Alta. In
>the article on the Beaver in the Hdbk. of N. Amer. Indians (VI.356) is a
>photo of a woman dreamer named Áma or Emma Skookum (born c1873, died
>c1967). Assuming the name is of CJ origin (which seems likely, given her
>status), it's come quite a long distance.

Skookum might be the most widely-travelled of all Jargon words, other than
"Chinook" itself (in its various meanings) or perhaps "high
muckamuck/mucketymuck".  Can't remember exactly what people Skookum Jim, one
of the co-discovers of the Klondike goldfield was; think he was Inland
Tlinkit but not sure; that's farther north than the Beaver territory, and
farther in air/road miles for sure.

The farflung use of "skookum" in all languages of the region, English
included, is why I'd thought "Skookum Illahee" to be a good name for the
Jargon-speaking/influenced region.

MC
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