camas

[Scott Tyler, M.D.]

Alan,
please send me the file on the etymology of the word Camas.

Makah for camas is  kwadis
Nez Perce is something like  'q?amis

Nez Perce had access to the Camas Praries long before whites arrived--so I
do not believe the word
is of Europeon origin.

The word in Makah for sweet is chabas and in Nuchanulth is chamas.
Some have related the word for sweet to camas as it was pleasant tasting.

But there were plenty of other sweet tasting food items on the coast such
as---wild straberries = hadi'tap
 sallal berries , red huckleberries and blue huckle berries.  So I do not
believe the word  chabas is a variation
of the word for camas.

Later Europeon introduced sugar = shukwa in Makah



> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Alan H. Hartley [SMTP:ahartley at D.UMN.EDU]
> Sent:	Tuesday, November 13, 2001 5:20 PM
> To:	CHINOOK at LISTSERV.LINGUISTLIST.ORG
> Subject:	camas
>
> Dave,
>
> Thanks for the notice. I'd be happy to send a Word file (26 KB) on the
> etymology of CAMAS to anyone who wants it.
>
> > Will you be working up the etymology of "wapato" next?
>
> Fraid not, but watch for SACAGAWEA (though not of jargonautic interest).
>
> Alan