Derivation of "pasiooks"?

[hzenk at PDX.EDU]

> "Pasiooks" means "French". But I can't figure out how it gets to CJ
> from French. What French word or words does it derive from? Or is it
> in fact from a native language?
>

-uks is clearly from a Chinookan plural suffix.  The "Pasi" [pasay] part is
variously explained:  from CJ pasisi 'blanket' (cf. Chinookan tl-pashishi
'blanket'), or (most likely it seems to me) from a local (lower Columbia local,
that is) pronunciation of "Francais".

A la your other question to the list, note the change of Chinookan "sh" to CJ
"s" illustrated by 'blanket' above.  This change is usual for CJ words of
Chinookan origin (it is probably explainable in terms of Chinookan consonant
symbolism), but of course that won't explain why you have sh replacing regional
s that far away from the lower Columbia.  Henry

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