Sakakawea - Charbonneau

["Alfred W. Tüting"]

 > (John) http://www.state.nd.us/hist/sakakawea.htm

No particular new information, but an interesting reference:

"The following brief article was published in the Collections of the State
Historical Society of North Dakota in 1906 (vol. 1, pages 69-72). The
editor of the Collections was Professor Orin G. Libby. The author, Rev. C.
L. Hall, was a missionary to the Fort Berthold Reservation in North
Dakota. The term Grosventre refers to the Hidatsa."

Hall comments "The words for bird and woman are given in place in this
dictionary. We thus get for the name The Bird Woman, Tsakaka-wia...<<



I think that Hall is very convincing with this. IMVHO, it's the more a
quite striking evidence that in those days people like Clark and Lewis
(and maybe Charbonneau himself - who could not read and write) were not
educated enough to even spell a French name correctly (not to speak of
Hidatsa expressions).

"The following references are to the Original Journal of the Lewis and
Clark Exposition, N. Y., 1904.

I. Variations in the spelling of Charbonneau:

Clark's spelling. References: Vol. I., 217, 226, 239, 248, 250, 251,
269, 271, 274, 275, 311; Vol. II., 198; Vol. III.. 111; Vol. V., 9, 341,
344; Vol. VII., 330. Chabono, Charbonee, Chabonoe, Chabonat, Chaboneau,
Chabonah, Chaubonie, Charbono, Shabonoe, Shabonah, Shabona. Shabowner,
Shabono, Shabownar, Toisant Chabono, Tousent Chabono, Teusant Charbono.

Lewis' spelling. References: Vol. I., 257, 284, 301; Vol. II., 197, 226,
273; Vol. V., 48; Vol. VII.. 331, 359. Charbono. Sharbono, Sarbono,
Touasant Charbono, Touisant Charbono, Tauasant Charbono."


The name of Charbonneau is pretty close to French _charbonnier_ German
'Köhler', the name of our Bundespräsident (Federal President) Horst
Köhler ;-)

BTW, here's an interesting site on Toussaint Charbonneau:

http://www.nps.gov/jeff/LewisClark2/CorpsOfDiscovery/TheOthers/Civilians/ToussaintCharbonneau.htm


Alfred