BURDASH [BUR-dash] or [BAR-dash] — noun. Meaning: Hermaphrodite; intersex; neuter; genderless. Origin: Canadian French berdache > Italian bardassa > entering European languages via Moorish Spain from Arabic bardaj, “slave” > Persian bardah, “prisoner”. In Chinook Wawa, the word burdash was commonly used to refer to accidental or incidental hermaphroditism or…...
Your Chinook Wawa Word of the Day: Alki
ALKI [AHL-kee] (historical) or [al-KAI] (modern) — adverb. Meaning: Eventually; someday; in the future; times to come; presently; directly; later; in a little while; after a while; shortly; will; shall; Origin: Chinook alkekh > From a Chinookan particle álqi ‘will be’, ‘later on’ The word “alki”, appeared as the slogan…...
Your Chinook Wawa Word of the Day: Tillikum
TILLIKUM [TIL’-i-kum] or [TIL’-LI-kum] — noun. Meaning: Person; people; relative; relation; family; kin; kindred; ally; fellow; associate; folk; tribe; nation; population; Origin: From Chinookan stems -lkh ‘ground, earth’ + t- ‘plural’ > Chinook tilikhum ‘people’ Commonly spelled “tillicum”, and sometimes pluralized in the English style as ‘tillikums”, the word…...
Your Chinook Wawa Word of the Day: Tyee
TYEE [ty-EE’ ] or [tahy-EE] — Noun, Adjective. Origin: From Nootka Jargon tayi(s) < Nuu-chah-nulth tayi “elder”, “oldest son”, “older brother”, “senior”; allegedly resembles Inuktitut toyom “chief” Meaning: boss; chief; foreman; gentleman; governor; an important person; landlord; leader; magistrate; manager; master; officer; a superior; any thing of superior order Occasionally…...
Your Chinook Wawa Word of the Day: Hyak
HYAK [HY’-ak] — adverb. Meaning: Swift; fast; quick; quickly; speed; speedy; hurry; hasten; make haste; instantly; prompt; sudden; suddenly; rapid; rapidity of motion. Origin: Chinook ai-ak, from a Chinookan particle áyaq ‘can; quick, quickly’ Used to denote speed or urgency, as seen in “hyak kilapi” (return quickly; hurry back), “mamook…...
Your Chinook Wawa Word of the Day: Chuck
CHUCK [chuhk] or [tsukw] — noun. Meaning: water; liquid; river; stream Origin: Nootka Jargon chaak ‘water’ < Nuu-chah-nulth cha’uk ‘water’. Also from a Chinookan noun tlchuqw ‘water’ > Chinook, tltsuk; Clatsop, tl’chukw, freshwater. Evidently, a case of accidentally converging form/meaning. The word ‘chuck’ is extremely widespread in Chinook Wawa. While…...
Your Chinook Wawa Word of the Day: Tenas
TENAS [TEN’-as] — adjective. [ten’-AS] or [dun’-US] (Grand Ronde pronunciation) — noun. Meaning: Small; few; little; lesser; weak; young; a child; a youth Origin: From Nootka Jargon taná(s) ‘child, little’ < Nuu-chah-nulth t’an’ais ‘child’ The opposite of ‘skookum’, ‘hyas’, and ‘hiyu’ in differing contexts. In the Lower Columbia and Grand…...
Your Chinook Wawa Word of the Day: Cheechako
CHEECHAKO [chee-CHAH’-ko] — noun. Meaning: Newcomer; stranger; just arrived Origin: Lower Chinook t’shi ‘straightaway’ + Nuu-chah-nulth chokwaa ‘come!’ A common compound word formed from the Chinook Wawa words “chee” (new; lately) and “chako” (to come; to arrive), it was an primarily used to refer to a non-native person. While it…...
Your Chinook Wawa Word of the Day: Puss-Puss
PUSS-PUSS [puss’-puss] general, [pish’-pish] Puget Sound — noun. Meaning: A cat. Also used for cougar, lynx, bobcat, etc. Origin: English, An informal term of address for a cat. From a common Germanic word for cat, perhaps ultimately imitative of a sound made to get its attention. While the term for…...
Your Chinook Wawa Word of the Day: Hiyu
HIYU [hi-YU’] or [hy-IU’] — adjective, noun. Meaning: many; much; lots of; greatly; heap; plenty; plentiful; plural; enough (to go around), abundance Origin: From Nootka Jargon hayú ‘many, much’ < Nuu-chah-nulth hayu ‘ten’ or ‘aya ‘to be lots’; Makah Nootkan khayu ‘ten’; Toquaht, aiya Used with reference to quantity and…...
