The Skokomish (pronounced /skoʊˈkoʊmɪʃ/) are one of nine tribes of the Twana, a Native American people of western Washington state in the United States. The tribe lives along Hood Canal, a fjord-like inlet on the west side of the Kitsap Peninsula and the Puget Sound basin. Historically the Twana were hunters, fishers, and gatherers who had a nomadic lifestyle during the warmer months, while living in more permanent homes during the winter months.
Today, Skokomish people are enrolled in the federally recognized Skokomish Indian Tribe.
Name
[edit]The name "Skokomish" comes from the Twana sqʷuqʷóbəš, also spelled sqWuqWu'b3sH, and meaning "river people" or "people of the river".[1][2][3] The Skokomish were one of the largest of the nine different Twana village communities that existed before about 1860. By their locations, the nine groups were the Dabop, Quilcene ("salt-water people"), Dosewallips, Duckabush, Hoodsport, Skokomish (Skoko'bsh), Ctqwəlqweli ("Vance Creek"), Tahuya, and Duhlelap (Tule'lalap) communities.[4] Within these nine communities there were at least 33 settlements.[5]
Language
[edit]The Skokomish, or Twana language belongs to the Coast Salish family of indigenous languages.
Reservation
[edit]The tribe moved onto the Skokomish Indian Reservation in the central part of modern-day Mason County, Washington at the southeast base of the Olympic Peninsula around 1855. The reservation has a land area of 21.244 km2 (8.2022 sq mi) and a 2000 census resident population of 730 persons. Its major community is Skokomish. The nearest outside communities are Union, to its east, and Hoodsport, to its north.
Notes
[edit]- ^ Bright, William (2004). Native American Placenames of the United States. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 452. ISBN 978-0-8061-3598-4. Retrieved November 3, 2010.
- ^ Wray, Jacilee (2003). "Skokomish: Twana Descendants". Native Peoples of the Olympic Peninsula: Who We Are. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 65. ISBN 978-0-8061-3552-6. Retrieved November 3, 2010.
- ^ http://hood.hctc.com/~skok1/ The Skokomish Tribal Nation
- ^ Elmendorf, William Welcome (1993). Twana narratives: native historical accounts of a Coast Salish culture. UBC Press. p. xxix. ISBN 978-0-7748-0475-2. Retrieved November 3, 2010. See also map on page 2
- ^ Wray, Jacilee (2003). Native Peoples of the Olympic Peninsula: Who We Are. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 67. ISBN 978-0-8061-3552-6. Retrieved November 3, 2010.
References
[edit]- Skokomish Reservation, Washington United States Census Bureau
External links
[edit]
- Skokomish Tribal Nation, official website
47°20′05″N 123°09′36″W / 47.33472°N 123.16000°W
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