Dyea in Skagway, Alaska — Northwest (North America)

Asaayíx' Kudziteey Haa Léelk'u Hás Aaní

This Land of our Grandparents Has Tlingit Names

— Traditional Place Names of the Skagway Area —

Asaayíx' Kudziteey Haa Léelk'u Hás Aaní Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sandra Hughes Tidwell, June 5, 2024

1. Asaayíx' Kudziteey Haa Léelk'u Hás Aaní Marker

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

* Lkóot Aaní (Chilkoot)
Lkóot Aaní is the name of the area from Haines to Skagway, and the name originates from Lkóot Áa ("The Lake that Puked" [Chilkoot Lake]), where a massive rock fell into the lake, causing a flood that washed out two clan houses.

1. Kasadaayí Héen (Kasidaya Creek)
Flowing River

2. Shgagwéi (Skagway)
Roughed Up Water / Whitecaps

3. Yaakw Deiyáa.aa Yakutania Point)
Place to Pack a Canoe

4. Kanagoo Yahaayí (Face Mountain)
Kanagoo's Image

5. Náxkw (Naaku Bay)
Little Halibut Hook

6. Náxk'w Héen (Matthews Creek)
Little Halibut Hook River

7. Deiyáa (Dyea)
To Pack

8. Deiyáa Héen (Taiya River)
To Pack River

9. Kaxla Ku.aa (Nourse River)
Puking Into

10. Kutás Ká (Kutas Mountain)
On Top of a Mountain Pass

11. Shaa Shakee (Mount Hoffman)
Top of the Mountain

12. A Shakee (Chilkoot Trail/Chilkoot Pass)
Top of It

13. Áax'w Sáani Xoo (Log Cabin)
Among the Little Lakes

14. Tl'óox'u Áa (Lindeman Lake)
Murky Lake

15. Tl'oox'u Héeni (Lindeman River)
Murky River

16. Shaanáx Áayi (Homan Lake)
Valley Lake

17. Shaanáx Héeni (Homan River)
Valley River

18. Té X'aayi Lutú (Bennett)
Nostril of Rock Point

19. Ch'akúx Anax Dul.adi Yé (Lake Bennett)
Place to Pack a Hide Canoe Over

These names are rooted in the land. As our culture has been over tens of thousands of years. The language and the land are inseparable. They intertwine like veins and arteries. This is how it has been, and how it shall remain.

Shgagwéi dax áyá uhuaan. Háa léelk'u has áyú haa Shagóonx'u áwé yéi has yatee. Aa.áwé ch'áagu dax yéi has awa saakw Lkóot Aaní. Yéi áwé toowsikoo. Shgagwéi, ka Náxk'w, ka Deiyáa yoo duwasáakw haa aaní. Ya yeedat ya tl'átgi kax' at wuutoo.áadi, haa tuwáasigoo wutushagóogu aade yéi has kustéeynuchin yá tl'átgi kax'. Wooch yaa awoonéiyi een áwé yéi has kustéeyin, haa shagóonx'u. Uhaan tsú, woocht yaa atoowunéinuch. K'idéin latíni haa léelk'u has aaní. Gunalchéesh kúnáx, ldakát haa xóonx'u.

We are from Skagway. Our grandfathers and grandmothers are our Ancestors who have gone on and we call them Haa Shagóon. It is from ages past that they have called this land Lkóot Aaní (Chilkoot). That is how we know it today. The names o our land are Shgagwéi (Skagway), Náxk'w (Naakhu Bay), and Deiyáa (Dyea). We who now walk this land seek to learn the ways of our Ancestors, to live in harmony and balance on this land. We have always had respect for each other through our culture. Watch carefully over the land of our grandparents. Thank you so much, our friends and relatives.

Gunalchéesh to Marsha Hotch, Joe Thomas, and Sealaska Heritage Institute for assistance with the wording and spelling of the above Tlingit statement; and to the Southeast Native Subsistence Commission for their work on the Place Name Project. The Tribal Staff, Council, and Membership of the Skagway Traditional Council welcomes you to our ancestral homeland.

Erected by Skagway

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Traditional Council; ANCSA Office, Alaska Region, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior; National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Anthropology & Archaeology • Communications • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Natural Features • Settlements & Settlers.

Location. 59° 27.6′ N, 135° 18.51′ W. Marker is in Skagway, Alaska. It is in Dyea. It is on State Street just north of 12th Avenue, on the left when traveling north. Next Heart of Broadway building. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 102 State St, Skagway AK 99840, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southeast Alaska,

in Tlingit and Haida & Tsimshian Region.

It is also on the American Pacific Coast.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Inside Passage,

the Pacific Rim,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Russian Empire.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other

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markers are within walking distance of this marker: Skagway Remembers (approx. 0.3 miles away); Before the Gold Rush (approx. 0.3 miles away); The Garden City of Alaska (approx. 0.3 miles away); Trail of '98 Museum (approx. 0.3 miles away); Bank of Alaska (approx. 0.3 miles away); Mollie Walsh (approx. 0.3 miles away); Peniel Mission (approx. 0.4 miles away); Goldberg Cigar Shop (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Skagway.

Another marker is no longer nearby. Skagway Remembers (was approx. 0.3 miles away but has been permanently removed).

Credits. This page was last revised on June 25, 2024. It was originally submitted on June 16, 2024, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. This page has been viewed 219 times since then and 26 times this year. Photo 1. submitted on June 16, 2024, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.

Editor’s want-list for this marker. A wide shot of the marker in context. • Can you help?