Popular Press
Tillicum is the Right Name for TriMet's New Bridge (Chinook Jargon/Chinuk Wawa History)
The Oregonian
(2014)
Abstract
Chinook Jargon/Chinuk Wawa History: Most people are unaware of the pervasive use of Chinook Jargon in Portland, Oregon’s first century and unaware of Portland’s profound Native-American history. Tillicum is a Chinook Jargon (called Chinuk Wawa by Native people) word that means “the people,” “friends” and also refers to ancestors (“ahnkuttie tillicums”). It is also spelled as Tilikum. It is important to honor Portland's Native-American history in naming “the people’s bridge” a Native American name with historical significance. (This op-ed was written to try to persuade the TriMet Naming Committee to choose the Tillicum/Tilikum name for their new bridge--a bridge designed for pedestrians, bicyclists, streetcars, light rail trains, and buses, but not cars. This op-ed and the advocacy of many people, including the Grand Ronde Tribe, helped sway the committee, who chose the name "Tilikum Crossing, Bridge of the People.")
Download at: https://www.academia.edu/35809387/Tillicum_is_the_Right_Name_for_TriMets_New_Bridge
Keywords
- Native American,
- history,
- Chinook Jargon,
- pioneers,
- Portland,
- Oregon
Disciplines
Publication Date
February 27, 2014
Publisher Statement
Tracy Prince, PhD, is scholar in residence at PSU’s Portland Center for Public Humanities, author of “Portland’s Goose Hollow” and “Culture Wars in British Literature,” and co-author of “Portland’s Slabtown.”
Citation Information
Tracy J. Prince. "Tillicum is the Right Name for TriMet's New Bridge (Chinook Jargon/Chinuk Wawa History)" The Oregonian (2014) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/tracy-prince/21/