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Many places throughout Alabama take their names from the languages of the indigenous Native American/American Indian tribes. The following list includes settlements, geographic features, and political subdivisions whose names are derived from these indigenous languages. The primary Native American peoples present in Alabama during historical times included the Alibamu, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Koasati, and the lower and upper Muscogee (Creeks).[1]

With the exception of the Cherokee, all of the historical Alabama tribes speak Muskogean languages. There are competing classification systems, but the traditionally accepted usage divides the dialects into Eastern Muskogean (Alibamu, Koasatia, and Muscogee) and Western Muskogean (Chickasaw and Choctaw).[2] The Cherokee language belongs to the separate Iroquoian language family.[3]

Listings

State

  • Alabama – named for the Alibamu, a tribe whose name derives from a Choctaw phrase meaning "thicket-clearers"[4] or "plant-cutters" (from albah, "(medicinal) plants", and amo, "to clear").[5]

Counties

Settlements

Bodies of water

Other

See also

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n William A. Read (1994). "Southeastern Indian Place Names in what is now Alabama" (PDF). Indian Place Names in Alabama. Alabama Department of Archives and History. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
  2. ^ Hardy, Heather; Scancarelli, Janine (2005). Native Languages of the Southeastern United States. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press. pp. 69–71.
  3. ^ Mithun, Marianne (1999). The Languages of Native North America. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-23228-7.
  4. ^ "Alabama: The State Name". Alabama Department of Archives and History. Archived from the original on 2019-06-06. Retrieved 2007-02-24.
  5. ^ Bright (2004), p. 29.
  6. ^ Owen & Owen (1921), p. 77.
  7. ^ Gannett (1902), p. 70.
  8. ^ a b Gannett (1902), p. 73.
  9. ^ Bright (2004), p. 118.
  10. ^ Bright (2004), p. 120.
  11. ^ Bright (2004), p. 148.
  12. ^ Bright (2004), p. 291.
  13. ^ a b Owen & Owen (1921), p. 1291.
  14. ^ Hudson, Charles M. (1997). Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun. University of Georgia Press. pp. 230–232.
  15. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Arbacoochee
  16. ^ Bright (2004), p. 68-69.
  17. ^ Bright (2004), p. 70.
  18. ^ Owen & Owen (1921), p. 189.
  19. ^ Read (1984), p. 15.
  20. ^ Gannett (1902), p. 71.
  21. ^ Bright (2004), p. 129.
  22. ^ Read (1984), p. 31.
  23. ^ Bright (2004), p. 149.
  24. ^ Read (1984), p. 42.
  25. ^ Owen & Owen (1921), p. 1066.
  26. ^ Read (1984), p. 47.
  27. ^ Bright (2004), p. 344.
  28. ^ Bright (2004), p. 352.
  29. ^ Bright (2004), p. 368.
  30. ^ Foscue, Virginia (1989). Place Names in Alabama. Tuscaloosa: The University of Alabama Press. p. 112. ISBN 0-8173-0410-X.
  31. ^ Bright (2004), p. 468.
  32. ^ Bright (2004), p. 475.
  33. ^ Bright (2004), p. 488.
  34. ^ Read (1984), p. 67.
  35. ^ Bright (2004), p. 525.
  36. ^ Read (1984), p. 74.
  37. ^ Bright (2004), p. 559.
  38. ^ Read (1984), p. 77.
  39. ^ Bright (2004), p. 74.
  40. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Chattahoochee River
  41. ^ Bright (2004), p. 90.
  42. ^ Bright (2004), p. 257.
  43. ^ Byington, Cyrus (1909). Choctaw Language Dictionary. Global Bible Society.
  44. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Sea Warrior Creek
  45. ^ Bright (2004), p. 431.
  46. ^ Bright (2004), p. 463.
  47. ^ Rufus Ward (February 27, 2010). "Tombigbee River: What does it mean?". The Commercial Dispatch. The Columbus Lowndes Public Library. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
  48. ^ Bright (2004), p. 558.

Sources