Talk:Wasatch Range
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[edit] Origin of the word "Wasatch"
There appears to be a disagreement over the meaning and origin of the word "Wasatch". This Wasatch Range article says, "The name Wasatch is derived from an eponymous Native American tribe in the region." But, the Wasatch County page says, "It was named for a Lite Indian word meaning mountain pass or low place in the high mountains." Neither definition cites any references.
If anybody can track down an authoritative reference on which tribe provided the word, and what it originally meant, we should cite it here and in the various other "wasatch" articles. Justin 02:57, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Frozen penis?
I would like to find some other source that says that Wasatch means frozen penis. Sounds pretty suspect to me... bob rulz 21:37, 9 October 2006 (UTC)
- A Yahoo Answers post from a seemingly credible person says the etymology is unclear, and he believes the "frozen penis" origin to be what he called a folk etymology. Quoting John M, the Yahoo Answers respondent:
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- The word is Shoshoni and means "blue heron". The mountains were named after a prominent Shoshoni leader of the 19th century. This may also be a folk etymology, but it's what I wrote in the book "Native American Placenames of the US"
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- Here's a link to the book. Bright, William (September 30, 2004). Native American Placenames of the United States. University of Oklahoma Press, 600. ISBN 080613576X.
- The Amazon review indicates that 13 linguists worked with Mr. Bright, the credited author, to develop the text. My library system unfortunately doesn't have this book, and I'm nowhere interested enough at this time to buy it or track down a university with the text, but perhaps some other motivated Wikipedian out there is so motivated. -Quintote 23:50, 12 October 2006 (UTC)
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- I couldn't leave it alone. I suspect that further research will show that the name has several possible origins, none of which can be definitely proven. I'd also put my money on "frozen penis" being clearly on the folklore side of things, but that doesn't mean it doesn't belong on this page; it simply means it must be properly presented. So, that's what I tried to do. I also removed references to a website that told the origins of the name for lack of verifiability. -Quintote 00:40, 13 October 2006 (UTC)
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