-------------------- gees -- king salmon ----------------------

gees -- king salmon, chinook salmon, "black salmon"

Pronunciation:
  Like "GUESS" or "GAYSS" (Listen)

Etymology:
  gees is a basic Athabaskan word for chinook salmon that is used in many of the languages from Alaska to California.

Culture:

  Gees and other salmon and steelheads were one of the most important food resources for the Naahneesh (Cahto). They would catch the salmon in large numbers with large dipnets or nets set in weirs, clean them, dry and smoke them, and then store them in large baskets. They also caught salmon by spearing them in shallow water, often from roofed platforms to provide shade so that the fish were easier to see.

  Gees is sometimes also called geeslhshing ("black king salmon") because it turns dark after a prolonged time in freshwater.
  
  In recent years very few salmon reach Cahto territory on the Eel River, thanks to various types of man-made environmental disturbance and destruction.

  The second month of the Cahto year, falling within our October/November period, is called Geesnaa', meaning "King Salmon eye." ----that reminds me, I should be keeping track of the moon and giving current month names as Words for the Day :-)

Related Languages:

  Lassik, Nongatl, Sinkyone, Wailaki: gees
  Mattole: gees-lhook'ee (lit. king salmon - salmon)
  Hupa: qehs ("hookbill salmon")

-------------------------
Sally Anderson
sally@turtlenodes.com
Cahto Language Home Page: http://www.turtlenodes.com/calath/caindex.html