A series on West Kootenay/Boundary place names
Last week we looked at the word formerly used to describe people from the Kootenays. Kootenaian has mostly fallen out of use since a newspaper of the same name folded in 1969.
Words derived from places to identify people from that place are called demonyms. There is some linguistic science to it, with a list of common suffixes, but many places have more than one demonym, and sometimes there is no commonly accepted one. Below is a list of those applied to our area, along with their earliest use, where available.
• Argenta: Argentan, presumably, but no examples have been found.
• Arrowhead: Arrowheadian (Used on page 346 of Pioneers of Revelstoke, published in 1986, but no examples are known prior to the community being flooded out in 1968.) Arrowheader seems like another possibility, but no examples of it have been discovered either.
• Arrow Park: Arrow Parkian (Arrow Lakes News, Aug. 16, 1934).
• Burton: Burtonite (Revelstoke Mail Herald, July 10, 1912: “Burtonites secured one first and two seconds at the sports at Nakusp on Dominion Day”).
• Cascade: Cascader (Cascade Record, June 3, 1899: “If there are any Cascaders who have not yet been upon the waters of Christina lake, they do not know what they have missed”).
• Castlegar: Castlegarian has been around since at least 1999 and is well established (perhaps modeled on Calgarian), but two earlier forms were Castlegarite (Nelson Daily News, Feb. 27, 1914) and Castlegonian (Mary Thorne writing in The Vancouver Sun, Aug. 2, 1952: “Castlegonians have reason to puff their chests with pride over their scenery …”).
• Christina Lake: Christina Laker.
• Creston: Crestonian (Creston Review, March 4, 1909: “Fruit growers further west cannot do that, at least the enthusiastic Crestonian says so …”) or Crestonite (Nicola Herald, April 16, 1909: “Crestonites banqueted Jas. H. Schofield, the Ymir member, on his return from the Victoria legislature …”).
• Fauquier: Fauquierite (Arrow Lakes News, June 11, 2015: “There were 10 guests including … a former Fauquierite from Revelstoke”).
• Ferguson: Fergusonian (Ferguson Eagle, Feb. 28, 1900: “Fergusonians are anxiously awaiting the exact results of the last shipment from the Nettie L”) or Fergusonite (Lardeau Eagle, Sept. 19, 1900: “Fergusonites are laying in their supply of wood for the winter”).
• Fruitvale: Fruitvaleite (Nelson Daily News, July 1, 1911), Fruitvaler (The Province, Dec. 12, 1996: “Trail-born Fruitvaler Adam Deadmarsh scored a goal and had two assists …”), or Fruitvalian (Kimberley Daily Bulletin, July 14, 2008: “Russia’s Sport Express Daily is reporting the Fruitvalian [Steve McCarthy] inked a two-year deal …”)
• Genelle and Glade: Both seems to lack demonyms. Geneller/Genelleite? Glader/Gladeite?
• Grand Forks: Grand Forksite (Grand Forks Miner, Oct. 9, 1897: “Alderman L.A. Manly was among the Grand Forksites who attended the Spokane Fruit Fair this week”) or Grand Forker (Nelson Economist, Feb. 16, 1898: “[T]he Grand Forkers are looking for special legislation to help them out of their trouble”). Grand Forksian never seems to have been used.
• Greenwood: Greenwoodite (Boundary Creek Times, Oct. 2, 1897: “L. Bosshart and Thos. McDonnell are among the Greenwoodites who will take in the sights at the Spokane Fruit Fair next week”) or Greenwoodian (Grand Forks Gazette headline, April 18, 1940: “Former Greenwoodian passes at Cranbrook”).
• Harrop and Procter: Harropian and Procterite. (Nelson Daily News, June 2, 2008: “Gregoire is encouraging Procterites and Harropians to get involved …”)
• Kaslo: Kasloite (Nelson Miner, Sept. 3, 1892: “And it came to pass that he took a pen and wrote therewith the name of a stranger and a Kasloite”) or Kasloian (Nelson Tribune, Jan. 19, 1893: “[N]othing but a disastrous conflagration will wake the average Kasloian up …”) or Kaslovian (Nelson Daily News, April 18, 1995).
• Kuskanook: It doesn’t appear to have a demonym, so we’ll propose Kuskanoonker.
• Lardeau: Lardeauite (Lardeau Eagle headline, Dec. 26, 1900: “What a Lardeauite in the Boundary has to say”) or Lardeauian (Nelson Daily News headline, Jan. 19, 2005: “Perilous pavement, fractured pies and one happy Lardeauian”).
• Midway: Midwayite (Boundary Creek Times, July 16, 1898: “W.B. Rickards of Rickards, Bennerman & Co., J. McNicol and Forbes M. Kerby were among the Midwayites visiting the city this week”).
To be concluded next week.
