Oregon board meets to consider new names for 'squaw' places
The Oregon Geographic Names Board meets on October 30 to consider replacements for 14 "squaw" place names in the state.

The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation has suggested new names for the 14 geographic features in Grant County. But some say the replacements are too long or too difficult to pronounce.

"I think in this day and time, it's just a name of a place," county commissioner Scott Myers told The Blue Mountain Eagle. "I had hoped we'd gotten past being 'this kind of American' or 'that kind of American.'"

In 2001, the Oregon Legislature mandated new names for all "squaw" places in the state. According to the OGNB, 47 of the 173 "squaw" names have been changed.

Get the Story:
Proposal erases 'squaw' from local terrain (The Blue Mountain Eagle 10/6)

Related Stories:
Column: Naming something a 'squaw' doesn't make it offensive (8/16)
Process to remove 'squaw' place names in Oregon moving slowly (8/6)