ASKA OR ASCA.
Throughout North America this dissyllable is found terminating names in localities, occupied at the present day by Indian tribes speaking very different languages; and, in these languages, with the exception of such names, few analogous sounds exist. There are, besides, names terminating in esco, isco, isca, escaw, uscaw, which, perhaps, may be placed in the same category, being only accidental variations of aska, arising from a difference of ear in those who first heard them pronounced by a native tongue.
Are these names vernacular in any of the modern Indian languages? and, if so, what is their real meaning? I propound these questions for solution by any of the gentlemen at Fort Chepewyan, Norway House, &c. (since, no doubt, "N. & Q." penetrates the Far West as well as the Far East), who may feel an interest in the subject.
Apparently, they have been imposed by a people who occupied the whole continent from sea to sea, as they occur from Hudson's Bay to Yucatan, and from the Pacific to the Atlantic.
Were the American nations originally of one tongue? Humboldt, Du Ponceau, and others have remarked that striking analogies of grammatical construction exist in all American languages, from the Eskimo to the Fuegian, although differing entirely in their roots. Dr. Prichard says,—
"There are peculiarities in the very nature of the American languages which are likely to produce great variety in words, and to obliterate in a comparatively short period the traces of resemblance."—Phys. Hist. &c., vol. v. p. 317.
It may be only a curious coincidence, but it is undoubtedly true, that, with scarcely one exception, all names (we might almost say words) so terminating are more or less connected with water. The exception (if it really be one) is Masca, which I have found among my old notes, followed by the word Montagne; but nothing more, and I have forgotten all about it.
For the rest, the varieties in isca, &c., spoken of before, are chiefly to be found in the northern countries, towards Hudson's and James' Bay, &c., where the present spoken languages are the Eskimo or Karalit, the Cree, and the Montagnard dialect of the Algonkin, viz. Agomisca, island in James' Bay; Meminisca, lake on Albany River; Nemiskau, a lake; Pasquamisco, on James' Bay; then, Keenwapiscaw, lake; Naosquiscaw, ditto; Nepiscaw, ditto; Camipescaw, ditto; Caniapuscaw, ditto and river: the last five lie between the head waters of the Saguenay and the bottom of James' Bay.
Again, beginning at the extreme west, we find Oonalaska, or Agoun Aliaska, or (according to the natives) Nagoun Alaska, an island abounding in fine springs and rivulets. Nor should I omit another of the Aleutian islands, called Kiska.
Alaska, or Aliaska, a peninsula. The language in these instances is a branch of the Eskimo.
Athabaska (Atapescow of Malte-Brun), lake and river. M‘Kenzie says that the word means, in the Knistenaux language, a flat, low, swampy country, liable to inundations (edit. 4to., p. 122.). Here I repeat the question, is the word vernacular, or only adopted? In such vocabularies as I have seen, there is nothing bearing the slightest relationship to it. In one given by Dr. Latham (Varieties of Man, &c., pp. 208-9.), water, in the Chepewyan, is tone, and river, tesse.
Itaska, the small lake whence the Mississippi has its origin. The languages prevalent in the adjacent country would be the Sioux, and the Chippeway branch of the Algonquino.
Wapiscow, river. Language, Cree?
Nebraska, "The Shallow River," said to be the name of the Platte in the Sioux language.
Mochasko, "Always full;" another river so called in the Sioux. Query, Are these two vernacular? Watapan is river in that language.
Oanoska is a Sioux word, meaning "The Great Avenue or Stretch;" but whether it applies to a river I have forgotten. The quotation is from Long's Expedit. to St. Peter's River, vol. i. p 339., to which I have not access just now. Atamaska and Madagaska are two names of which I can give no account, for the same reason as stated above at Maska.
Arthabaska is (or was) a very swampy township so named, lying south of the St Lawrence.
Maskinonge (also the name of a fish) in which the sound occurs, although not as a termination, is a seigneurie on the north bank of the St Lawrence, of which the part near the river is so low that it is inundated frequently. A river of the same name runs through this seigneurie. Both the foregoing are in the country where the Iroquois language prevailed.
Zoraska, or Zawraska, name of a river somewhere between Quebec and James' Bay, of which I know nothing more, having only heard it spoken of by moose-hunters. Probably it is in a country where the language would be the Montagnard.
Yamaska, a river on the south side of the St. Lawrence, having much marshy ground about it, particularly near its junction with the Grand River.
Kamouraska, or Camouraska, islands in the St. Lawrence below Quebec, taking their name from a seigneurie on the mainland; a level plain surrounded by hills, and dotted all over with mounds. Bouchette says,—
"D'après la position, l'apparence, et l'exacte ressemblance de ces espèces d'îles en terre-firme avec celles de Camouraska, entre lesquelles et le rivage le lit de la rivière est presqu'à sec à la marée basse, le naturaliste sera fortement porté à croire que ce qui forme à présent le continent était, à une époque quelconque, submergé par les vagues immenses du St Laurent, et que les élévations en question formaient des îles, ou des rochers exposés à l'action de l'eau," &c.—Description de Bas-Canada, &c., p. 551.
There can be no doubt, if aska relate to water, that this district is appropriately named.
We may presume the language prevalent here to have been the Algonquin, since the inhabitants, when first visited by Europeans, were either the Micmac or Abenaqui, both tribes of that great family.
Still further eastward, flowing from Lake Temisconata into the River St. John, we find the Madawaska, in a country where the language was either the Abenaqui, or a dialect of the Huron, said to be spoken by the Melicite Indians of the St. John. Aska does not occur again in this part of North America, as far as I call ascertain; but on looking southward it does so, and under similar circumstances, viz. associated with water.
Tabasca, or Tobasco (for it is written both ways), a country on the borders of Yucatan, described by the conquerors as difficult to march through, on account of numerous pools of water and extensive swamps. Clavigero says the present name was given by the Spaniards; but I know of no Spanish word at all resembling it, therefore presume they must have adopted the native appellation. The language was, and perhaps is, the Maya.
Tarasca; name of a people inhabiting the country of Mechouacan, celebrated for its numerous fountains of fine water. Language appears to have been Mexican. (See Clavigero, vol. i. p. 10., edit. 4to., Cullen's Trans.; and Dr. Prichard's Phys. Hist., &c., vol. v. p. 340.)
The mention of Tarasca reminds one of Tarascon, also written Tarasca. Two instances occur in the country of Celtic Gaul; both on rivers: the one on the Rhone, the other on the Arriège.
Having for the present finished with America, one is naturally led to inquire whether asca occurs in other parts of the world, in like manner associated with water. Before doing so, however, I would observe that Thompson, in his Essay on Etymologies, &c., p. 10., remarks that "The Gothic termination sk, the origin of our ish, the Saxon isk, signifying assimilated, identified, is used in all dialects, to the very shores of China," &c. He instances "Tobolsk" and "Uvalsk." If, then, it be true that ā and āb are primitive sounds denoting water in many languages, may we not here have a combination of ā and sk?
But to proceed. Malte Brun mentions a city in Arabia called "Asca," one of the places sacked by the expedition under Elius Gallus (Précis de la Géographie, &c., vol. i. p. 179.). Generally speaking, Arabia is not abounding in waters; but that very circumstance renders celebrated, more or less, every locality where they do abound and are pure. The city, therefore, might have been notable for its walls and fountains of pure water.
Aska is the name of a river in Japan, remarkable for its great depth, and for frequently changing its course (Golownin, vol. iii. p. 149.).
In north-eastern Asia we find a river called after the Tongouse, Tongousca. Query, Tungouse-asca? and, following up Thompson's examples before mentioned, we may name Yakutsk, Irkutsk, Ochotsk, Kamtchatka, &c., all intimately connected with water. Then there is Kandalask, a gulf of the White Sea; Tchesk, another; Kaniska-Zemblia, an island, &c. In Spain, Huesca is on the river Barbato. The two Gradiskas in Hungary, &c. are the one on the Sâve, the other on the Lisonzo.
Zaleski (Pereslav) is seated on a lake; but Malte-Brun says the name means "au-delà des bois." This may or may not be the case. The sound is here, and in connexion with water. Pultusk is nearly surrounded by water, the Narew. Askersan, in Sweden, stands on a lake. Gascon,
says Rafinesque, means "beyond the sea" (American Nations, &c., No. 2. p. 41.).
Madagascar. Curious the similarity between this name of an island and the American names Madagaska and Madawaska. By the way, I forgot to notice of this last, that Captain Levinge, in his Echoes from the Back Woods, &c., vol. i. p. 150., derives it from Madawas (Micmac), a "porcupine;" whilst The Angler in Canada (Lanman), p. 229., says that it means "never frozen," because part of the river never freezes. Which is right?
Tcherkask. Every one knows that the capital of the Don Cossacks is eminently a water city. According to Pallas, the Circassians (Tcherkesses) once were located in the Crimea. They may have extended their influence to the Don, and the name in question may be a synthetic form of Tcherkesse-aska.
Damasca (Latinised Damascus) is famed all over the East for its waters. The name of the ancient city was Damas, "Le Demechk, ou Chamel-Dimichk, des Orientaux" (Malte-Brun, viii. 215.).
The modern city is said to be called Damas, or I Domeschk, though it seems more generally known as El Sham. Bryant says it was called by the natives Damasec and Damakir, the latter meaning the city (Caer?) of Dams, or of Adama (Mythology, &c., vol. i. p. 69.). Can it have once been Adama, or Dama-asca?
In Great Britain we have rivers and lakes called severally Esk, Exe or Isca, Axe, and Usk.
Axe seems to have been written Asca at one time; for Lambarde gives Ascanmynster as the Saxon name of Axminster. Hence, also, we may infer that Axholme Island was once Ascanholme. The Exe was probably Esk, i.e. water, or river: it certainly was Uske. Iska is the British Isk Latinised by Ptolemy; for Camden says Exeter was called by the Welsh Caerisk, &c. Usk or Uske was written Osca by Gyraldo Camb. (See Lambarde.)
Kyleska, or Glendha, ferry in Sutherlandshire. Kyle-aska? Kyles (Ir.), a frith or strait.
Ask occurs frequently as the first syllable of names in England, and such places will be almost invariably found connected with water. Camden mentions a family of distinguished men in Richmondshire named Aske, from whom perhaps some places derive their names, as p. ex. the Askhams, Askemoore, &c. Askrigg, however, being in the neighbourhood of some remarkable waterfalls (Camden), may have reference to them.
Now, from places let us turn to things, first noticing that usk, in modern Welsh, means river. In Irish, uisce or uiske is water. In Hebrew and Chaldee, hisca is to wash or to drink. (See Introduction to Valancey's Irish Dictionary.) In the same we find ascu (ancient Irish), a water-serpent or dog; iasc, fish; easc (Irish), water, same as esk. Chalmers, in "Caledonia," &c., has easc or esc (Gael.), water; easc lan (Gael.), the full water.
Askalabos (Greek), a newt or water reptile; and asker, askard, askel, ask, and esk, in provincial English, a water-newt. (See Archaic Dictionary.)
Masca, the female sea-otter; so called by the Russians.
Askalopas (Greek), a woodcock or snipe, i.e. a swamp-bird.
As I said before, there are few words in any of the Indian languages of North America in which the sound ask occurs; at least as far as my limited acquaintance with them goes. The only two I can quote just now are both in the Chippeway. One only has direct reference to water; perhaps the other may indirectly. They are, woyzask, rushes, water-plants; mejask, herb, or grass. The only grass the forest Indians are likely to be acquainted with is that growing in the natural meadows along the river banks, which are occasionally met with, and these in general are pretty swampy.
We may wind up with our cask and flask. I could have added much more, but fear already to have exceeded what might hope for admittance in your pages; therefore I will only say that, in offering these remarks, I insist on nothing, and stand ready to submit to any correction.
A. C. M.
Exeter.